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After playing Doctor Frasier Crane on television for 20 years, it was hard to imagine Kelsey Grammer in any other role. Yet as Chicago Mayor Tom Kane in Boss, Grammer has moved on and created another very memorable character. The second, and apparently final season of the Starz series has just been released to DVD by Lions Gate Studios. Although Boss never caught on in a big way, it was an excellent show.
The title Boss refers to Kane’s position as Mayor of Chicago. He is doing everything he can to hang on to his power, and it is not an easy task. He is not only fighting in the political arena, he is fighting his own body. You see, Kane has been diagnosed with a neurological disorder, which leads to dementia. In fact, he is in the early stages of it as we first meet him. The Mayor is keeping the situation a secret from everyone around him, except for his own physician. The people closest to him, including his wife and his advisors are basically too wrapped up in their own lives to notice what is going on. There are things that happen that can not be so easily dismissed though.
Boss got off to a great start, back in October 2011, with the initial episode being directed by Gus Van Sant. I believe it was a bit a of a stretch for Starz to produce an original program like this though, however good it turned out to be.
Chicago has always had a reputation for ruthless politics, and in Boss many of the scenarios seem to be ripped from recent headlines. Even though the storylines are fictional, these events are great fun to watch. Grammer remains phenomenal as the Mayor, it is little wonder that he won the Golden Globe for best actor in the role in 2012. I think he was even better in the second season of the show, but I am not one of the voters.
Awards or not though, Boss went out on a high note. There is talk of a film, to tie up the loose ends, and that would be a nice thing to see. Actually, another season of the show is what would be ideal, but that is not going to happen. The ten one-hour episodes that comprise Boss: Season Two are collected in this three-DVD set. As Mayor Kane himself might say, it was a great run.
