What I’m Watching: Hung (Season Premiere)

Hung: Season 2, Episode 1 “Just the Tip” (B+)

Over the course of the nine or so months since this show last aired, I had forgotten just how involved in Ray’s business Lenore had gotten. Of course that’s a very welcome thing, since watching any of the three members of Ray’s team interact is absolutely fantastic – be it Ray and Lenore, Ray and Tanya, and most especially, Lenore and Tanya. It’s somewhat upsetting to see how Lenore talks down so incredibly to Tanya, and Ray’s former leading pimp isn’t exactly doing a great job of standing up for herself. Her decision to not take any more money from Ray until he had full confidence in her was smart, but calling up Lenore immediately to assert that she was right probably wasn’t too bright. I’m enormously excited that she has started to develop a relationship with another pimp, played by Lennie James, who is a great choice after his terrific roles on “Jericho” and “Human Target.” Ray’s pep talk to his team towards the end of the episode was highly motivational, and it’s good to see him get so into something that’s not just his distinctive line of work. His decision to bowl with Jessica at the very end of the episode was both amusing and hopeful, and it’s nice that the two of them can connect in a (somewhat) platonic way as both of them struggle to get control of her life. It seems only one line, rather than two, was worthy of serving as the title of this episode, but as always, it’s a perfectly appropriate and witty one.