Glenn Close But Yet So Far: Spooky Legal Thriller "Damages" (Rose Byrne Also Dwelleth Here)

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Great show, and not just because I was college friends with one of the creators. Riveting frame, scene-chewing acting, pretty people in desperate situations.

Dimension 5ive, Wednesday, 25 July 2007 20:00 (5 years ago) Permalink

Also: Ted Danson racing ATVs, lots of swearing, and Tate Donovan's character is a vegan?

Dimension 5ive, Wednesday, 25 July 2007 20:00 (5 years ago) Permalink

CAN NOT WAIT (to see this on my DVR)

David R., Wednesday, 25 July 2007 20:02 (5 years ago) Permalink

So how are you, Matt?

David R., Wednesday, 25 July 2007 20:11 (5 years ago) Permalink

[let's take this offline dave but everything is really good right now]

Dimension 5ive, Wednesday, 25 July 2007 20:18 (5 years ago) Permalink

Ha - I just wanted to keep the thread bubbling around the top of the page, but if you wanna backchannel, hot stuff, I is yrs. ^_^

David R., Wednesday, 25 July 2007 20:20 (5 years ago) Permalink

check the OTHER forum

Dimension 5ive, Wednesday, 25 July 2007 20:21 (5 years ago) Permalink

Not sold on Zelkjo Ivanec's southern accent, but that just makes "Damages" more fun.

Dimension 5ive, Wednesday, 25 July 2007 20:22 (5 years ago) Permalink

i'm actually really xcited about this. glenn close can pretty much make anything watchable. she saved the experience of watching The STepford Wives.

Surmounter, Wednesday, 25 July 2007 20:27 (5 years ago) Permalink

there isnt a single likeable character in this show! and the soundtrack sucks.

, Saturday, 28 July 2007 14:20 (5 years ago) Permalink

Will watch again. Felt about half-a-notch better than CSI/Shark/whatever, but yeah I guess it's Glenn Close who's keeping me interested.

wanko ergo sum, Saturday, 28 July 2007 17:06 (5 years ago) Permalink

The opening sequence with the bloodied disoriented hot girl wandering the streets, then cut to girl in interrogation room = half a notch worse than CSI. But glad I stuck with it.

wanko ergo sum, Saturday, 28 July 2007 17:11 (5 years ago) Permalink

well, fuck me, I'm already counting the minutes til ep 2, TONIGHT AT 9. I watched ep 1 last night, again, in its entirety!

wanko ergo sum, Tuesday, 31 July 2007 23:06 (5 years ago) Permalink

10pm, not 9. I just moved to the eastern time zone.

wanko ergo sum, Tuesday, 31 July 2007 23:08 (5 years ago) Permalink

5 months pass...

I'm watching this and enjoying it. I understand that it got v poor ratings in the US?

the way it plays with chronology is unusual for a TV series I think, despite being common in films.

Grandpont Genie, Tuesday, 22 January 2008 10:47 (5 years ago) Permalink

Glenn Close's son = piece of inspired casting.

this is apparently Close's first TV series.

Grandpont Genie, Tuesday, 22 January 2008 10:51 (5 years ago) Permalink

7 months pass...

I'm watching this on DVD. Kinda wanna work for Glenn Close's character, despite, y'know... everything.

Tim F, Tuesday, 26 August 2008 13:57 (4 years ago) Permalink

i liked this show.

s1ocki, Tuesday, 26 August 2008 14:13 (4 years ago) Permalink

I'm guessing / hoping S2 starts sometime in February (after The Shield / Sons of Anarchy do their thing)?

Hey, look @ this!!! "Glenn Close, Tate Donovan, Rose Byrne and Ted Danson are all on board for the second season. New cast members will include William Hurt, who will play a client of Patty's, and Timothy Olyphant, who becomes entangled in Ellen's life."

David R., Tuesday, 26 August 2008 14:21 (4 years ago) Permalink

nice oen on the william hurt front.

s1ocki, Tuesday, 26 August 2008 14:21 (4 years ago) Permalink

(from Wiki, with citations!!!)

s1ocki, I'm thinking we'll both be pulling for Asshole Olyphant to show up, ya?

