Ari/Lloyd Office Rhetoric

As mentioned in a previous blog Lloyd is Ari's assistant. Ari and Lloyd have a love/hate relationship. Lloyd works very hard as Ari's assistant so that he can be taken seriously and considered for an agent position in the future. However, Ari always condescends Lloyd, even though he loves him deep down.

All of the jokes that Ari make's at Lloyd's expense are making fun of him for being gay and/or Asian. When Ari wants Lloyd to feel bad about how he handles his job he refers to Lloyd's sex life. Sexual terminology is referrenced often, and has negative connotations in connection to Lloyd. He makes fun of Lloyd for being gay and Asian in nearly every episode of season 6, he also hassles him about his weight. Lloyd always responds well to Ari's insults. He usually just brushes it off and keeps his mind focused on the task he is currently working on. Sometimes, he will even laugh or go along with the abuse.

Not only does Ari constantly yell at Lloyd, but he also talks down to all of his other employees. He makes sexist comments to female coworkers, and he does not listen to anyone else's opinions. There is a lot of pressure in the office because all of the agents are competing for clients against other agencies.

Perhaps the most interesting aspect that comes from this office rhetoric is that fact that there aren't any consequences for Ari's behavior because he is the boss. Ironically, he shows no respect to his coworkers, but expects respect in return.

The rhetoric used by Ari is what makes the show a comedy. Without Ari, there would not be any comedic relief. The show would just be a series of hookups with a movie gig thrown in on occassion. With every one-liner and sexual innuendo, Ari steals the show.

The Role of Marijuana on Entourage

The use of marijuana on entourage is prevalent but it is usually not discussed openly. Scenes that are shown with the

boys smoking marijuana are usually just leisure time while the boys are talking. The actual act of smoking the

marijuana is not discussed or heavily focused on. A fellow blogger from collegehumor.com posted, "it brings a

certain reality to the episodes because it's not the main focus of each scene, but you definitely can't ignore it's

happening."

Most depictions of fame in hollywood films often portray drugs as being heavily used and easily available. They are

always around and life centers around the drugs. For entourage, it is always around but life is not centered around

smoking marijuana.

The issue at hand is whether or not the glamorization of drugs, and marijuana in particular, affects the population

that watches these shows/movies that show the characters smoking pot. Steve Dnistrian from the Partnership for a

Drug-Free America says, "These are trendsetting shows. They affect behavior and attitudes, particularly among teens.

When glamorization of drugs has climbed, changes in teen attitudes has followed." (Steve Dnistrian was commenting

on the use of pot in Entourage, Weeds, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Rescue Me, and That 70's show during a USA Today

interview).

Jerry Ferrara, who plays Turtle is the character that is shown smoking marijuana the most. He commented on the use

of marijuana on the show by saying, "it's the choice of twentysomethings. The show doesn't condone it, but there is

definitely a lot of accuracy in how it is used."

My personal opinion is that the show is intended for a mature audience. It is on late night HBO and critics rarely talk

about the harmful effects that the show has on teens from showing prostitutes or scantily clad women. The use of

marijuana is not that much different.

Ashley

Ashley played E's girlfriend for most of the sixth season. She owns her own beaded jewelry business and spends the majority of her time stalking Eric. To sum up her character, I would say that she is an insecure, neurotic, obsessed, phsycho.

When Eric and her are hanging out she is constantly checking his blackberry and questioning every missed call and message. She even deletes voice mails from Sloan. When E tells her that is on the phone with Vince, she doesn't even believe him. She randomly shows up at his work unannounced just to see if he is at his office. To make it worse, she demands Eric's password for his e-mail so that she can keep constant tabs on him. She is jealous of Sloan, E's secretary, and all of his friends. She can't stand that his life involves anyone besides her.

Yet for some unknown reason, E went along with everything she told him to do up until she demanded his e-mail password. Although, he first considered just handing it over along with his dignity. It is no wonder that E ended up back with Sloan after dating the crazy. Sloan may not be a down to earth girl but at least she has some self respect.

I am left wondering why the women of the show that do not specifically fit into the "bitch"/"slut" roles tend to emasculate E. The only characters that are outside the gendered norms both play Eric's girlfriends, and they both make him feel weak. Maybe it is just Eric that is weak. He is unaware of what he wants and he is lonely without a girlfriend therefore he lets the women in his life push him around.

