What I’m Watching: Royal Pains

Royal Pains: Season 1, Episode 11 “Nobody’s Perfect” (B)

This episode started out great, with Divya and Evan trying to resist going to meet a client whose refused to divulge his identity, and Hank being informed by Boris that the family of the donor he let die was trying to have his medical license revoked. The episode was quite entertaining, but I take issue with a few of the things that were central to the storyline. The moment the mysterious client’s mistress mentioned that he had been stolen money, Bernie Madoff’s story came to mind. Hearing Evan say, “you mean Gary Schmalowski” (or whatever it was) just sounded cartoonish. The show has enough fun material to riff on without ripping from the headlines. Having to deal with trying to save the guy on the boat seemed a bit like a forced situation, like Divya needing to help her father after his life-threatening bug bite at the racetrack. Also, setting the entire episode on a boat was very much like the fifth episode, where taking a vacation from the already-intriguing Hamptons proved unnecessary and detrimental to the creativity of the show. Hank’s abrupt dismissal of those suing him and declaration that he needed the room to Skype with Evan was a bit silly and highly unwise. I’d like to know how the hell did Evan got Internet on that boat. Back on land, the charming Bruno Campos is doing a fun job as Charlie, but his presence, however grand, will put a real chip in Hank and Jill’s relationship. Hank seemed certain to stay after visiting Manhattan, but now that his summer romance may be over, perhaps his stay will be too. Boris’ worsening condition should be interesting, though his half-hearted attempts to have Hank help him may become overly frustrating. Finally, that fish-hook-in-the-body sequence reminded me a bit too much of a not-so-friendly scene from “The Last King of Scotland.”