David R., Tuesday, 26 August 2008 14:23 (4 years ago) Permalink

definitely!

cautiously optimistic!

s1ocki, Tuesday, 26 August 2008 14:24 (4 years ago) Permalink

2 months pass...

ugh the commercial for season 2 sucks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Uncle Shavedlongcock (max), Monday, 10 November 2008 00:25 (4 years ago) Permalink

also why doesnt this thread come up with i search damages

Uncle Shavedlongcock (max), Monday, 10 November 2008 00:26 (4 years ago) Permalink

2 months pass...

season 2 not nearly as good as s1 so far

max, Sunday, 8 February 2009 22:41 (4 years ago) Permalink

scenes with rawls's right-hand man are skin-crawlingly bad... close is still stellar, as is the main chick, who is really really hot

max, Sunday, 8 February 2009 22:41 (4 years ago) Permalink

Didn't even realize there was a Damages thread on ILX! This show demands a lot of patience - I still really enjoy it and it's building up as slowly as it has in the past. Let's face it though, was there any chance this season could be as good as the first? (largely because the gimmick/structure/surprise was pretty tightly done and can't really be replicated as a continuation)

What is up with the ridiculous grunge theme they pull whenever Timothy Olyphant has a revealing scene, though? It's the most unintentionally comical I've ever seen this show get.

Nhex, Monday, 9 February 2009 00:21 (4 years ago) Permalink

its funny that the first season is so tight, b/c apparently the head writers didnt actually have any clue where they were headed when they started!

max, Monday, 9 February 2009 00:22 (4 years ago) Permalink

I've been loving this season. Not sure if it's as good as the first season yet, but I definitely don't think it's a bad season. I've also been trying to turn all my friends onto this show - praying it picks up an audience since the actors are apparently all signed up for six seasons, assuming the show survives that long.

Mordy, Thursday, 12 February 2009 04:56 (4 years ago) Permalink

I converted so many people to this show.

Tim F, Thursday, 12 February 2009 06:01 (4 years ago) Permalink

It's really such a smart show, and in very subtle ways. It doesn't wear its brilliance ostensibly.

Mordy, Thursday, 12 February 2009 06:08 (4 years ago) Permalink

3 weeks pass...

Man, super brief twist that the FBI agents might've been completely fake was awesome... second twist that the investigation actually IS a corrupt conspiracy action - still pretty good nonetheless.

I just love how Patty Hewes continues to be this huge, complex character, how she uses this authentic mantle of justice to fuel all the terrible or great things she does.

Nhex, Thursday, 5 March 2009 04:53 (4 years ago) Permalink

4 weeks pass...

the backlash on this show is going to start before it gets remotely popular, isn't it?

great season, anyway

Nhex, Thursday, 2 April 2009 04:10 (4 years ago) Permalink

Who is backlashing?

Mordy, Thursday, 2 April 2009 04:27 (4 years ago) Permalink

nobody - i'm just making a dumb joke about how this show will not be watched by anyone, let alone get enough notice to get a backlash like every other good show on this board

Nhex, Thursday, 2 April 2009 04:40 (4 years ago) Permalink

LOVED the first season--thought this one wasnt nearly as good

rip dom passantino 3/5/09 never forget (max), Friday, 3 April 2009 15:11 (4 years ago) Permalink

Finally saw the season finale. I thought the whole thing was brutal and brilliant. Really the best drama on television IMHO.

Mordy, Sunday, 5 April 2009 01:50 (4 years ago) Permalink

Agree this season wasn't quite as engrossing as the first, but they had set the bar awfully high. It still far exceeded almost everything else on TV this year, and I thought all the new cast additions were great. Was a really satisfying finale; didn't see any of those surprises coming.

It's quite a difficult show to jump into (unless you've been watching from the start), I wonder if that (plus being on FX?) are the main reasons behind the poor ratings?

__CB__, Sunday, 5 April 2009 02:36 (4 years ago) Permalink

Probably it being fairly narratively challenging (esp for a television show) has something to do with it too.

Mordy, Sunday, 5 April 2009 03:30 (4 years ago) Permalink

I think this show really has this amazing grasp of character drama that others don't. In particular, most shows will dangle the plot to get the audience invested, but Damages seems to have character's motivations and interrelationships constantly in question by everyone in virtually every episode. Even the audience is never totally in on it until the very end, yet with both seasons I never felt cheated - the plot developments and character choices felt totally logical, as complex as they were.

Also, rage. The rage moments are just fantastic.

