Hung - TV Fanatic

Hung Season Finale Review: An Attempt to Change

d4cella@gmail.com (Dan Forcella) — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 09:41:09 EST

I'm still waiting for something entertaining to happen on last night's season finale of Hung, "Even Steven." A few of the characters' lives are currently in flux, but for my money, I'd bet that things return to the status quo for season three.

Ray sort of quit his life as a male prostitute with Lenore, but now that Jessica has decided she needs to be alone, give it a week or so and Ray will be back turning tricks for that quick buck. That's how Hung has worked so far and I don't expect it to be any different next year. The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Jessica is the only one on this show that I can get behind, especially after this finale. She showed actual growth in her decision to not get back with Ray after deciding she needed space from Ronnie. She took what her kids said to her about always needing a man in her life to heart, and is now out to be her own woman for a while. Good for her.

Tanya continues to irk me, no matter what she is doing. She's trying to get her life together at the end of this season, as she asks her mom for her money from the dinner back. She's prepared to give back what she owes to Francis, and prove to Ray that she's a good person, but I'm not buying it as a change. We've seen her waffle from decent to crazy before, so I suspect her to go nuts the next time we see her.

What will the third season bring? Will any of these changes made by the characters stick? Can Hung be a show if Ray isn't a prostitute? I absolutely think so, but you never know.

Other Thoughts:

That was just way too weird when Damon put his hand on Tanya's leg.
Speaking of weird, Ronnie in the back of the car with the HJ? Come on now, we didn't need to see that.
Ray's baseball team is in the playoffs apparently, and so my hatred for any talk of sports on this show continues. Oh, your team made it to the playoffs because you and Mike care more than any other coaches?!? Then how come you never ever spend any time thinking or talking about it? Every single high school coach I had was more into it than you Ray. You must have some really good players.
The montage near the end of the episode was some of the best work I've seen on this show.

Hung Review: "Fat Off My Love"

d4cella@gmail.com (Dan Forcella) — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 10:34:15 EST

Last night, I was at a get together with some classmates of mine and the topic of TV, specifically HBO, came up.

One guy mentioned that he was enjoying Entourage this season, but Hung was pretty much worthless. Honestly, I have yet to hear from anyone that they enjoy watching this show, and last night's episode, "Fat Off My Love," most likely did nothing to change that.

There were two scenes worth watching this week. The first was Ronnie making a fool of himself at the awards banquet. This idea has been done over and over again on TV and in the movies, but it never gets less funny to watch someone look like a complete idiot when they're receiving an honor.

This part worked on two levels. Not only was it the only humorous moment of the episode, but it moved along the only plot line of the series that I'm interested in. If Ronnie finally making a complete ass of himself in front of all of those people is exactly what Jess needed to leave him for good, then I'm on board with it.

I'm not sure what made Ray so bad during their first time around, but it couldn't have been as terrible as this Ronnie dude. By no means does swimming in a lake naked together mean that Ray and Jess are getting back together, but it certainly could. Of course, this was the second scene worth watching.

Compared to all of the other females on the show, it seems that Jess is so nice and always thinking of others. It was great to see her just let loose and do what she wanted to do at that exact moment. And that was to go swimming with her ex-husband, so good for her.

I said it before but if Jess and Ray do get back together, I think it could be a nice twist for the series. Does Ray continue to work as a prostitute while with her? He would have to now that he's lost his job, right?. And then there would be the risk of her finding out and him ruining everything. The stakes would be higher, which could make things more interesting for the viewer

The rest of the episode was so uninteresting to me. I am so tired of Tanya's shtick it is incredible. If I see her get shocked and run away when someone comes into the room one more time, it will be one to many. Oh and hitting horny Patty with the belt, and it seeming like everyone was afraid of her? Ridiculous. Sociopath or no sociopath, she's a little girl with an even smaller belt. Grab it from her and tell her to sit down. She'll be quiet.

We only have one episode remaining in the season. What is Ray going to do about losing his job? How is he going to make things good with his friend Mike? Can Tanya get back in with Ray? Where will Jess and Ray end up? A lot of things are up in the air.