Sloan

Sloan is perhaps the only female character on Entourage that is not considered a "bitch" or "slut", and this makes her character the most interesting female in my opinion. For those of you that do not already know Sloan is played by Emmanuelle Chriqui. She is a gorgeous actress and a powerful woman on the show. Sloan works in public relations and is the daughter of Ari's former boss. She dated Eric on and off for three years.

In the season finale, Eric decides that he wants to get Sloan back because he realizes the dating scene is overrated. Of course, this epiphany came to him after he had an STD scare after hooking up with a random bar skank. Anyways, after three years of back and forth games, Sloan agreed to go for a ride with E. He takes her out for a romantic meal and drops the bomb that he wants to get back together. Sloan gets upset and demands that Eric take her home since they are now strictly friends and she has a new boyfriend. Eric refuses and takes her to the beach and then proposes to her to prove his commitment. The problem with Eric and Sloan's relationship throughout the show has been that he wasn't mature enough to commit to her. His friends and his job always came first, and she just received any attention that was left over after that. Well, Sloan agreed to marry Eric once he proved that he was willing to commit. The episode ended with a happily ever after vibe.

However, it leaves me wondering if Eric and Sloan's relationship will be any better just because he decided to propose. After all, she was dating someone else on the very day that she was proposed to. The last few years have been filled with bickering and unnecessary drama. She also played a lot of games with him, changing her mind about their relationship constantly. She always said that Eric wasn't mature enough, but it seemed like Eric was willing to do anything to be with her. He found a new job and bought his own house to show Sloan how serious he was. Even then, she still continued to see the negative. So just because he gave her a ring, she all of a sudden decides to be with him? What has really changed? This relationship seems doomed and I am beginning to wonder why the boys all love Sloan aside from her attractive looks.

Identity

During season six each of the guys learned a little more about what they want for their own lives. Before season six, all of the boy's lives revolved around Vince's acting gigs. This is the first season that each of them has decided to make plans for their own lives.

Turtle went back to school. He began college courses so that he could find a future for himself now that Vince knows how to drive. Eric became an agent at a powerful agency and is starting to sign his own clients, plus he is now engaged to Sloan. Drama decided that he can't live without acting because its a part of who he is. It actually seems that this season Vince is doing less than everyone else, and he is lonely because of it.

We have recently learned that Turtle is sensitive, Eric is in charge of his life, and Drama is confident. These are sides that we have not had the chance to see before. The personalities show depth. It has been interesting to see them each as individuals rather than just Vince's friends/employees. Now I would like to see Drama in a serious relationship because we have yet to see his love life. I would also like to see Vince in a relationship that lasts for more than a few episodes.

Entourage and Feminism

Adrian Grenier: A self-professed feminist?

This is what Adrian said to The Guardian after they asked him what he thought of the portrayal of women on Entourage:

"I’m a feminist, so if there was anything that was untrue I would be on it. But you should see some of the girls out in LA. Entourage is remarkably honest. I don’t think it pulls its punches, let’s say. There are a wide range of different types of women characters. It’s not just the superficial bimbo, although we do have a couple of them: that’s part of what the LA experience is. But then you have strong characters like Carla Gugino, who plays Amanda – she’s smart, and strong, and a great actress – those are the women that stand out to me, the rest are superficial backdrop … I probably wouldn’t hang out with those girls as much. I hang out with the ones who are smart and interesting."

Adrian received a lot of criticism for this statement, especially from fans. Upon visiting another blog that discussed this quote I found the following points of view from the comment board:

"Hey, a no disparagement contract is a no disparagement contract. I'm just focusing on the good, I guess, instead of the bad. Good = high profile male identifying as feminist." -blogger

"Not that I have any reason to doubt he's being genuine, or anything, but this quote sounds a lot like the kind of thing people decide you should say when your highly dude-ish program is criticized as highly dude-ish and found to be insufficiently attracting the young-women demographic" -blogger

"Come on, y'all, give the man a break. How many Hollywood stars even want to be considered feminist? Props for that, and ... you can't really judge him by the show. Otherwise other feminist actresses would have to be judged by the work they take, and then we'd be screwed." -blogger

Judging by the number of young women who refuse to be labeled "feminist," I'm not sure that's the most effective strategy. And since when does TV portraying women as bimbos have a hard time attracting that demographic, anyway? The Hills? Simple Life? The OC? Etc." -blogger

So the question is, was this a good career move for Adrian?