Still loved this season and the finale, even if it wasn't as good as the first one (but what is?). Pretty much an impossible show to join in on without starting at the beginning. Surprising that FX started and stuck with this show - I'm glad, but it sure doesn't fit with the more crassly sensationalist tone of their shows like Nip/Tuck. (Though I do like Sons of Anarchy and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, they both fall into this mold.) At least we're guaranteed one more season!

Nhex, Sunday, 5 April 2009 06:27 (4 years ago) Permalink

I think this is one of the few shows on television that balances being character-driven while still maintaining a structure that includes serial (rather than episodic) plot twists and revelations. It might be my favorite show on television.

Melissa W, Sunday, 5 April 2009 12:08 (4 years ago) Permalink

3 months pass...

Also, rage. The rage moments are just fantastic.

just got to close smashing glass and screaming at husband to get out. she kicks ass.

s2 is definitely not as gripping or interesting as s1 but i guess that was inevitable considering how emotionally wrought the first season was.

tehresa, Monday, 27 July 2009 04:06 (3 years ago) Permalink

5 months pass...

Anyway,

Is everyone else as excited as I am?

Jan 25, motherfuckers.

Salvador Dali Parton (Turangalila), Sunday, 17 January 2010 20:52 (3 years ago) Permalink

Also, some cast additions:

Lily Tomlin (Marilyn Tobin)
Martin Short (Leonard Winstone)
Keith Carradine (Julian Decker)
Reiko Aylesworth (Rachel Tobin))
Sarah Wynter (Danielle Marchetti)

Salvador Dali Parton (Turangalila), Sunday, 17 January 2010 20:53 (3 years ago) Permalink

Fuck yeah, I'm excited.

Mordy, Sunday, 17 January 2010 20:53 (3 years ago) Permalink

Just finished watching last two episodes of S2 last night, really looking forward to 3! All through watching these, I wasn't paying attention to credits (lol bittorrent) and kept thinking, "Is that creepy guy Darrell Hammond from SNL? No, it can't be. But it is, right? No. Yes!"

Sitting there w/Ellen all that time after getting gut-stabbed = HARDCORE.

what of the fuck you talkie bout (Pancakes Hackman), Thursday, 21 January 2010 17:51 (3 years ago) Permalink

Ehh, s1 was awesome but s2 pretty much sucked. Won't be rejoining it, I don't think.

Simon H., Thursday, 21 January 2010 17:57 (3 years ago) Permalink

I love the conceit behind this show but fell behind on season 2.

Vajazzle My Nazzle (HI DERE), Thursday, 21 January 2010 18:02 (3 years ago) Permalink

S2 was amazing

anyway, it's ON TONIGHT

Salvador Dali Parton (Turangalila), Monday, 25 January 2010 18:12 (3 years ago) Permalink

Watched the first season with my wife, thought it was pretty ridiculous but enjoyed it. Watched season two with my wife, thought it was pretty ridiculous but not in a good way. Can't imagine watching any other season. Frankly, can't wrap my head around the fact that there even are future seasons.

Josh in Chicago, Saturday, 23 June 2012 20:39 (10 months ago) Permalink

please no spoilers but i am going to unbookmark just in case

this show has made me googly with paranoia, but not in a bad way just a funny way

nicest bitch of poster (La Lechera), Saturday, 23 June 2012 20:41 (10 months ago) Permalink

i loved season one and kinda gave up halfway through season 2. season one was just so tense everything after is just...after.

scott seward, Saturday, 23 June 2012 20:45 (10 months ago) Permalink

when i first started watching this show, i was like, finally a show that matches my constant level of paranoia

horseshoe, Saturday, 23 June 2012 20:46 (10 months ago) Permalink

see season 2 to me was really impressive in a "i didn't think they could follow that first season but this is almost as good" way

some dude, Saturday, 23 June 2012 20:50 (10 months ago) Permalink

1st season = completely awesome

Started season 2 and only lasted half an episode.

calstars, Saturday, 23 June 2012 22:11 (10 months ago) Permalink

not watching the whole season seems like a way of saying "i don't have an actual opinion on it" rather than "i have a negative opinion of it"

some dude, Saturday, 23 June 2012 22:15 (10 months ago) Permalink

that's like saying that a person who walks out on a movie has no opinion on it.