Hung Review: "Third Base or That Rash"

d4cella@gmail.com (Dan Forcella) — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 10:09:44 EST

It's Alumni Day at West Lake High School, which means it is time for Ray Drecker to relive the glory days during this week's episode, "Third Base."

The problem is that Ray doesn't want to relive the glory days. The guy doesn't want to be reminded of the times when he had his whole life ahead of him. He thought he was going to be someone important. Maybe he was going to be a professional ball player. Maybe he was going to be married to his high school sweet heart for the rest of his life.

The reality is that he's a high school teacher and part time gigolo; not the life he imagined as a teenager.

That didn't stop him from fighting through an injury and knocking a tipped pitch out of the park during the Alumni Game though. It was nice to see him succeed, even if he had a little help from the opposing pitcher. As he rounded the bases he looked happy, even though his shoulder was absolutely killing him. But hey, if putting on his old uniform and hitting a homer will get Jessica to smile and do a cheer for the family, Ray will play through the pain any day of the week.

Speaking of Jessica: She has some sort of rash that she also had right before she left Ray three years ago. Ronnie claims it is back because Ray has come back in her life, but the better answer is that she is unhappy with her marriage to Ronnie. We all would be happy if she left Dr. Skin and accepted that she should be back with Ray.

This show needs a new obstacle and Jessica would be perfect for it. If she leaves Ron and wants to get back with Ray, that would cause a major conflict in his prostitution. How does he continue to do this if he has such feelings for his loving ex-wife? We need to rock the boat somehow.

Unlike Ray, who continued his good work as a prostitute with the pregnant woman, Tanya continues to spin in circles. She screws up the Francis and Mike situation and is now out of clients. Come on! I either need some continued growth, like we've gotten out of Ray recently, or I need her to fall flat on her face.

If Ray just fired her as his pimp, what would she do then? She'd have to make such marked improvements to win him back. That is something I'd be intrigued by. Her continuing to do a little better then reverting back to her awful pimping ways, is getting tiresome.

Not only was Tanya running in circles this week, she was also running around the baseball field. How incredibly uncomfortable was that scene to watch? I felt so bad for Mike. The dude had no idea what was going on. And then there was Tanya running around the diamond like a chicken with her head cut off. Yeah go climb that fence in right-center field. That's a good idea.

There are only two episodes left in Hung's second season. What changes will we get before the season ends? Will Jessica and Ronnie ever split up? Will Ray fire Tanya when he finds out she didn't give the money back to Francis? We shall see.

Review a series of Hung quotes from the episode below:

Ray: I watched the ball fly and I watched it fade, and everything stopped. And as home grew closer and my team waited there for me to cross the plate I realized...that my shoulder was f*cking killing me. | permalink

Jessica: Don't you wanna know why I'm unhappy?
Ray: You're unhappy? | permalink

Francis: I'm a person, not an ATM machine. | permalink

Damon: I peed on home plate, I'm not a vandal. | permalink

Ronnie: You never notice guys like me and now guys like me...we rule the f**kin' world. | permalink

Hung Review: "The Middle East Is Complicated"

d4cella@gmail.com (Dan Forcella) — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 10:46:54 EST

With only three episodes remaining, we're coming into the final stretch of Hung's second season. After failing with yet another client early in this week's episode, "The Middle East Is Complicated," Ray seems to finally learn a lesson that may allow him to become better at his job.

Lenore finds Ray another new client, and he promises to not f*ck this one up because he really needs some regular clients. The client is Simara, a middle eastern woman who cooks some ethnic food for Ray during their appointment. Ray, trying to fit in with the situation, explains that his Israeli neighbor brings him her hummus all the time. This strikes a nerve with Simara and causes a riff that marks the end of her time as a client.

Meanwhile, the lovely Mrs. Koontz gets mad at Ray for taking Simara's side in the hummus argument, but not as angry as she gets when she finds out her husband has been sleeping with prostitutes.

