The TV Series Every Man Watches When They’re Getting Dumped Or Divorced

I recently had a talk with some of my friends. We’re all in our 40s, we’ve all been through ups and downs in life, and when we talked about what we did during those down times, there was one surprisingly consistent answer: We watched Burn Notice.

The USA original series about a spy “burned” by the CIA and has to find out who betrayed him doesn’t have the same drama as its contemporaries, Boardwalk Empire, The Sopranos, or Breaking Bad, but that’s what makes it a great show to binge when you need a distraction. It’s lighthearted, it knows its goofy, and it has a sense of humor about the absurdity of the premise with constant narration of spy tips and tricks that will land you in the hospital or jail if you ever actually try them.

Burn Notice stars Jeffrey Donovan as Michael Westen, the former CIA operative, trapped in his hometown of Miami with the warning that if he pokes his head out of the city limits, he’ll be killed. Working with him are Fiona (Gabrielle Anwar), his IRA ex-girlfriend with a talent for explosives, Sam Axe (Bruce Campbell), his old buddy and a former Navy SEAL, and Michael’s mom, Madeline Westen (Sharon Gless, not a stranger to procedurals thanks to the 80s hit, Cagney & Lacey) retired, chain-smoking, and willing to help out with Michael’s latest scheme. To a point.

With the exception of a few episodes each season that focused on the overall plot of Michael unraveling a conspiracy, Burn Notice’s episodes were centered on someone approaching him for help. He’d go undercover with the worst cover identity and accents imaginable, and somehow they’d take down a drug dealer/terrorist/corrupt politician/stock Hollywood villain, usually involving sleight of hand and explosions.

After the first three episodes, you know the rhythms and story beats that you can expect over and over. That isn’t a knock on the show; it’s what makes it such a fun watch.

While listening to Michael explain how to get around a bullet proof door (the wall isn’t bullet proof), using phone books to make your car bullet-resistant (later tested by the Mythbusters, and amazingly, it works), send the annoying guy as a distraction and not the attractive woman, or the classic, “a clipboard is as good as a skeleton key,” it’s impossible not to snicker a little and roll your eyes. Jeffery Donovan leans into the spy narration with the seriousness of David Attenborough narrating Planet Earth.

The actual episodes themselves will start to blend together if you’re binging, but there’s still a standout moment or two in each of them. The parade of recognizable guest stars keeps things moving along.

Battlestar Galactica’s Tricia Helfer is even more evil and manipulative during Season 2 as Carla then she ever was as Number Six. Another Cylon, Lucy Lawless, appears as an assassin. Danny Trejo is a gang leader convinced Michael is the Devil, and the list goes on, including Robert Patrick, Patton Oswalt, Michael Rooker, and Burt Reynolds. Typically, the guest star is the villain, and they somehow believe every absurd lie of Michael’s cover story, but whether it’s Season 1 or Season 6, it’s a blast every time.

Burn Notice was part of USA’s fantastic Blue Skies era, which focused on bright, blue sky backgrounds, big, larger-than-life characters, and a sense of lightness and optimism through each of the shows. It went on to include White Collar, Royal Pains, Fairly Legal, Covert Affairs, and In Plain Sight.

Compared to the run of dark antihero shows following in the wake of Breaking Bad’s success, with shows like Westworld, Silo, or Succession (great shows, but not the easiest to binge when you’re already feeling down in the dumps), the Blue Sky era lineup is a breath of fresh air.

If life’s getting you down, turn off your brain, relax on the couch, and toss on Burn Notice. You deserve to relax for a while and let Michael Westen’s awkward accents wash over you like a sonic wave while Bruce Campbell dazzles at his very non-Sam Raimi best.

These days, you can find Burn Notice streaming on Hulu and Disney+.