After a few years, I've finally finished the entire series of Nip/Tuck and it's a mixed bag. From season 1-2, you won't get one complaint out of me. The characters were complex, the writing superb, and the acting beyond stellar. We shouldn't care for confused, privileged Sean, Christian, and Julia, but somehow, we do. It's the writing and acting that take this far above your standard night time soap and into something far deeper and more meaningful. This is a show that has an awful lot to say and doesn't apologize for any of it.
The show reaches its pinnacle with the introduction and storyline of Ava Moore (a brilliant and sexy Famke Jansen). The Ava storyline, in fact, is so fascinating and unique that it ends up making everything that comes after it feel bland.
After a genuinely wicked season 2 cliffhanger, the show returns for season 3 and gets off to a rocky start with a confusing dream sequence, but after that, the show gets back to normal and is better than ever...until the reveal of the evil Carver. It's so dull and obvious from the get-go that you just have to sigh and hope for something better next season.
Unfortunately, season 4 is when the show really starts to fly off the rails. Season 4 amounts to what is basically a series of (fairly amusing) celebrity cameos. Everyone from Brooke Shields to Catherine Deneuve to Rosie O'Donnell shows up while our three leads suffer a series of dull story lines.
Season 5 has the show move out of Miami and to LA - the plastic surgery capital of the world. This sounds like it could be interesting, but by this point, it seemed like everyone - writers, directors, and actors - had checked out and were just there for the paycheck. Besides a creepy, unexpected turn by Sharon Gless, this entire season is truly unmemorable.
The rest of the series hits a series of depressing lows before it tries to redeem itself by bringing back fan favorite, Ava, for the final two episodes. Sadly, even that feels half-baked.
Basically, bask in the brilliance of season 1&2 (and they really ARE brilliant), give 3 a watch, and then call it a day.
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