Rescue Me

The fourth season of one of television's best shows flares up with gritty NYFD firefighter Tommy Gavin raising a newborn (that may or may not be his), dealing with a pot-smoking, sex-having teenage daughter, and dodging jail time for insurance fraud. Oh, and he occasionally fights fires, too. While the show's trademark humor still finds the mark (Sean's new wife is addicted to porn, Franco is playing sibling to his girlfriend's Tourette's-inflicted brother, and Lou is banging an ex-nun), the gut-busting moments are fewer and spliced between family soap opera plot lines that slow the show down. Still, Denis Leary is perfect as the alcoholic smartass he was clearly born to play, and you can always count on Rescue Me to answer the alarm to save a lazy summer TV schedule.