‘Damages’: An homage to David Lynch?
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Well, that was a first for ‘Damages.’ In the present-day setup, Tom went to investigate Ellen’s assertion that there was a missing body at Patty’s apartment. He was interrupted by a creepy, beige, diminutive guy in a bellhop’s uniform, sporting the jaunty cap and all. Both men were surprised to see each other and reacted with stuttering caution. Tom said he had a set of keys for Patty’s house, and the dancing little person -- I mean, the single-color bellhop -- said he came in from a service elevator because Patty had a water delivery. He asked Tom to lock up when he leaves, shuffled off ... and Tom goes over to the coffee table, WHERE HE FINDS AN EAR.
Just kidding. But he did find splatters of blood on some decorative coral of Patty’s, proving that her wet-wipe team wasn’t as thorough as they should have been. And Patty herself wasn’t too thorough, either -- she had a spot of blood on her tasteful Cole-Haan-esque loafer. Killers always have the best footwear! Can we believe that Patty’s hands actually got dirty in the attempt to kill Ellen and/or David? I don’t believe it, but Ellen insisted to Tom that if she saw Patty face to face she would get the truth.
On the Frobisher case, Arthur’s wife served him with divorce papers, and just when I was groaning that yet another character had been added late in the game, it turns out that Holly’s apparent paramour was her divorce attorney. He leaked the divorce filing to Patty, who used it in superior fashion to unnerve Frobisher during his deposition. Ray offered a settlement, and Patty zapped it down.
There’s only a few more episodes of ‘Damages’ left in the first season, and no word yet from FX whether the show is going to be renewed. (Methinks it will, based on how its ratings compare favorably to other FX shows that have been picked up.) Some people have asked me if it’s too late in the season to start watching -- my knee-jerk impulse is to say yes -- but wait! It turns out ‘Damages’ is available for purchase at iTunes. Each week’s episode is available a day or two after the Tuesday night airing. (This less-than-immediate posting has caused grumbling among some of the folks on iTunes, but if they’re so hot diggity into the show, why didn’t they catch it during the first airing? Hmmm.)
-- Ann Donahue