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TNT and FX
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by Annie Berke
Damages, Tuesdays at 10 (FX). Debuted July 24
Saving Grace, Mondays at 10 (TNT). Debuted July 23.
Forget Shark Week on the Discovery Channel: If you really want to see a predator in its natural habitat, watch Glenn Close chew up in the scenery on FX’s new series Damages. Sure, Close may not be able to emote like she used to, but the poison her plastic surgeons allegedly inject into her face works for the cold-hearted Patty Hewes. Close’s performance is chilling, and the rest of the actors – Ted Danson, Tate Donovan, and Rose Byrne—also turn in solid performances. Keep in mind that the universe of Damages, where the “good” people can be worse than the bad ones, is not inhabited by complex, realistic characters. It is instead full of double-crossing sneaks, cheats, and killers – men and women always armed with a cutting remark, a switchblade, or both.
Glenn Close has the most nuanced character in this world, but even she is not the star of this show: the story is. And what a fun and twisted story it is. The show opens with our heroine, Ellen (played by the doe-eyed Byrne), disheveled and covered in blood, panicked in the streets of New York, sullen in a police interrogation room. Rather than “spoil the ending,” the show’s flashback structure pulls us into the story all the more strongly: now all we want to know is how she got there. But who would have done this to poor Ellen? (Then again, in this universe, a better question is who wouldn’t?) Could Ellen be at all responsible for what has happened to her or to her dreamy doctor fiance? The show is truly compelling, as addictive as the cocaine that one character snorts before placing a phone call to a eager hit-man. Catch up with the first two episodes of Damages posted on Yahoo TV—better to spend your time catching up on this show than watching Saving Grace, a new series starring Holly Hunter. These shows have been compared as vehicles for their respective stars, Close and Hunter, women who are too vital and powerful simply to play Jessica Alba’s mother. Unfortunately, Saving Grace, a drama about a self-destructive cop who discovers her guardian angel, is unwatchable, uncomfortable, and dull.
The word is that Danson’s character arc will be finished by the end of the season. If Hunter’s schedule should clear soon, perhaps she could be cast as Close’s new nemesis. Picture it: two steely career women strapping on their power suits and duking it out over highballs and confidentiality agreements. With enemies like each other, who needs friends?