It's quite the awkward situation when she trashes on the "dirty whores" her husband is seeing right in front of Ray. The irony involved, as she vents to the male prostitute that she sleeps with regularly, causes Ray to have to down few beers.

Later on that night, Ray hears Mr. Koontz out on his backyard bawling his eyes out. He gets out of the tent that he still sleeps in at night, brings Mr. Koontz some beer and lets him vent as well. Never did I ever think that Mr. Koontz would be the one to show Ray the way to being a better, more productive prostitute, but that he was. In his explanation of why he's sees hookers, Mr. Koontz gave Ray plenty ideas to make his client feel special.

The episode ended with Ray back with Liz, showering her with compliments. I can only hope this is an improvement in Ray that sticks for a while. It would be nice to see him excel at his profession for awhile, before another problem occurs that will hinder his performance.

Meanwhile, Tanya and Lenore are still fighting with each other, and dealing with the whole Francis situation. The stress built up over the fact that she wasted all of her money on her mother's dinner, and that Francis is seeing Mike without paying, has driven Tanya up the wall.

She continues to see her pimp friend Charlie, who offers to sleep with her to relieve some tension. After denying the proposal at first, she accepts and seems to be ready to make things right with all that have done her wrong.

Lenore is also on the verge of setting things straight. According to her thoughts at book club, "if there was an Apocalypse, and a guy and his kids crossed her path, and she was hungry, she would hunt them down, rip them limb from limb, and she would saute them with some kale and a light white wine sauce...because that's what's gonna happen to people who try to take what's mine."

This was, of course, in response to finding out that Francis has been working with Tanya behind her back. She can't take it all out on her client, so she releases her anger on the entirety of the book club. Scary stuff.

What's next for our Detroit friends? Are we creeping closer to another major battle between Tanya and Lenore? Will Tanya ever be able to gain the advantage? Will Ray build on his latest revelation and keep some regular clients? We will see in the final three episodes of the season.

Hung Review: "Beaverland"

d4cella@gmail.com (Dan Forcella) — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 10:51:02 EST

This was probably my favorite episode of the season so far. We got a lot of great stuff from all of the characters, minus Damon and Darby.

Let's start with Ray. He gets hit with this bomb that Francis, the great Moby Dick, doesn't want to meet Richard. Instead she wants to pay $1,500 for a weekend with Mike Hunt (sorry, I have to write his full name at all times from now on). Ray argues with Tanya about the situation, claiming that Mike Hunt isn't going to want to be in the business.

He and Francis hit it off, and maybe they should give the money back and see if the two of them can make it on their own. Now was Ray really looking out for his friend, who finally has a spring in his step? Or was Tanya correct in thinking Ray was just upset that Mike Hunt was bringing in more money than him and he didn't want the competition? Probably a little from column A and a little from column B.

If it weren't enough that Ray was getting looked over for Mike Hunt, his confidence took another blow when Lanore's new client (she just keeps bringing them in with ease) was completely unsatisfied by Ray's abilities in bed. Maybe it's time for Ray to hang it up. When has this guy ever kept a woman coming back?

Now high on the fact that she made a big $1,500 score, Tanya wants to share it with the world. She meets up with her male pimp friend, who treats her to a wonderfully loud necklace from a pawn shop. She immediately re-gifts the necklace to her mother.

Tanya is so desperate for attention from her mom that she gives her this hideous chain at a celebratory dinner and continues to blurt out how expensive it was. After these efforts fail to get mom's attention, she pays for the entire $840 dinner with her big wad of straight cash, homey.

If having a lot of money isn't working with mom, I doubt letting her in on the secret that you are a pimp would do much either. I'd just let it go, Tanya.

On the other side of town, Jessica is having an issue with beavers. She wakes up in the middle of the night to find one causing a raucous in the basement. When Ronnie makes his way down to the basement to assess the situation, he finds no beaver and hence doesn't believe there ever was a beaver. If this guy is so threatened by Ray, why doesn't he stop acting like a jerk all the time and focus on keeping his wife?

