Lately, this blog has been getting a lot more comments than usual, and to that I say “thank you.” The debates might get a little heated once and awhile, but if there’s one thing we can all agree on, it’s that we love watching “Entourage.” With that said, however, this week’s episode was a bit of a mixed bag. On one hand, we have yet another totally pointless story about Vince falling for some model, and on the other hand, we have a subplot involving Ari that could potentially transform the series forever.
Let’s save the best for last, though, and jump straight into the other half of the episode first. It’s been a long time since Vince last worked in Hollywood, and in that time, he’s turned down an awful lot of opportunities to make some fast cash. Granted, some of them (like the “Benji” film) showed real integrity on Vince’s part, but why in the world would he turn down a one-day modeling gig for Dolce & Gabana worth $1 million? He may not care about money, but one of the reasons he’s suffering through such a job drought is because he ran away to Mexico for six months. That may not sound like a very long time to most people, but in Hollywood, it’s the equivalent to being gone for several years. That Dolce & Gabana gig would have gotten his face back out into the public (or at least the people that matter), and it would have gone a long way in helping to restore his image.
Of course, he decides not to do it. Why? Because he likes the model that was fired, and instead of making a little extra cash and working on getting a job, he decides that hopping on a plane to Hawaii with a bunch of hot women is a much better idea. Under any other circumstance, it probably would have been, but Vince is supposed to be responsible these days and, well, that wasn’t a very responsible decision. He can party as much as he wants once he’s a star again, but honestly, why is he still being treated like royalty when he’s clearly far from it? Forget for a moment that the writers used this exact same storyline with Leighton Meester only a few weeks ago and ask yourself this: if it weren’t absolutely necessary to get Vince and Ari in the same room (or in this case, airplane hangar) together for the final scene, would this subplot have ever been written?
Speaking of which, if it hadn’t been ruined in the previews last week, I probably would have been genuinely surprised at Ari being offered Alan Gray’s job – and at his funeral no less. It’s just not something I ever expected from him (he seems happy doing what he does now), but if I’m going to be completely honest, I think it’s the best plot development of the whole season. It’s just too bad that it’s never going to happen. You know it just as well as I do that if Ari leaves MGA for WB, the show would lose that Vince-Ari dynamic that keeps everyone tuning in each week.
I just hope that he doesn’t turn it down outright, because I can’t believe that anyone in Ari’s position would ever pass up that kind of opportunity simply because he was friends with one of his clients. It just doesn’t seem plausible – especially when Ari could do so much more good for Vince at WB than he could in his current position. That doesn’t mean that Ari taking (and actually keeping) the job would be a bad thing either. The show has been in desperate need of some fresh blood for a while, and if there’s one person that could replace Ari Gold and help Vince become a superstar once again, it’s Adam Davies. Plus, it would give Dana Gordon the chance to come work for Ari as his second-in-command, and we all know how great that relationship is. Their conversation was the highlight of the night (“Ari, I want to be underneath you.” “Dana, I told you, my wife’s in the car.”), and it really makes me believe that this new setup would work. Now all we need is for the “Entourage” crew to man up and take the risk.
