Rescue Me: Guts (2004)

Rescue Me showed up on the queue under the mistaken impression that it was the firefighter show that filmed its headquarters in the Badge Building. Turns out that was a show from 1999 called Third Watch. This, rather, is a post-9/11 acerbic take on firefighters. It isn’t necessarily directly about PTSD, though it’s obvious a number of them are suffering, but it seems more because their respective support systems are corrupt and selfish. The central theme seems to be one where firefighters refute the Hero complex and that they’re only able to not be completely self-destructive when they’re in fires (not “at work”, as it shows that a large part of a firefighter’s day is about sitting around waiting for something to happen). Tommy Gavin, 14 months sober, begins seeing ghosts from his past – his cousin who died on 9/11, a girl with a kitten, so he falls off the wagon. It’s a good show – funny, and not quite as centered on the past as I thought it was going to be. I’m sure there’s a central scene coming up where they address 9/11 en masse, but it really does seem rooted in characters. Worth checking out on Netflix streaming, if you’re looking for something.