Damages, or how I learned to love law drama

A mellow weekend equals ignoring the laundry and catching up on an entire season of Damages. I’d never seen an episode before but the commercials on FX were always mysterious and alluring. Didn’t know much about it except it was a law drama, which I don’t much get into unless it’s a Grisham film. (read: not a CSI fan, in any way.)

I was completely content settling in this cold winter weekend and trying it out. After the first few episodes, I became totally fixated on the story which revolves around a pretty first year associate who wins a position at Hewes and Associates, the best big-time litigators in New York.  Glenn Close as Patty Hewes, commands the role and makes her believable as the hard-as-nails lawyer and partner in her firm. She actually scares me and took me back to when she played Cruella DeVil in 101 Dalmations, minus the love of fur and crazy hair. What makes her character so frightening is not the yelling or shortness with associates. It’s purely her manipulation of the people around her. The question of who to trust comes up in nearly every episode, which makes it a fun guessing game.

A word about the writing: it can be hokey at times, but few and far between. It is well thought out and doesn’t get ahead of itself. It seems like the writers themselves have not gotten confused by their own story, as it seems had happened last season on Heroes, which I didn’t even know could happen. But it did. Thankfully, the writers of Damages were able to keep up and actually continue to juggle the themes, stories and characters that drive this intense show.

The rest of the casting is fantastic as well. Rose Byrne as Ellen Parsons, the first year associate shows great character arc throughout the first season. She’s a smart cookie and learns very quickly how to survive at the firm. Ted Danson, as scum-of-the-earth business man who sunk his ‘legacy,’ manages to simultaneously disgust and make me laugh at the same time. Tate Donovan, still trying to figure out what makes him tick, but in the end, I suppose, it’s just the benjamins.

I am happy to see that Timothy Olyphant has joined the cast for season 2. He is quite underrated. And they had to fill a role of young male, for the young female audiences. I don’t think that Ted Danson is quite gonna do it for ladies in their 20’s. But Timothy is charming enough and he can act and for that I thank the casting department.

Damages, season 1 was thrilling and being able to watch the whole thing in one weekend was delightful for me. Now I have to wait until the new episodes air on FX, Wed. 10pm Eastern.

If you’re hungry for more info, click here: http://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/originals/damages/index.php