MagneticMediaFed

Generally speaking, I like to watch television when I get home from work at night (which is typically sometime shortly after midnight), then go to bed, marinate on it a bit and write up a post in the morning. Last night, after having watched the outstanding season finale of Damages, I went to bed and had one of those really vivid dreams that more or less picked up right where the series left off. Based on my dream I’d like to say to the suits at FX that a second season could be really cool (especially if it involves Patty throwing me in a trunk). More after the jump…

(more…)

I’ll tell you what, gang. Damages is a hard show to warm to, but sticking with it was probably the smartest thing I’ve done all year. Part of the problem is it’s really hard to see where they were trying to go in those first almost half-dozen episodes or so, and even if you got the sense of a bigger picture it seemed like they couldn’t possibly pull it all off. Well, after last night’s (sorry, I gotta say it) tour de force episode I believe — good god do I believe. More after the jump…

(more…)

I missed recapping last week’s episode, which in hindsight was a mistake as the hour was so absolutely jam-packed with plot and reveals it might have been a high water mark for the series. I suppose this is to be expected. Being the ninth of thirteen episodes dramatically, the series reached that emotional climax. From here on the story will unravel to its inevitable conclusion (a conclusion that is still a mystery at this point, but which is quickly approaching). The brilliance in last Tuesday’s episode came a lot from the editing, and the jumping around on the timeline. This week, things were much more straightforward, though obviously building upon the events that had just transpired. More after the jump…

(more…)

This is what happens, Larry…

I really love the way Damages is able to tell a fairly complicated legal mystery while keeping the individual episodes focused with laserlike precision. Last night’s, for example, had a lot happening but basically dealt solely with one character, Larry, the long-time Frobisher employee on the take (now from both sides). His thoroughly depressing manipulation by both sides of the case was then paired against a perhaps too preachy plotline involving Ellen’s parents and their own legal troubles. The overall story was pushed forward significantly (including another look at that ambiguous scene last week involving the maybe-death of Greggory Molina) but also managed to keep Larry front and center. It doesn’t hurt that everything here seems to be connected — or at least it won’t hurt if they can bring this all together by season’s end. More after the jump…

(more…)

Head games.

Kind of a clunker of an episode this week, marred by far too many head games and far too little action. Sure, the story progressed, but only in the sense that we’re now certain of what we already suspected: everyone is playing everyone else — a sentiment that became abundantly clear about thirty minutes into the first week’s episode. More after the jump…

(more…)

Ah, the pinewood derby. Simpler times, no?

There were two interesting things going on in this week’s episode of Damages on FX. The first was Arthur Frobisher’s futile attempt at saving his name. With the help of a ghostwriter he gets a publishing deal so that he may get his side of the story told. Unfortunately, the publishing company is far more interested in his side of the accounting scandal that’s at the crux of the series. Arthur is more interested in telling America about his childhood and how he overcame his dyslexia. More after the jump…

(more…)

Let’s rob Aurthur Frobisher!

Damages continues to be a pleasant summer distraction. This is especially true this week with the the addition of a fairly thin Donal Logue as Tom’s exercise/lawyer friend. His energy provided a needed bit of juice to a story that has way too many hot and cold moments. More after the jump…

(more…)

Are people still watching this?

When Damages premiered a month back I found it compelling enough to keep recording it each Tuesday on my DVR, though clearly not compelling enough to actually watch those recorded episodes. Thanks to some free time over the weekend I was able to catch up on the past three weeks worth of episodes. The results were mixed. The series has moments of brilliance. Unfortunately, the meat of the episodes has a tendency to drag. This is due largely to the thoroughly underwhelming supporting cast reciting some of the cheesiest non-procedural dialogue this side of Knots Landing (full disclosure, I’ve never seen Knots Landing, but it was the funniest TV show name I could think of at the moment). Despite the dialogue being (more or less) crap, the plot is as twisted as the wreckage of Oceanic 815 and because of that, it always ends with you interested in seeing another episode. More after the break…

(more…)