Damages
Reviews

In its first two seasons, Damages spent a great deal of time on three things:

1. Patty Hewes
2. Twists
3. Turns

The show did a tremendous job building up Glenn Close's character, and then focused its efforts on fooling the audience in a myriad of ways. Episodes concluded with cliff-hangers, scenes jumped from the past to the future and back again.

It was mostly effective and interesting, but we're very glad the third season has slowed everything down a bit. By delving deeply into the lives of Joe Tobin, Ellen and, last night, Tom, Damages has revealed itself to be a truly great drama. It knows how to tell a story, not just shock it viewers.

"Don't Forget to Thank Mr. Zedeck" was a prime example of this welcome change.

When we first saw Tom's dead body on the season premiere, we were intrigued to learn how he died. Now, we're actually sad!

Poor Tom. He's always been a good father and now we see how financial constraints are taking a toll on his family. Does he arrange to have himself killed for insurance money in the future? Does that cold-hearted advisor have anything to do with his death?

We don't know at the moment, but we do know this: by dedicating chunks of last night's episode to his life, we're now fully invested in Tom's death.

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A week after singing the praises of the Tobin family on Damages, we met yet another fascinating member of this troubled unit.

On "It's Not My Birthday," viewers got to know Carol Tobin far better than ever before. This is a woman deeply devoted to her father, seemingly blind to the crimes he committed. She actually said she wishes his investors were underground instead of him.

It was difficult to not guess this was going someplace dangerous and interesting, especially after Joe revealed to her sister than their father killed himself. Does that mean we saw her murder of Danielle coming? No, that was a shocking moment. But we've had a feeling all along that Carol was someone worth keeping an eye on.

She's also one of the only characters on the show who doesn't hide her feelings or agenda. Does anyone really believe Lenny was clueless about Lou's hidden money? Or that Marilyn is simply an ignorant, grieving widow?

After watching Patty operate on a higher, manipulative plane than everyone around her for two seasons, it's been great to see other characters cause us to wonder what they know, what they're gonna do about it and how this will all play out.

We know, of course, how it will all play out for Tom. Poor, poor Tom.

Did Stuart Zedeck's associate murder him? Damages loves to throw red herrings at its viewers, but the quick shots of that man in leather gloves while sitting outside Danielle's apartment, and then of a man with the same gloves on tossing Tom's body into a dumpster, appeared to be a clue.

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Tom Shayes is dead and someone killed him. But this is why it's been an outstanding season of Damages so far:

That's not even the most fascinating storyline on the show!

Granted, that might have something to do with the fact that Tom has always seemed like a very nice, loyal guy - but has never really been fleshed out enough for us to care a lot about him. But it also has a lot to do with everything else going on.

Even the smaller plot developments are keeping us interested. On "Don't Throw That at the Chicken," we met with Michael for the first time in awhile and came away with nothing but questions: Why is he lying to his mother? Is there an actual agenda here, or does he just like being dishonest to a woman he knows is so manipulative?

That's a constant, fascinating theme of the season: by now, everyone knows about Patty. They understand she's always thinking six moves ahead and is always up to something. It's fun to watch this constant chess match between characters.

The detectives have a strategy when interviewing her; Louis Tobin thinks he can remain cool in the face of interrogation; Ellen believes she's moved beyond Patty's control and has almost turned the tables on her former boss.

We assume, of course, that Patty will come out on top in these high-stakes games, but will she? At some point, the woman will face defeat - and that point appeared to have arrived at the conclusion of the episode.

Then again, we've watched Damages for long enough to spot a likely red herring and to wait before jumping to any conclusions about Patty's involvement in Tom's death.

But the main reason why this has been such an enjoyable season? Two words: The Tobins.

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We love Damages, but we wish we could pass on a word of advice to its writers:

Not every episode has to conclude with a twist.

For while the third season premiere did a masterful job surprising viewers and leaving us anxious about how Tom's murder would play out, the ending of "The Dog is Happier Without Her" felt like a desperate attempt to shock.

Seriously, does anyone think Ellen killed Tom? Does anyone even believe Ellen and Tom were having an affair?

Considering how intelligent of a show Damages typically is, it's frustrating that it would treat its fans as if we weren't on the same level. Come on. We're smart enough to recognize a red herring when we see it.

Misguided attempt at a cliffhanging conclusion aside, there was a lot to like about this episode:

• Patty may have met her match in Phil. This is a man that knows all his ex-wife's tricks and may make life tougher on her than any opposing counsel ever had.
• If you need companionship, I can recommend a great breeder. Gotta love how Patty can go from seemingly rekindling an old flame to shooting him down in the most harsh way possible.
• Campbell Scott is great in the role of Joe Tobin. Running over his father's mistress was a bit of a stretch, but Scott sells Joe's meek attitude and confusion over how to handle this dilemma.
• Scott is only topped by Martin Short. Who knew the comedian had such dramatic, shady chops in him? Leonard Winstone is our favorite character of the new season so far.

Meanwhile, The Tom storyline continue to intrigue.

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Damages returned to FX this week, as confusing, suspenseful and absorbing as ever.

After two seasons of dealing with one shady client, Patty now has her sights set on an entire family, which just means there are more mysteries to unravel and more shady characters to question. Perhaps it's the Arrested Development fan in me, but I love this. I'm a sucker for interesting family units, despite the subtle differences between the Tobins and the Bluths.

Read a detailed recap of the intricate season three premiere now.

In just one hour, it carved out a fascinating new case that goes far beyond Lou Tobin as the show's fictional Bernie Madoff. His wife, played brilliantly by Lily Tomlin, seems to possess more secrets than her husband, doesn't she?

Son Joseph appears to be on the level, but can you ever really tell on Damages? We can only hope to learn more about wife Rachel, too, as we've been major fans of Reiko Aylesworth since her days as Michelle on 24.

Then there's Keith Carradine as the mysterious Julian; and Martin Short in a serious role that proves this actor can do more than crack jokes. It's a truly stellar cast.

What about the players we've gotten to know over the last two years? Ellen is still there, more confident than ever. The scene between her and Patty in the bathroom was intriguing and intense.

Ellen clearly thinks she's above Patty's games and can see right through her old boss, but it was impossible to miss Patty's smirk when Ellen walked away. As usual, we're left to wonder what she's up to.

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