Ray offers to come by with some beaver traps and after a while of delaying Jessica finally accepts. You can easily see her love for Ray is still in the air when she asks him to change his shirt so it isn't inside out. Yeah I see what you were doing there, Jess. You're not fooling anybody with those old tricks. Ronnie comes into the situation a few minutes too late to witness the shirtless Ray, but still isn't happy to see the two of them together in the woods.

Jess is still meeting with her good friend Lanore, much to Ray's dismay. Lanore promises him that she would never reveal the partnership they have going to Jess, but that is immediately more difficult when she let's slip that she knew Ray's house was burnt down. Her way out? Admitting to Jessica that she has the hots for Ray.

Was this just and excuse, or does she actually have feelings for her gigolo? When she showed up at Ray's door at the end of the episode, was that still a front? Or was she really putting the moves on the man? We shall see.

Hung Review: "A Man, A Plan"

d4cella@gmail.com (Dan Forcella) — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 15:46:40 EST

Hung has gotten to the point where it is starting to explore its minor characters. Last week it was Damon, and in last night's "A Man, A Plan" it was Mike Hunt.

Is this the first time we've heard Ray's assistant coach's last name?

I know it's the first time I've picked up on the fact that his name is Mike Hunt. It must be tough for this guy to pick up the phone without thinking it's a prank call.

Now I'm all for some development of these smaller roles, but I don't know if it is the way to go on a show like this. What are there ten 25 minute episodes?

That's not enough time to develop auxiliary characters and continue on with the progress of the likes of Ray, Tanya and Jessica. We're half way through the season and not enough has happened with our main cast.

From last week, and the rest of the series, we learned that Assistant Coach Mike Hunt is a lonely man. He is 55 years old, single, and about to get fired from his teaching job.

Mike was last seen at a singles mixer in which he had no luck, so when Ray asked him to substitute for him on his appointment with Francis, he stepped right up to the plate.

Seriously Ray, what do you think this is a 90s sitcom? Oh I'll just have my friend fill in for me on my date. This won't be a problem at all. Well as it turns out, Ray didn't ever make it to the restaurant, where he would have undoubtedly made it awkward for everyone.

Instead Mike's pinch hit appearance was a success. Strangely enough, Francis asked for a second date with Mike. Now does she want dinner again, or does she want the whole shabang? Obviously Mike has no idea what is going on here.

Meanwhile, Damon take Darby to the poetry bar so that she can hear him perform his new poem, "Sack." It is both fantastic and disturbing. I, like Darby, was completely embarrassed for everyone involved. But Tanya was right that it shows how much this kid loves his twin sister. Does he love her a little too much? I think so, but who am I to judge?

To get over the fact that Darby didn't like the poem, Damon throws down three pot-filled scones like he's Homer Simpson with doughnuts. He inevitably flips out and causes Ray to cancel his appointment with Francis. Paging Mike Hunt. Paging Mike Hunt. You are needed at the dinner table.

Will next week focus more on our major players? Will we maybe get a full on Darby-centric episode? What is Francis expecting from Mike? Can we expect any type of change in the Lenore/Tanya/Ray relationship any time soon?

There's half of a season left. Let's see how it all turns out.

Some Hung quotes from last night ...

Tanya: The paper bag thing... it's for the birds. | permalink

Patty: This one time I was on a diet pill and I stayed up for 67 hours... I lost three pounds. | permalink

Damon: I was thinking maybe I should take out the part about the gum, but I'm not sure. | permalink

Tanya: I myself was involved in a program, Poets In Schools. It's kinda like blood... for the soul. | permalink

Ray: What do you always say?
Mike: I wanna f*%k Rhonda Barr? | permalink

Mike: One kid wrote 'I hate Mr. Hunt with a passion that burns like a thousand suns.
Ray: That's teaching. Some kids are gonna hate earth science no matter what you do. | permalink

Hung Review: "Sing It Again, Ray"

d4cella@gmail.com (Dan Forcella) — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 10:27:39 EST

The episode "Sing It Again Ray," took a bit of a break in the fight for pimp supremacy and instead was more heavily focused on Damon (or the relationship between Damon and Ray).

