Catching up with “Damages”
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…
The real reason to tune in is Glenn Close, who is good as expected (I preferred her on The Shield but hey, beggars can’t be choosers), and Ted Danson, who is utterly brilliant. Danson makes the show. It’s a shame he isn’t in it more. If the focus were on his character and not on Close’s it could have become a Tony Soprano-caliber character. Instead, he’s relegated to just a few scenes each week – though often the best scenes of the week. He plays the bad guy, but plays him as a regular Joe who just happens to be filthy stinking rich and likely cheated thousands of employees out of billions of dollars in retirement money. His on-screen kindness is seriously alarming given the gravity of everything else on the show, ultimately making him one of the most sinister villains on television.
The story itself is packed with cliffhanger endings and plot twist after plot twist, so you’re always on your toes. As a mystery it delivers. The events surrounding the trial are certainly mysterious (a principle component to a mystery), and the flashbacks — rather flash-forwards — provide a perfect ending point for the season (though leaving little room for a second). Maybe second season’s are overrated. Perhaps the future of television isn’t long-running series that last for years and years but limited run series that could go for ten or thirteen episode (longer than the standard television mini-series).
I’m compelled to watch the series, especially now that we’re off and running plot-wise. Like many series that are good (but not great) the problem with Damages is actually just starting it. Once in, it’s easy going down, but with so much worthy programming on television, Damages simply isn’t powerful enough to make it to the top of the list. Still, it has made the list. Look for future episode recaps in weeks to come.
