Starring: Glenn Close Format: DVD
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Review & Description
Damages: The Complete First Season
Smart, sleek, and more than a little wicked, the Golden Globe-winning series Damages proves that legal programs don't have to follow a well-worn formula in order to prove completely addictive. In fact, the show (from Todd and Glenn Kessler and Daniel Zelman, whose credits include The Sopranos) steers clear from nearly all courtroom drama clichés over the course of its 13 episodes, and hews closer to classic film noir with the slowly-spun web of deceit that is woven around fresh-scrubbed lawyer Ellen Parsons (Rose Byrne). After joining the legal firm headed by uber-powerful litigator Patty Hewes (Glenn Close, who won a Golden Globe for her performance), Parsons lands a career-making case--a class-action lawsuit against millionaire Arthur Frobisher (Golden Globe nominee Ted Danson)--but discovers that digging deeply into the case not only reveals layers of corruption, cover-up, and potential scandal, but places her own life in jeopardy as well. Smart, mature writing, and note-perfect performances, most notably by Danson as the perverse and complex Frobisher, but also by Tate Donovan, Zeliko Ivanek, Peter Facinelli, Philip Bosco and Peter Reigert, make Damages a genuine pleasure for law and mystery show fans, but also those craving a challenging series that delivers water cooler chat material in every episode. The three-disc set includes all 13 episodes as well as deleted scenes; among the featured extras are two choice commentaries, one with Close, the Kesslers and Zelman, and the other with Ivanek and the creators, both of which are chock-full of production and technical insights. A 30-minute making-of featurette, discussions about the characters by the creators, and a guide to class-action lawsuits rounds out the fine supplemental features. --Paul Gaita
Damages: The Complete Second Season
With the second season of the legal thriller Damages, the creators, writers, cast, and crew have accomplished a minor miracle by producing 13 episodes that match--and, at times, surpass--the level of nail-biting drama and suspense that made the show's freshman season one of the best in 21st-century television. The core cast is back for this round--which is something of a surprise, given that novice lawyer Rose Byrne is convinced that her legal-eagle boss (Glenn Close) is responsible for the murder of her fiancé. The story neatly weaves together a murder mystery involving an old flame (William Hurt) of Close's, Byrne's collaboration with federal agents (led by Mario Van Peebles, who also directs the season's fourth episode, "Hey! Mr. Pibb!"), and Hurt's involvement in an environmental scandal that implicates a major corporation. The threads come together in impressive fashion, and the quality of the writing and direction is matched at every turn by the cast, which also includes Marcia Gay Harden as Close's opposing council; Tate Donovan as Byrne's saintly confidante; Ted Danson, who reprises his winning turn as disgraced billionaire Arthur Frobisher; Saturday Night Live's Darrell Hammond as an unnerving killer; and a trio of HBO vets--Deadwood's Timothy Olyphant and The Wire's John Dornan and Clarke Peters--as a shady love interest for Byrne and a pair of malevolent corporate apparatchiks. If the third season of Damages achieves the level of quality of season 2 and its predecessor, it will be the neatest hat trick on TV since The Sopranos.
The three-disc set of Damages' second season features a healthy selection of extras for series devotees to enjoy. Writers and creators Glenn Dessler, Daniel Zelman, and Todd Kessler are featured on commentary tracks for four episodes, and they're joined by members of the cast on each: Byrne (who may surprise some with her Australian accent) and a wry Olyphant on season opener "I Lied, Too"; Danson on "They Had to Tweeze That Out of My Kidney"; Donovan on "Look What He Dug Up This Time"; and Close on "Trust Me." The creative team is also front and center for Season Two: Post Mortem, which is informative for those wondering how the producers and writers work with the show's nonlinear format; the cast is the focal point for Character Profiles, which features short bios and chats with the main players. A battery of deleted scenes round out the set's supplemental features. --Paul Gaita Damages: The Complete First Season
Hot new legal thriller on FX! Set in New York's world of high stakes litigation, Damages follows the lives of Patty Hewes, the nation's most revered and most reviled litigator, and her bright, ambitious protégée Ellen Parsons as they become embroiled in a class action lawsuit targeting Arthur Frobisher, one of the country's wealthiest CEOs. As Patty battles Frobisher and his attorney, Ellen learns what it takes to win at all costs, and that lives, not just fortunes, are at stake.
Damages: The Complete Second Season
Seven Emmy nominations for this season of the award-winning show! After her unprecedented victory over billionaire Arthur Frobisher (Ted Danson), Patty Hewes (Glenn Close) has the legal world at her feet. Just as she's pondering her next move, Daniel Purcell (William Hurt), a man from Patty's mysterious past, storms back into her life, catapulting Patty into a new legal challenge. What starts as a domestic murder case, escalates into the highest reaches of government as Patty unearths a vast conspiracy. At the same time, Ellen (Rose Byrne) is on a mission to take down Patty. She's agreed to act as an informant for the FBI, assisting them in their criminal investigation of Patty and the firm. As Patty unravels the mystery surrounding Daniel Purcell, she must also negotiate the perilous minefield both inside and outside her office. Read more
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