I first became aware of DPB back in the early 80's. All of you over 40 remember Magnum P.I. fondlingly uh, I mean fondly I'm sure... There was a drama where the hero was real enough that he could be the guy next door - and you wished he was... You could imagine playing monopoly (or twister) and drinking a beer with him on a weekend... Tall, handsome, he had a real man's chest... not the pasty smooth skin you see on today's baby chested heart-throbs... And he had some friends who were not hard on the eyes either... You could believe they were friends by the smooth banter... And yet - they always came through for you in the end. (unless you were one of Magnum's lady-loves - then you would die.)
Next DPB came up with Airwolf... Ah, Jan Michael Vincent in his prime... yessssssss... Here was as intense a hero as James Dean's Rebel Without a Cause - only this guy had a cause... Bring his MIA brother home from Nam... Seemed like a good idea - steal a top secret government helicopter and use it to blackmail the government into finding out what happened to his brother - of course the Government realized it could be very usefull to have him with his stolen helicopter do "jobs" for them and yet disavow any knowledge of his escapades... (and that was before we even heard of George W...) Too bad there are only so many ways a guy with a stolen helicopter can save the world... p.s. his lady loves didn't fare any better than Magnum's...
Then there was Quantum Leap... This was DPB's lightweight entry. The unlikely hero. The geek who could jump into anyone's life/body and "set things right"... I liked QL because - well, who hasn't looked at another person and wondered what it would be like to walk in their shoes? And Scott Bakula tried so hard, he made you root for him. At least he didn't have any lady loves that had to die... He could love 'em & leave 'em...
Then came JAG... Now I must confess that I hadn't gotten into JAG... (sorry jag fans) But I did discover the spinoff NCIS! - Lions and Tigers and Bears. Oh my. Has DPB ever combined all his hero types into one show!
NCIS has something for everyone:
MMMMM, Mark Harmon still looks goooood for those of us over 40... and he's just as intense as Jan Michael ever was... Dayum, who would have ever thought??? Mr. Harmon has perfected the use of using just a hint, a nuance of facial expression to convey emotion... So we know that under his gruff, rule spouting father figure facade lies a huge, albeit broken, heart of gold. (Abby was the first person to pick up on that, but I'll get back to her in a minute.)
Um, for all of us who have eyes, there's Michael Weatherly... Lovers of Tom Selleck's boy hero next door should be ecstatic... Put a Hawian shirt on that boy and let's see some chest! But will they kill off every one of his love interests?
There's even Sean Murray for those of us who like a really cute geek... (tell me those lips aren't kissable?) Look out Mr. Bakula, Sean may follow your footsteps and become yet another captain of the Enterprise! I'd volunteer to be painted green...
And now DPB has come up with real women heroes! Cote De Pablo as Ziva... Oh. my. god. suddenly I've turned 15 and I soooo want to be her! (Especially walking to my car at night.) And who wouldn't want to be Abby? Paula Perrette's quirky, brilliant, cute Abby... not to mention Gibbs' favorite...
AAAaaand the stroke of genius: Lauren Holly as Gibbs' boss? and Gibbs' ex wife! Love.
So here's to you DPB! keep 'em coming!
