David Kronke was appointed Mayor of Television after a bloodless coup in 2000. Since then, he has improved infrastructure, championed greater educational opportunities and fought for reforms that have utterly erased corruption and incompetence from the television industry. Since Mr. Kronke has ascended to power, Television is a far better place. "Damages:" All things must pass
Last week on “Damages,” really-focused psycholawyer Patty Hewes (Glenn Close) somewhat incomprehensibly turned down an offer of $850 million from Arthur Frobisher (Ted Danson) in her class-action suit against the guy Ken Lay always wished he could be (Ted Kennedy, too, based on a plot twist revealed in that episode) – incomprehensible, since a couple of weeks ago, she was looking at, at best, a settlement of $200 million and maybe nothing, given how all her witnesses kept dying or disappearing or getting discredited.
At a rare face-to-face, she told him in the most civilized snarl you could ever imagine, “I want you to feel the disgust in your children’s eyes when they look on you in shame.”
Arthur replied: “Well, this has been lovely.” Because that’s just the kind of guy Ted Danson has artfully made him.
So this week, the theme seems to be breakups. But then, when an episode opens with Ellen (Rose Byrne) and her doomed fiancée getting aggressively busy in Patty’s summer home and he imagines Ellen is Patty (ick? not because Close isn’t hot or age-appropriate, but because of whatever twisted psychological processes created that suggestion), perhaps that’s all for the best.
Meanwhile, we’re getting closer and closer to linking the two narratives – the flashbacks on the Frobisher case and Ellen’s getting in deep lawyerly sh!t over the murder of aforementioned doomed fiancé – and, at this point, everyone’s pretty much getting sick of everyone else. Ellen’s shelf life at Hewes & Associates may be expiring, even before that whole arrested-for-murder thing. The show’s opening theme’s lyrics – “When I am through with you/There won’t be anything left” – are seeming less like a threat and more like prophecy.
Episodes from the upcoming season of “Nip/Tuck” arrived today in some particularly splashy packaging, and while ordinarily that wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing, this time it is, only because it serves as a reminder that the first season of “Damages” is wrapping up soon.
- “Damages:” 10 tonight, FX.
Comments
David,
I thank you for your continued interest and excellent, thoughtful coverage of FX shows (I read you consistently!)-- but I have to point out to you that the 850MM settlement offer you refer to above happened in the context of a dream sequence. Frobisher is clearly depicted waking up from the dream in which he and Patty Hughes dance and "negotiate."
Thanks for watching and enjoy the ending of the show (I say with absolute confidence it is worth the investment of viewing time.)
John Landgraf
Posted by: John Landgraf | October 2, 2007 7:58 PM
Mr. Landgraf,
It's not so clear if you step into the kitchen to get some paper towels to clean up a glass your dog overturned.
Ah, who am I kidding? You're right. My bad. Keep up the good work.
Posted by: The Mayor | October 3, 2007 1:56 AM