“Hi, I'm Eddie. How do you like me so far?” Originally airing on Fox (before it was axed and moved to Bravo), this short-lived series--a nice blend of action and comedy--stars hunkalicious Mark Valley as Eddie Arlette, a brazen, wise-talking NYC detective whose boss sends him across the pond to work for Scotland Yard after he botches a case in the Big Apple. In London, Eddie's new coworkers include Julian Rhind-Tutt as dignified Inspector Monty Pippin by day/sassy, swinging, scantily-clothed superfreak by night; and Colin Salmon (from the last three Bond movies) as Superintendent Johnson, with whom Eddie constantly butts heads. Sienna Miller (best known as Jude Law's current flame) also stars as Fiona, Eddie's unwilling flatmate and love/hate interest. Featuring innovative camera angles and cuts (instant flashback sequences coolly help connect clues of the crime du jour), and an überhip soundtrack, the 13 episodes compiled here serve up a variety of wacky cases and subplots: from the pilot, which starts out with Eddie blindfolded in the middle of the street with a bucket on his foot walking in front of a double-decker bus, to the memorable episode “Horse Heir” (which the Parents Television Council deemed “one of the sickest things ever broadcast”), concerning equestrian thieves who employ a “filthy slut” from an ad to…um…extract the semen from a champion horse for breeding purposes. From fight clubs to private schools, Keen Eddie finds the titular antihero working both sides of the Thames (Eddie collects matches from pertinent locations and sticks them to his London map--something he also did in NYC, until the map caught fire), but while there are some funny moments here, this edgy 2003 series--collected here in a four-disc extra-less boxed set--is definitely an acquired taste. Optional. (J. Williams-Wood)
Keen Eddie: The Complete Series
Paramount, 4 discs, 577 min., not rated, DVD: $38.99 Volume 19, Issue 6
Keen Eddie: The Complete Series
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