What I'm Watching -- Las Vegas; Plus: David Copperfield Commentary

It's an all Las Vegas blog entry, as I just finished watching tonight's episode of NBC's Las Vegas and I just finished reading about the alleged sexual assault committed by Las Vegas legend David Copperfield.

Las Vegas the television show first, as it really is hitting its stride with Tom Selleck replacing James Caan. Tonight's episode, a murder mystery surrounding Selleck's billionaire casino owner AJ Cooper, was one of the strongest of the season so far (though, admittedly, the season is only a few episodes old). One of the things I thought the show would miss is James Caan's toughness and seriousness, which really grounded what could otherwise is a pretty outrageous show. Tonight's episode though, showed that Selleck's Cooper, while not quite James Caan, is no pushover either. I think that was important. And anytime a Bar Mitzvah plays a central role in an episode, that's cool with me. Though, I have to say, it does seem like whenever a Jewish couple is played for comedic relief on a television show, the easy, or maybe lazy, thing to do is have them speak almost exclusively in a sort of English/Hebrew/Yiddish-slang. While I like throwing a Yiddish word into a conversation as much as the next guy, it's not something that dominates a conversation. A word here or there, we don't need to get hit over the head with it.

Now, to the serious Las Vegas story, as illusionist David Copperfield is being investigated for an alleged sexual assault in the Bahamas. The FBI raided Copperfield's Las Vegas magic warehouse (which, I saw a tour of on Copperfield's DVD (David Copperfield - Illusion), and it's very very cool, with all sorts of historic magic memorabilia and artifacts, and apparently, $2 million in cash, which the FBI seized) and they continue to investigate the allegation. First, I don't really understand seizing the money. Taking computers, I can see, because they may have evidence of Copperfield's whereabouts or evidence of the alleged attack or contact Copperfield may have had with the accuser, but what does $2 million in cash have to do with anything?

When I heard about this accusation, I was really disappointed. I know an accusation is a long way from being charged with a crime, which is a long way from being convicted, and a long way from actually being guilty, but I have always been a big Copperfield fan. I'm not a big magic guy, but Copperfield was always just "cool." I remember watching, as a kid, one of his specials where he was in a straight-jacket, wrapped in chains, put in a locked safe, and put in a building which was about to be imploded. Somehow, in three minutes, Copperfield escaped, unharmed. The video is embedded below.

So Copperfield could cheat death, he was engaged to a Supermodel, he could saw people in half. Did I mention he was engaged to Claudia Schiffer? A few years back, my senior year of undergrad, my friends and I went to Las Vegas on the way home from seeing Michigan play in the Rose Bowl against Texas (we won't say what happened in that game, but needless to say, there's a reason why Vince Young is Vince Young, and why Lloyd Carr is, well, Lloyd Carr) and one night a bunch of us chose to hit up some Vegas shows. Two of my friends went and saw Blue Man Group, three went and saw Ka, MGM Grand's Cirque du Soleil show, and I went and saw Copperfield. Sat first row too. While not nearly as entertaining as Jay Leno (whom as I wrote about in August, was the best show I've ever seen) the show was really cool. A Chevy Impala appeared out of nowhere, and Copperfield did a number of interactive tricks with the audience, where he seemingly knew what the audience was going to say before they said it. Pretty cool stuff. Copperfield's DVD, David Copperfield - Illusion, is awesome too. Not only does it contain video of all of Copperfield's historic tricks, it contains a commentary track where Copperfield explains the origins and setups of all his famous illusions. Sadly, he does not explain how he walked through the Great Wall of China or how he made the Statue of Liberty disappear.

So obviously, I'm a fan, which is why the allegations are so distressing. I'm so used to athletes and actors and actresses being disappointments, and flouting the law or the rules of the game (as the case may be). But, David Copperfield allegedly sexually assaulting a woman in the Bahamas? Just another possible example of a childhood hero turning out to be a vast disappointment. Hopefully though, these allegations turn out to be false. It's important to remember these are just allegations, Copperfield has yet to be charged with a crime, and it certainly has not been proven that he committed a crime. Time will tell.

What I'm Watching -- Las Vegas Season Five Premiere

Last night was the season premiere of NBC's vastly underrated Las Vegas and after having to wrap up last season's explosive season finale and deal with deal with the departures of James Caan and Nikki Cox the show did a great job of bringing everything together in its two-hour season starter.

I liked the debut of Tom Selleck as the new owner of the Montecito, but I still think that the show will suffer from Caan's absence. The way they handled his characters disappearance, vanishing from the hotel after being sought after for killing Mary's abusive father, was well done, and hopefully he'll be back in some guest spots from time to time. I also like how they aren't just shaking off Sam's escape from her kidnapper. Her suffering some after-effects from that episode makes sense, and I'm glad they just didn't blow things off and have her return to normal like nothing happened.

This seems like it will be a good, albeit different, season of Las Vegas without Caan but with Selleck. You can already tell, though, that they want to establish Selleck's character as someone who has his own way of doing things, and shaking things up among the remaining cast should be a good thing as the season continues.

NBC's Las Vegas Turns to Tom Selleck to Replace James Caan

NBC's television show Las Vegas is looking for a new owner for its Montecito hotel and a big-name actor to replace the big shoes of departing Montecito President Ed Deline (played by the great James Caan) as this year's season finale was Caan's last as a cast regular. And according to the Hollywood Reporter, they may have found their man in Magnum PI himself, Tom Selleck.

