Burn Notice returned for a fourth season in June, but fans of the show (new or old) can catch up with a refresher course by watching Season Three in its entirety, new to DVD from 20th Century Fox. Jeffrey Donovan stars as the spy-turned-private citizen Michael Westen, a smooth-talking, fashionable-dressing killer who provides the voiceovers for our spy tutorials and leads a "team" of former spies in an attempt to clear his name while taking down various criminals. Donovan's latest project, after stints in Changeling and the USA version of Touching Evil, shows off his ability to blend drama, action, and humor to keep even the skeptical audience entertained.

I've seen the show off and on but I'd never seen more than two episodes in a row before reviewing the third season. Given that the writers have been given forty-plus episodes to develop what's going on, there's a significant amount of backstory involved, a mythology for the down-to-earth spy business that Westen is involved in through the seedy underbelly of Miami. Westen is joined by his old handler/observer Sam Axe (Bruce Campbell), who provides plenty of comic relief as only Campbell can while romancing desperate women for their finances and support. He's romanced by his ex-lover Fiona Glennane (Gabrielle Anwar), who is sexy, saucy, and quite deadly when it comes to taking down a bad guy or anyone who comes too close to her man Michael. And, though I wonder what category to put her in, Westen must also deal with the musings and interventions of his mother, Madeline (Sharon Gless), who is especially peeved to begin the third season after her house was blown up to create a diversion.

The USA spy show is action-packed, shot fast and loose, with a soundtrack that fits in the hip and hot underbelly of Miami that it's going for. This is not CSI: Miami with Horatio Caine's goofy one-liners and signature "snap off the sunglasses" move; no, this is a tongue-in-cheek sometimes, violent-as-it-needs-to-be take that will appeal to a younger subset of the thrill-seeking audience. Is it silly or goofy sometimes? Yes. But there's a blend of funny and serious that the show achieves in its third season that I found sometimes painful in the first season.

Speaking of blends, it's hard to miss the blend of self-involved and self-sacrificial that Michael Westen provides us over the course of a series or a season. When we first met Westen, he was completely isolated and solely interested in protecting himself and defending his name. Two years later, different episodes have specific people that Westen risks himself to help, sometimes because and old friend shows up, sometimes because one of his "teammates" suggests it, and sometimes because his mom somehow got involved. All of that revolves around the spinal cord of Westen's status as a burned agent, and all of that comes back to that even after the individual mission is over.

Now, in Season Three, Westen's problems grow as "Management" pulls back, and he becomes exposed to more of his enemies from the past and the local authorities also become aware of him. Considering that most of what he does is illegal in most states, Westen now has a host of different folks breathing down his neck, including the lovely Detective Paxson (Moon Bloodgood) and the morally ambivalent Tom Strickler (Ben Shenckman) who want Westen's abilities at their disposal. But isn't that why Westen became a spy in the first place, the love of the rush and the thrill of the hunt? Too bad that more often than not, he's the hunted.

While Burn Notice operates in that morally ambiguous water between Miami and the islands off of the coast, it really has a heart and soul that goes after truth and justice while navigating the tricky waters of family and friendship. Seriously, what do you do when trying to balance work and relationships and find yourself in over your head? Taken out of context, that question applies to all of us, doesn't it? Maybe we're not sporting the fancy clothes, cars, and guns that Westen does, but we're trying to navigate the world we live in, while seeking to experience meaning in relationships and our faith in people and things which often let us down. We might not live the fast-paced life of Michael Westen but our internal struggles are not too far removed.

The DVD packaging includes a behind-the-scenes look at the stunts of Burn Notice and their visit to the San Diego Comic Con, as well as all sixteen episodes to grab your attention and make you laugh as well.