The installment opened with the high school outcast acting out a pitch and a hit on his dad's baseball field, and then peeing on home plate. Like Tanya, I really saw this as a metaphorical piece. Damon was taking his anger out on his father by peeing on his precious home plate.

Although Tanya saw it the same way I did, and compared it to a wonderful piece of art, Damon said he just drank a lot of pop.

Was he being truthful in his explanation of the incident? Or was it just another example of Damon not being able to communicate with his father? It has to be a little of both right? The kid doesn't like baseball, so why else would he be out there?

The imaginary game he was playing by himself could have been his way of connecting with his dad. Once he came to the realization that he was only playing imaginary baseball, he took out his frustrations with both his father and the rest of his life by urinating on home plate. Then again, maybe he just drank a lot of pop.

It was nice to see Damon smiling by the end of the episode. Tanya's idea to take him to the Slam Bam Poetry Jam really panned out for everyone involved. First of all, Tanya's poem went over swimmingly with the audience. Secondly, Damon seemed to enjoy the environment and stayed longer when he could have fled the scene with Ray.

And finally, Ray seemed to gain some points with Damon for bringing him to the event. So it was indeed a win-win... win.

In the recent past I have complained about Tanya's lack of improvement as a pimp, but it continued to irk me again this week. Am I supposed to believe that capturing this "Moby Dick," as she calls Francis, is such a big deal? It is only one client after all, and she kind of fell ass backward into the deal.

Until she proves that she can regularly get Ray clients, he will continue to need Lenore. And this plot line will continue to run in place.

I didn't review the first season of Hung so I don't remember if this has happened a lot already, but this week's client did absolutely nothing to move any plot lines along.

It's as if this meeting between Ray and the birthday girl was solely in the script as an excuse to show full frontal nudity. Oh yeah, and to hear Ray's beautiful singing voice. Yup. Sing it again, Ray.

Hung Review: "Mind Bullets"

d4cella@gmail.com (Dan Forcella) — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 09:42:19 EST

This week's episode of Hung went by quicker than Usain Bolt running the 100-meter dash.

Comedies feel just right as a half hour show, but since this series doesn't feel like a comedy, the 24 minutes of running time leaves me needing more. There just isn't enough development here for a drama-esque show.

On "Mind Bullets," we start with Ray trying to connect with his kids while taking them on a jog. I was going to begin by complaining that the relationship between Ray and the children is so drastically different than in season one, but then I realized something: They're teenagers.

It's in their nature to change so quickly. Because the two of them are currently going through major problems with kids at school, they're relating it to their father and taking it out on him.

The kids explain to Ray that he wouldn't have been friends with them in high school, so Dad tries to prove them wrong. Just like Jessica did last week, Ray tries to connect with his kids the only way how. In his case, it is showing off his one "interesting" friend and repeating things she says.

Tanya chose a foreign film for Ray, Damon and Darby to join her at. When Ray asks her why she chose it, Tanya replies: "There's a deeper meaning...look for it." When Darby asks the exact same question of her father, he states "There's a deeper meaning...look...try to find it."

Although he might not have accomplished anything this week, Ray was kind of on his game from a comedic stand point. My favorite was later on in the movie theater when Tanya's new dog wouldn't stop barking and he let out: "Come on! People are trying to sleep in here."

I didn't want to have to mention the Tanya and Lenore battle in this week's review, because they're storyline continues to be the same thing over and over again, but I already mentioned the dog so here goes:

Tanya once again gets frustrated by Lenore taking advantage of her. Instead of screwing her out of commission, this time the red-headed beauty broke into Tanya's house and stole her brand new, Lanvan sweater. Tanya once again seeks advice from Charlie the Pimp at the doughnut shop. He tells her to f*ck with Tanya by shooting her "mind bullets."

When Lenore puts the stolen sweater on in front of Tanya, all bets are off and she is ready to shoot as many mind bullets as she can. Her revenge is to steal Lenore's little dog, Horny Patty. Again, this is the type of fighting we've seen so many times before. And when Tanya goes back to return the dog, Lenore opens the door with a new dog, Horny Patrick.

