I can't decide whether or not I like the first season of Showtime's Sopranos knock-off, Brotherhood. On the one hand the show owes so much of its basic plot and cinematic structure to David Chase that I have trouble evaluating it on its own terms. On the other hand, as the season went on I found myself becoming frustrated with the show for reasons which had nothing to do with Tony Soprano, which I suppose is a good thing.

On still another hand, after a few episodes I found myself quite invested in the characters, and in particular in the show's primary area of thematic independence, its political corruption storyline. There's no doubt the series is easily worth a rental.

What's most surprising of all is just how little press the show has gotten. Why so little love?