Why I’m loving Hung

I’m loving HBO’s Hung, and not for the reasons you might imagine. In my See Jane Clack column last week, I mentioned that there seems to be a rash of shows with characters using illegal or unscrupulous means just to get by in the world. For the most part, these are just normal people who’ve had a string of bad luck and need some way to get back on track.

Well, at least they start out that way. Desperation drives people to do things they wouldn’t normally do. If Hung goes the way of other shows like Weeds and Breaking Bad, the main character might end up traveling down a path that’s outside the law in a big way.

Our own Keith wasn’t so crazy about the show, calling it “flaccid,” so I’m going with Aryeh on this one, who writes: “Ray Drecker’s just an ordinary guy. He’s got two kids, an ex-wife, and a house that’s uninhabitable now that most of it has been structurally damaged by fire. Ray works as a coach/teacher at a local high school, getting called on the carpet in the principal’s office for swearing in front of the kids. No superstar sex pervert here.”

In this week’s episode, “Strange Friends or The Truth is You’re Sexy,” the characters continue to flesh out (you know, it’s really hard to write about this show without the double entendres!). Tanya’s pretty much in the same situation as Ray. She doesn’t have much going for her, so why not try and grab onto this guy’s special talent and get a piece of the action (see what I mean about the double entendres?). By the way, I’m loving seeing Jane Adams on this show. She played Karen in Relativity. (Check out my CliqueClack Flashback.)

But, like Ray, Tanya has a good heart. When Lenore steals his wallet, Tanya pretends that she paid a fee of $300 and pays Ray with her own money. What I don’t get is this: Why was Ray so ticked off that Tanya would try and do the right thing? If I was his pimp, I certainly wouldn’t want to give him the bad news that Lenore paid nothing for his talents. I would have done the same thing — given him $300 of my own money. A pimp should be building up their clients, not breaking them down. And for that, she gets the “world’s worst pimp” award? I mean, she’s doing the best she can; she’s new at this, too.

I liked the cookies part, though, where Ray finds the bag of cookies Tanya left with “I’m sorry” messages baked inside. But I’m not so sure Lenore is a good person for Tanya and Ray to get involved with. Charging $400 on Ray’s credit card as a “commission”? That’s not a commission, that’s stealing.

I’m hoping they give Ray’s kids more personality, and I didn’t really feel Jessica and her “sick dog” storyline in this episode. What’s that all about? Is it supposed to make us feel something for her?

Anyone else watching Hung? I look forward to your thoughts on the show and this week’s episode.

Clacked by Jane Boursaw
on Jul 22, 2009 @ 11:00 EST5EDT