Those mind bullets brush off Lenore like she's the Smoke Monster from Lost.

With all the craziness of Tanya and Ray, Jessica is slowly but surely becoming the heart of Hung. Once again she had me eating out of the palm of her hand as she struggled with her marriage. She's desperately fighting the urge to leave Ronnie, because she doesn't want to get divorced for a second time, but who could blame her.

This guy is incredibly lame, starting to become mean, and is losing money hand over fist. I want her to leave him, but I don't want her to go back to Ray, either. She's a complex woman in a complex situation.

The episode concluded in the parking lot of the bowling alley. After Jessica called Ray to see why he wasn't there, he came running to console her. While the two of them were catching up, Lenore showed up. She quickly introduced herself to Ray as if they were meeting for the first time.

Now that many of the cards are out on the table, where will this go? Will Lenore continue to work with Jessica? Will she want her to get with Ray? There are a lot of directions in which this could go.

Hung Preview: "Mind Bullets"

matt@mediavine.com (Matt Richenthal) — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 08:53:02 EST

On this Sunday's new episode of Hung...

... Ray sets out to prove that he isn't an insensitive, stereotypical jock.

... More problems arise for Jess and Ronnie.

... Tanya seeks out advice from Charlie.

There will likely be a decent amount of sex on "Mind Bullets," too. Check out the following preview for the episode:

Mind Bullets Promo

Hung Review: "Tuscon Is the Gateway to Dick"

d4cella@gmail.com (Dan Forcella) — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 08:50:45 EST

After what seemed like a promising first episode of season two, Hung now feels like its running circles after "Tucson is the Gateway to Dick." There are so many situations in this series that just keep coming up time and time again, and at points it feels like it has run its course.

Let's start with Tanya and Lenore fighting for power within Happiness Consultants. Even before they became part of a three-person team, these two were bickering about the right way to do things.

This week, the pair were courting an older woman named Francis. Lenore referred to Tanya as her intern while trying to provide a romantic getaway to Tucson for Francis. Tanya, on the other hand, blurted out that she could provide "pure sexual pleasure.... guilt free." And of course screaming and fighting broke out between the two of them afterward.

I thought the idea of the last episode was that Tanya was going to be getting better at this occupation. Did she learn nothing from the male pimp other than to cook Ray hamburgers and bring him beer? If she continues to not really know how to deal with clients, this story is going to continue to run in circles.

Speaking of not getting any better, Ray once again showed how bad he is at being a prostitute. Instead of simply pleasuring the pregnant Claire, like he learned how to do last episode, he now wants to give her relationship advice.

Sure, maybe there is a shortage of upscale male whores in the Detroit area, but you gotta figure he's getting bad reviews around town. There's only so many times he can butcher an appointment before Happiness Consultants goes out of business.

And then there's the lovely Jessica. Of the three story lines, hers is the least tiresome for me. She seems to be growing a bit as the weeks go by. She always seems to be having trouble dealing with her kids, but at least she's putting in the effort to make it work.

Take this week, for example. Yeah, she might have a ridiculous time understanding what her daughter is going through, but at least she's trying to be there for her. Darby's trip to the fat women movement was probably a surprise to Jessica, but she attempted to support her the only way she knew how.

A few more notes from "Tucson is the Gateway to Dick."

While I am upset that Grandma, the kids and Ronnie have screwed up Ray and Jessica's date night, I'm glad that it seems it might lead to the ridiculous encounter that will be Ray meeting up with Jessica as a client. If Jess continues to be with Ronnie, and have troubles with her kids, she's going to give in to her needs at some point.
Tanya just continues to irk me every step of the way. Sure, Lenore is a mean and terrible human being, but that's entertaining at least. I can't stand watching Tanya be so awkward every second she's on screen.
We again got to laugh at the uncomfortably at Thomas Jane playing a baseball coach. It just seems so off that I'm surprised they haven't fired him yet.

What did you think of the episode? Check out a few of our favorite Hung quotes from it now!