As reflected by the quotes mentioned earlier from bloggers, his willingness to be recognized as a feminist can either be looked at as a positive attribute or just a superficial means of defending his show.

While this past season does have several strong female characters, there is still a representation that the women's main role is as sex objects on the show. Therefore, it seems that Adrian's feminist statement is hypocritical. While, I find it interesting that a man in this industry would identify himself as a feminist, I feel that Adrian contradicts himself. He refers to the majority of the women on the show as being "superficial backdrop," not exactly something you would expect a "feminist" to say. The majority of his statement following, "I'm a feminist," was misogynistic. I think he made this statement because of all the criticism the show has received for depicting women so negatively. He wanted to preserve his self image and defend the show to get a wider audience from women. His attempt sounds insincere.

Maybe You Can Have It All

"Maybe you can have it all," is the series slogan. This slogan perfectly describes the theme of the show. Vince is a poor boy from Queens with a dream to make it in Hollywood. Everyone loves this kind of story in which the protagonist rises from nothing and makes a life for himself. It is similar to the fantasy of winning the lottery.

They say that Americans love to see celebrities fail. Well I say that we love to see a success story, but hollywood tragically influences people to make poor decisions. Entourage is refreshing because Vince is an actor that keeps focused and handles his fame well. Vince is a likable character because he is grounded. He remembers where he came from and he has the same childhood friends. His friends are his family and he is loyal to each of them. In the last episode of season six, he even starts getting involved with charities.

Because Vince is the star of the show and he is a good guy, viewers cheer on his success. In a society that is obsessed with fame, shows like entourage will always thrive. People like to live vicariously through Vince and they like to believe that this could happen to them. And why shouldn't they?

Friendship as the backbone for Entourage? I don't think so.

The writers of the show claim that Entourage is a show about friendship because without the emphasis of brotherhood bonding the show wouldn't be relatable to viewers. This may be true, but it is definitely not the backbone of the show. If it were just about a bunch of guys hanging out all the time, no one would watch.

The real reason that this show is so successful is because it continues to push boundaries. The guys are constantly having inappropriate sexual encounters and referencing drugs. These two things are not normally talked about and that is why it is so entertaining to watch on TV. Entourage first caught my attention because of the pure shock value. I often found myself saying, "did that really just happen?"

I will never forget the first episode that featured guest star Bob Saget. He mentioned his coke addiction and love for prostitutes. He then hooked the boys up with some action from the neighbors. And then later appeared asking Eric if he could have sex in his office in exchange for E being his agent. This was definitely disturbing to me because I always had a sentimental sense of nostalgia for Danny Tanner in Full House.

The boys are also constantly shown bonding around smoking a marijuana joint. One episode in particular shows the love they have for weed when the town goes dry and they have to go on a journey to find a sherpa so they can have their marijuana fix.

Another shocking element of the show is all the sex in random public places. It seems all Vince has to do is show up at a restaurant, store, or bar to get laid. One episode shows him with a girl he met for the first time at a bar, rocking in his escalade in the parking lot outside during sex.

The actual characters and friendships are not what makes this show popular. It is the sex and drugs that draw in viewers that are mesmerized by their ability to do whatever they want without any consequences.

Season 6 Finale

This past Sunday, October 4th was the season finale for Entourage. It was jam packed with celebrity guest appearances (Matt Damon, Bono, Lebron James) and yet I was disappointed with the way things ended. The finale was predictable and the show is becoming repetitive.

Here is a short recap of what happened on the finale: Vince got hassled by Matt Damon to help his charity for kids by donating his time and money. He left for Italy to start filming his new flick. Drama decided to return to acting and auditioned for the new Melrose Place, but was turned down. Instead he was offered a holding contract while a script is being written for him and flew to Italy with Vince in the meantime. Turtle hooked up with the college coed, but ultimately decided he wanted to be with Jamie. He hopped a plane to New Zealand to be with her, but while on the plane she told him not to come because she didn't want to date him while she was filming. After arriving in New Zealand Turtle took the next flight to Rome to meet up with Vince and Drama. Eric took Sloan out on a date. They fought the entire time and then Eric proposed to her and she said yes.

