There has always been a solid reason to feel sort of guilty about watching "Entourage."
Like its feminine forebear, "Sex and the City," it concerns the lives of four privileged, spoiled white people doing their damnedest to get laid regardless of the consequences. What makes "Entourage" a far better show (in terms of quality, not ethics), is that it smacks of realism.
While "Sex and the City" never asked how a newspaper columnist could afford shoes that would feed a third world country (not the shoes themselves; their cost) or, for that matter, how an attorney could spend approximately 20 hours a day just hanging out with her friends, "Entourage" avoids these lapses in logic by keeping the movie shoots to the breaks between seasons.
What we're seeing, in terms of Vince Chase's (Adrian Grenier) down time, is fairly realistic for an actor who can pick and choose his roles.
This doesn't soothe a guilty conscience, however. This season, we may get to see the premiere of Johnny "Drama" Chase's (Kevin Dillon) TV show "Five Towns," and there is definitely hope in the hearts of "Entourage"'s fans for its success.
How does that make us look? We are deeply emotionally invested in the triumph of a spoiled pretty boy who, when not acting, cooks for his younger, more famous, brother.
Vince, meanwhile, has to make a tough decision. His new agent is very attentive and caring, but out of the blue his old agent, Ari Gold (Jeremy Piven), sends a script his way that Vince has wanted for a while, but had thought was off the market.
We, of course, want Vince to get the role he wants.
Ari, of course, wants desperately to get Vince back. Ari is a low-down, no good, rotten, conniving weasel who had Vince act as guest of honor at his daughter's Bat Mitzvah. He also strings along a Robert Evans clone for hours just to get credit for a script that wasn't his, continually degrades all those around him, and isn't above insulting gays, women and racial minorities.
But the audience, needless to say, feels emotionally invested in this slimeball's success and wants to see more of him onscreen.
It is guaranteed that within the next three episodes he and Vince will get back together; the audience demands it.
E (Kevin Connolly), Vince's manager, is the one decent character on the show. He's completely unselfish and sympathetic. He doesn't tomcat like his friends. He's intelligent and efficient. He's a man of his word.
Needless to say, he's the most boring character on the show. He doesn't ever act wacky and he doesn't charm, but without him, Vince and Turtle (Jerry Ferrara) would be completely bankrupt.
So why do we watch "Entourage"?
It's hilarious, for one thing. The new season is no exception.
The characters, despite their shortcomings, are somehow very endearing and we root for them.
But now, in a time when Ed Norton asked that they eliminate gift bags from the Oscar ceremony, how do we justify this celebration of affluence?
In some ways, this show actually works contrary to so much of the studio system in its first 50 years.
Then, actors were expected to be rich, classy and faithful; today, those expectations are all but gone. The show deconstructs the power of the icons we see onscreen all the time.
The show is based on the experiences of Mark Wahlberg (who is also one of the show's executive producers). We should all make the leap and think that maybe Mark Wahlberg is an insensitive sex fiend, because we've gotten too used to giving celebrities too much credit.
They are just regular people who get too much money and act irresponsibly with it. And frankly, they might be hilarious.
