Just hearing Jane’s Addiction “Superhero” instantly gives me a dopamine dump and brings me back to a simpler time. Entourage first aired on HBO 15 years ago yesterday, July 18th, 2004. Big Z and my affinity for this show is no secret as its been prominently referenced on The 300s many times over the years. Entourage really was a perfect storm for a lot of guys my age. It premiered in 2004 when I was 15, which is ironic because the running joke is that show is only funny to 15 year olds. Well, I’m a grown ass man and I still will sit down and throw on a couple random eps of Entourage every now and then. The show was a mega hit on HBO, but never really found its footing in syndication. I know Big Z argues its because the show’s plotlines are too short and scattered for one random episode here or there to really make any sense unless you’ve already seen it. A procedural this is not.

Now, I say this without a drip of sarcasm or embarrassment, but at one point in my life I had both this poster

as well as this poster

scotch taped to my dorm room walls.

An excellent show, for the first few seasons at least, that would NEVER get made today because 1.) It ripped on Hollywood elites like no one had before and 2.) the PC Police would shut that shit down before they even filmed the pilot. Can you imagine a show getting greenlit today where Jeremy Piven tells his gay assistant that he looks like Michelle Kwan in drag? No shot.

A lot of people say shows like this don’t age well because there are definitely some homophobic, misogynistic, insensitive tones throughout the series, but thats bullshit. The show was made in 2004. It made jokes about what played in 2004, not 2019. So its not really fair to criticize a TV show for that. Christ, just look at the racist shit Archie Bunker used to say on All in the Family while laugh tracks boomed in the background. But again that show first aired in 1971 so its not really fair to scrutinize it the same way you would today.

Anyways, call it frat boy comedy if you want, but the show did win six Emmys, including three by Jeremy Piven for the iconic role of Ari Gold. Along with the Simpsons, and Seinfeld, Entourage is one of the few TV shows that I still quote to this day in just about any situation.