I’m just so excited that Human Target was renewed that I could give Glee‘s Rachel a run for her money in an enthusiasm contest. This was the only bubble show I gave a hoot about this season. Though it didn’t grab me right away, Human Target slowly sucked me in with its over-the-top action and the interactions between the three male leads. And to top it all off, it’s Mark Valley‘s best role since Keen Eddie.
What’s this Keen Eddie you speak of, oh TV blogger who loves the elusive? OK, I admit it didn’t last long (only 13 episodes back on 2003-4), and if more of you had heard of it we might still be watching this gem today. But until Human Target, Mark Valley had played no better role than Eddie Arlette himself.
Keen Eddie was part cop show, part sexual tension (think Castle), part quirky (think Ally McBeal) but mostly a pure original. Eddie was an American cop being punished with a stint in London because he botched a huge drug bust, reluctantly sharing an apartment with the beautiful Sienna Miller (enter sexual tension). Colin Salmon‘s Superintendent Johnson is no less than awesome, his partner, Monty (Julian Rhind-Tutt), a complete sexual deviant, and every encounter with the secretary at the station was a bit uncomfortable for Eddie, seeing as he heard dirty sex talk instead of an appropriate greeting from her … every time … but no one else did.
One of the best parts was Eddie’s signature line: “I’m Eddie — how do you like me so far?” In fact, in the episode of Human Target when Chance pinned down the woman he was searching for to tell her that her mother sent him, I pictured him saying, “I’m Christopher Chance. Your mother sent me — how do you like me so far?” Alas, the shout-out never occurred.
This show was so uniquely funny in such a subtle-yet-obvious way and the cases were so quirky that every episode was a complete winner. Where else can you find an episode about stealing race horse sperm, or watch Eddie get repeatedly sucker-punched? And when poor Eddie got home from a long day like that, he’d get lip from his sassy roommate and her super-geek boyfriend, Nigel. You only think you’ve seen chemistry if you haven’t seen Mark Valley and Sienna Miller together….
Did Keen Eddie fail because it was ahead of its time? I like to think that’s it, along with the fact that FOX shoved it in as a summer series before it was all the rage to have summer series. The quirky style is more accepted now than it was seven years ago, and we’re actually accustomed to new programming in the summertime these days. Yep, ahead of its time in so many ways.
If you missed this one the first time around, take a look. If you’ve got a sense of humor and adventure, you won’t be disappointed. I really think this is one of my top ten favorite shows of all time. Hmmmm … now there’s a fun summer post for me to write….
Clacked by Debbie McDuffee
on May 20, 2010 @ 13:59 EST5EDT
I would completely agree, and also put Keen Eddie on my list of all time favorites. Everything about the show was so well done. Great casting, even for the guest spots. Fun writing with really inventive cases. Perfect balance of action and comedy. And most of all, Mark Valley IS Keen Eddie.
HT got renewed?
w00t!
Awesome!
I’m the Anti-Bob! Stuff I write about gets renewed :-))
I watched long ago when it 1st aired and loved it. So much that when I was on vacation I stayed in the hotel room to watch the new episode (this was before DVRs were common people) instead of doing vacationey things. However since it was cancelled I never really gave it much thought until now. I may have to track down the DVDs. Is it even on DVD?
Not only is it on DVD… if you click the little picture at the bottom of the post you can secure a copy of your very own from Amazon for the low, low, price of $25. It’s a steal. :D
I have this bookmarked for a while on my phone to check out. I think I heard about it in a Human Target post or something.