SHOWTIME
We’re heading into a TV midseason full of debuts: Game of Thrones, The Borgias, The Killing and Camelot on cable, various replacements including Paul Reiser’s sitcom on the broadcast networks—not to mention specials like Human Planet on Discovery next month. But we still have some business to get out of the way.
Last night, we saw the end, and the beginning, of a couple of pay-cable shows about families dealing with financial extremity. Shameless—a British adaption I couldn’t warm to but others loved much better—ended its first season on Showtime. Mildred Pierce (you can see my review here) debuted its miniseries run on HBO. If you stuck with the Gallagher’s story of handling poverty in contemporary America, let us know what you thought of the ending; if you checked out Kate Winslet portraying a divorcee trying to stay afloat in 1930s America, let us know what you thought of the beginning.