When I first wrote a blog entry on the season finale of Las Vegas back in March, I speculated on the future of the show since it was announced that both Nikki Cox and James Caan were leaving the show and would not be in the show's upcoming fifth season. I wrote then (and still believe now) that Caan's character was the heart of the show, and really grounded what could otherwise be a very immature and outrageous show, and I wasn't sure how the show would be able to replace him. After all, they tried an "evil/misunderstood/controlling owner" before with Lara Flynn Boyle but her character was a flop and was eventually killed off. But, not willing to make the same mistake twice, the Hollywood Reporter reports a big name is in talks to take over for Caan.

Emmy winner Tom Selleck is in discussions to join NBC's "Las Vegas" as the fast-paced drama's new leading man.

He would play the smart, powerful, fun-loving new owner of Montecito Resort & Casino, a new character designed to fill the void left by the recent departure of the show's star James Caan.

Selleck is a perfect choice and I think has the chance to save the show from itself in Caan's absence. And I'm not just saying that because Selleck always wore a Detroit Tigers hat on Magnum P.I. While Selleck has not had a regular TV role since Magnum, his appearances on Friends and Boston Legal have been great. Despite only being a guest star on both shows, his character(s) were incredibly memorable and enjoyable.

What was great about Caan's character on Las Vegas was that he had the authority, just from being James Caan, that he could always bring the rest of the younger cast in line. While Selleck's character would undoubtedly be much different than Caan's, he brings that same gravitas that would force the audience (and the other characters on the show) to take notice, and it would add a very interesting dynamic to the show.

Las Vegas needed an acting giant to take over for James Caan for the show to retain its credibility, and if they do cast Selleck as the Hollywood Reporter insinuates they will, it will be a giant step forward. All I ask is that he brings the Detroit Tigers hat back, at least for one episode.

What I'm Watching -- Las Vegas Season Finale

Now that's how you write a season finale that really puts pressure on the bosses at NBC to give you a fifth season to tie up some loose ends. This post contains discussions of tonight's season finale of Las Vegas, and also discusses news regarding the cast of Season Five, so if you haven't seen the finale yet, or don't want to know who may not be returning to show next year, let me refer you to my MLive.com Detroit Tigers Blog which contains no discussion of Las Vegas or television (cheap plug -- I know).

Now, as for that season finale, I'm not sure you could have fit more loose ends in one hour of television, and leave more threads dangling for next season. Mary's abusive stepfather shot dead without it being clear who (Ed, Mary, or Danny) pulled the trigger. Sam being kidnapped and Mike being unable to find her in time before she was flown out Vegas (next time try a phone call to the airport or FAA, that may work). Delinda being pregnant and then possibly injured in an explosion inside the hotel. Ed potentially buying the hotel or retiring and leaving the casino world behind. And the Montecito Hotel being robbed. I think that covers everything. Oh, and Danny may be headed back to Iraq, forgot about that one for a minute.

I'm a big fan of Las Vegas, and not just because it stars Nikki Cox, Molly Sims, and Vanessa Marcil. It's a fun show (immature at times, sure, but mostly in a harmless way) and is usually pretty entertaining. It has that right mix of humor and action/adventure, and while it isn't a procedural show like Law & Order, it isn't nearly as involving as shows like Lost or 24 or Prison Break. I watch enough of those shows, so it's nice to have one I can just sit back and watch mindlessly for an hour. And the acting and storylines are usually pretty good.

How the writers are going to get themselves out of the mess they find themselves in after tonight's season finale is going to be interesting. Especially with news coming out last week that both James Caan and Nikki Cox won't be returning for Season Five. According to the reports, Caan chose to leave to peruse feature film roles, which is where he became famous. And while I can't blame Caan for choosing to leave, I don't think the show will be the same, or as successful without him. A lot of shows have an older, mentor-type character for a group of more immature 20 or 30-somethings, but Caan was more than that on Las Vegas. He was in many ways the heart and soul of the show, and grounded it in a lot of ways. And he played the character so well. You could completely buy him as this old-school, no-nonsense casino manger. I would imagine the show would focus much more on Josh Duhamel's Danny, without Ed there to guide him, I don't know how well that would work. And if they try to bring a replacement in, to fill Ed's shoes and at the same time cause tension with Danny, that likely didn't work. That was a similar role Lara Flynn Boyle tried last season, and it was a dramatic failure.

As for losing Nikki Cox, it comes at an odd time because her character was just starting to get really interesting. After playing this sweet, down-to-earth, girl-next-door who just happens to look like, well, Nikki Cox, for three seasons, Nikki's character really grew this year. She became more assertive, got a bit of an edge to her, and the storyline with her testifying against her stepfather, and the resulting aftermath, showed some dramatic range which was impressive. There was also a certain balance between the Cox, Sims, and Marcil characters which will be missing now.

I don't know if Las Vegas will be the same next season. Las Vegas without Ed Deline is just going to be strange. And without Nikki Cox's Mary, the show may be imbalanced. Or, maybe, like a lot of shows which lose central characters (like ER) it will bounce back without much of a hit. Either way, the exciting and cliffhanging season finale ensured it will be a long spring and summer as we await to find out the fate of all our favorite Las Vegas characters, and learn how the Las Vegas writers work themselves out of the corner they wrote themselves into. And that's all one can ask for from a great season finale.