“You know, I’ve only been alive for six weeks, and I know nothing of the world outside this dog’s stomach…but I still find Six Feet Under pretentious.”
- worm inside Brian’s stomach, Family Guy
You know the drill: summer T.V. is awful, nothing is interesting, nothing is on. Whine whine whine. I’m right there with you, and I’m here to help. Don’t resign yourself to last season’s reruns and the weekly installment 
of Burn Notice. (I don’t care if Bruce Campell is in it, it’s still terrible.) I’ll recommend some shows that you might have missed, and are out on DVD now for your enjoyment.
Six Feet Under
This may seem like an odd choice for summer T.V. But death plagues us year-round, and it’s never uninteresting. Six Feet Under is the story of a family who runs a funeral home – and it is, at times, much more lighthearted than you’d expect.
It is the brainchild of Alan Ball, who is responsible for that pile of cinematic tripe that some people call American Beauty. American Beauty is practically the dictionary definition of “pretentious,” which is why I was inclined to believe the Family Guy quote above. But after watching the first two episodes – yes, only the first two – I’ve completely turned around on Six Feet Under.
The first episode brings the family together – sanctimonious and disturbed mother Ruth, sons David and Nate, one conflicted yet devoted to the business, the other a prodigal who finds the whole thing sick, and sister Claire, who cares mostly about getting high. On Christmas Eve, they must unexpectedly deal with the death of their patriarch.
As someone who always managed to avoid the whole funeral ritual, I find it fascinating to watch the whole thing unfold. Everyone sitting around and pretending not to be grief-stricken or bored, complementing the mortician on his work (WHAT?), consoling people they barely know. It’s a strange world that we all tend to buy into. When Nate describes a foreign funeral with women unashamedly keening over the casket, it does sound much better – yet David counters that there is a reason we do this, and people want to grieve in private.
So far, Six Feet Under is funny, fascinating, and a very real look into the lives of ordinary people and how they deal with some of the most difficult emotions that a human being can face. Michael C. Hall, now of Dexter fame, is perfect as the “stable” one of the family who keeps everything bottled up inside, while secretly carrying on a gay affair with a police officer.
It’s a show that can be funny, but also very sad and hard to watch. Ready yourself for an emotional roller coaster, and then check out Season One of Six Feet Under on DVD.
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