It sounds like there is a lot of content for this finale but I was left disappointed because all of it was extremely predictable. Everyone knew that Eric and Sloan had to get together for good because there can only be so much back and forth before it gets too annoying. As soon as Jamie got the part on a new series it was obvious that her and Turtle would break up. Drama had to go back to acting or what else would he do with his life? And as for Vince, what did he even do this season? He wasn't working and he wasn't dating anyone. I feel like he was barely even on the show. The few scenes that include him show him playing pool at the house or drinking at the bar with guys. I would like to see something new from Vince in the next season.

The only enjoyable parts of this episode were the celebrity appearances in which Matt Damon ruthlessly campaigned for his charity along with Bono and Lebron James. And my favorite scene in which Ari bought out his former boss's company and walked in with a paint ball gun shooting all of the "dead weight" aka people that he has hated throughout his entire career including Adam. Lloyd was offered the role as an agent for Ari's new company and he apologized for taking Lloyd for granted.

Another aspect of this episode that bothered me was the sign that Ari had made for Lloyd to congratulate him on his promotion. The sign read, "Congratulations, now you're a real Asian." Then as he showed the office to Lloyd he jokingly said, "That's supposed to say agent." The sign was offensive and unprofessional.

This show is cyclical and I'm getting bored with the repetitiveness and cheap jokes. Next season I would like to see Ari's wife have a more prominant role in a couple episodes. I also hope that they show the wedding between Eric and Sloan. Also, Vince needs to be a main character again and hopefully something unpredictable will happen on his movie set. I look forward to seeing Lloyd as an agent and how Eric will balance his life as a married man with all the guys. I hope this next season is better and the writers come up with some fresh ideas. If I had to rate season 6 on a 1-10 scale, I would give it a 6. I will anxiously await season 7 with optimistic hopes that it will be better than the last.

The Same Four Featured Characters

It seems that throughout popular television shows for and about women there are four main categories of characters: the main character, the promiscuous woman, the naive girl, and the feminist. As related to Sex and The City the main character would be Carrie Bradshaw, the promiscuous woman is Samantha Jones, the naive one is Charlotte York, and the feminist is Miranda Hobbes. In reviews there has been a link between Entourage and Sex and the City. It seems that men follow and relate to Entourage in the same way the woman have followed and related their lives to Sex and the City. Just as woman take online quizzes for 'which Sex and the City character are you?' men have been taking 'which entourage guy are you'? I can't help but wonder if there is a relation between these stereotypical characters and if male roles follow the same patterns.

In this series, it seems the same rules apply. Vince is the main character. Turtle is the promiscuous one (at least for this season). Drama is the naive one. And Eric is considered the feminist. Now this may seem like a stretch, so allow me to explain.

Vince: No one can argue that he is the main character and centerpiece of the show. Everything revolves around his life as an actor and none of the other characters would be where they are without him.

Turtle: You may be questioning why he is the promiscuous one seeing as how up before this season he didn't get much attention from girls. But now that he has a girlfriend, he has gained confidence. Women are attracted to him for the sole reason that he is dating Jami Lynn Sigler. Girls at his college pulled a sorority prank and stole his underwear from his house. Now the main sorority girl (we have yet to learn her name) has been hitting on him tirelessly. He even admitted to the guys that he has been thinking about this other girl. I can feel the drama build up as Turtle struggles to stay faithful, but lets face it...he is going to give in eventually. And in so doing a man whore is born.

Drama: He is clearly the naive one. He is stuck in his past trying to relive his fame from his since cancelled television series of the 90's. Everywhere he goes he tries to act like he is a star, but nobody actually cares. People barely remember him and the only reason acquaintances are nice to him is because he's Vince's brother.

Eric: Oh Eric, the eternal feminist. He is lost without a girlfriend. Most of his life is centered on his relationships and he just doesn't know what to do with himself when he's single. He even held on to his relationship with that stalker Ashley after she constantly checked his phone, showed up announced at his work, and yelled at him incessantly for not being trustworthy up until the point that Eric actually handed her his blackberry and let her check all of his emails. That is how much he will put up with just to continue having a girlfriend. In other words Eric may hang out with Vince, but he is definitely not a man's man.

I think it is strange that these same four roles appear not only in women's shows but men's shows as well. I think it is sad that there isn't more complexity to each of these characters and why they all can't be a little bit of everything. When these same roles continue to occur in the media, viewers will start to believe that they have to be one or the other. I would personally like to see some change and chaos introduced to these roles. What would happen if Vince could no longer get hired in Hollywood? or Turtle did become the ladies man? or Drama became famous again? or Eric manned up and stopped letting women walk all over him? Would it be an entirely different show we are watching?

Lloyd

LLoyd is Ari's former assistant. He recently quit the Miller-Gold agency to work as an agent for a competitor. Ari kept promising to promote Lloyd, but always fell back on his promise. Lloyd got sick of waiting and was offered a better deal by Adam, Ari's agent enemy. I love that Lloyd is getting more responsibility and his career is taking off. It will be great for the show because there will be a lot of competition and awkward moments between Lloyd and Ari.

Everyone knows that Lloyd got endlessly teased by Ari for being a flamboyant gay man, and I don't blame him for seeking a more professional atmosphere. Of course the taunting was done in love as a joke and it made for some of the funniest comments on the show, however it was very disrespectful.

I think it is important to have diverse roles on television because then it reflects life in a more realistic way. This includes gay characters, but I'm getting sick of the repetitive cliches, even on Entourage. I think that for America to be more accepting of gays they need to be reflected as normal people that don't perpetuate stereotypes.

Lloyd is my favorite character on the show right now and I love him for his loud clothing, endless wining, and prissy walk because it is funny, but I want to see a deeper side of Lloyd. I think this opportunity for him to be his own agent and exert more power and control in his life will help us to do that.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7z7Dcy-M5Rw

The Powerful Women of Entourage

It seems that this season of entourage is different from previous seasons in the regard that the women are being shown in more powerful roles. Of course, there is still the fair share of chauvinistic moments and young beautiful girls throwing themselves at Vince (otherwise it wouldn't be Entourage, right?) However, for this particular entry I will focus on the roles of the women that are in charge and pose a challenge to the men of the show. Let's take a closer look at the women running the show.

Barbara: Ari Gold's partner at the agency is a strong character that is in control of her business - and Ari. They may be partners but Barbara has the final say on the decisions within the company. It actually seems that Ari is intimidated by her superior knowledge of how the business should run in order to be successful, and he is constantly watching his back so as not to upset her.

Mrs. Ari Gold: Ok, she may not have her own name but she is still a strong character. Mrs. Ari has more money than her husband and she definitely 'wears the pants' in the relationship. Ari knows that his wife is a self sufficient woman and showering her with gifts won't help if they are arguing. She points out his selfish tendencies and he is always quick to apologize or he knows that he'll be on the couch that night.

Sloan: She may be Eric's ex but she is still very present in his life. Afterall, she did convince E to grow up and move out of that frat house. She even uses her connections to help get him a job at a powerful agency. Eric is still hung up on their past and is reluctant to move foreward with Ashley until Sloan is completely out of the picture. Sloan is definitely calling the shots.

Jamie Lynn Sigler: Jamie is now Turtle's girlfriend and she has him asking the bigger questions just like Sloan does to E. Turtle realizes that he doesn't want to spend the rest of his life as Vince's driver, so he decides to go back to school as prompted by Jamie. Turtle is now spending most of his time with her rather than the boys. She is another self-sufficient woman that has more control over Turtle than male viewers would like to think.

In previous seasons the women of the show were train wrecks, cheaters, or prostitutes. I'm glad the writers are finally giving the women of the show some deeper content. The plot this season has not suffered from the prevalence of these returning female characters.

Welcome to my blog!

This is my first blog entry. I started this blog for a rhetorical criticism class within the communication studies department at the University of Iowa. The assignment is to pick an artifact and critique it. Since I am a religious watcher of Entourage I decided to do my project on this tv show. Each week I will analyze the episode and specifically look at the role of women, drugs, and wealth.