j., Saturday, 23 June 2012 23:04 (10 months ago) Permalink

walking out of a theater after paying for a ticket at least indicates a much stronger reaction then 'never got around to putting disc 2 at the top of my queue'

some dude, Saturday, 23 June 2012 23:23 (10 months ago) Permalink

3 weeks pass...

the season might have been more emotionally striking if the guy who played the main soldier guy had more range as an actor, honestly

BULLSHIT
Chris Messina Appreciation Thread

That said, I think I would rank the seasons:
1 > 3 > 4 > 2

For some reason, Season 4 felt curiously disconnected from the previous ones. Maybe because Tate Donovan and Ted Danson are gone? Maybe because it's three years later? Maybe because it was only 10 episodes, so there wasn't as much time to fill in gaps? Patty and Ellen have such a complicated history, but that wasn't really touched on outside of Patty's terse conversations with Fisher Stevens. Bringing them together again felt a little too easy. Great performances, though, and the main plot was probably neater than the previous two seasons, while still featuring a few twists.

Never translate Dutch (jaymc), Thursday, 19 July 2012 16:01 (10 months ago) Permalink

^^MILD S4 SPOILERS, BTW^^

Never translate Dutch (jaymc), Thursday, 19 July 2012 16:02 (10 months ago) Permalink

I finished watching season 3 recently. A real return to form; makes me forget season 2 ever happened.

abanana, Thursday, 19 July 2012 16:24 (10 months ago) Permalink

finally someone who gets it

Nhex, Thursday, 19 July 2012 16:38 (10 months ago) Permalink

i haven't even started the new season btw - look forward to talking about it in a year

Nhex, Thursday, 19 July 2012 16:39 (10 months ago) Permalink

I am caught in the hammy overexplainy third season, i'm afraid. still enjoying, but not as much as i did before (obvs, who could?). i have enjoyed keith carradine, though.

nicest bitch of poster (La Lechera), Friday, 20 July 2012 14:53 (9 months ago) Permalink

did you like season 2???? people have the most inexplicable contempt for that season but i say: it rules.

horseshoe, Friday, 20 July 2012 14:54 (9 months ago) Permalink

yeah, i totally liked season 2 -- i liked the change in ellen, LOVED mystical ted danson and his fucking hilarious healer, love love love michael

nicest bitch of poster (La Lechera), Friday, 20 July 2012 14:55 (9 months ago) Permalink

mystical frobisher transformation is really one of my favorite tv moments of recent memory

nicest bitch of poster (La Lechera), Friday, 20 July 2012 14:56 (9 months ago) Permalink

nicest bitch of poster (La Lechera), Friday, 20 July 2012 15:00 (9 months ago) Permalink

Looking at some synopses of S2, I realize there was actually a lot of good stuff in it. I just remember thinking that the main plot got a bit convoluted, and I kind of didn't care about all the corporate hijinks or anything to do with Marcia Gay Harden.

Never translate Dutch (jaymc), Friday, 20 July 2012 15:35 (9 months ago) Permalink

i love how she ritually smokes 1 cig by herself every night
also like her weird relationship with her employer (who i can't stop seeing as the higher up law enforcement dude from the wire btw)

nicest bitch of poster (La Lechera), Friday, 20 July 2012 15:39 (9 months ago) Permalink

only subplot i didn't much care for was wes + ellen + guns
that was kinda dumb

nicest bitch of poster (La Lechera), Friday, 20 July 2012 15:40 (9 months ago) Permalink

i hope patty gets to s keith carradine and that he is not a creep -- i've only gotten as far as the part where he comes over to her apt to examine it for possible remodeling

nicest bitch of poster (La Lechera), Friday, 20 July 2012 15:41 (9 months ago) Permalink

oh and holy shit, campbell scott is so good. so conflicted and messed up, that guy. he is great.
not a fan of martin short.

nicest bitch of poster (La Lechera), Friday, 20 July 2012 15:42 (9 months ago) Permalink

i've clearly been saving up a lot of thoughts about this show.

nicest bitch of poster (La Lechera), Friday, 20 July 2012 15:43 (9 months ago) Permalink

(who i can't stop seeing as the higher up law enforcement dude from the wire btw)

Oh yeah I almost mentioned "Major Rawls" in that post.

only subplot i didn't much care for was wes + ellen + guns

Ha remember the episode that ended with Wes opening up the gun cabinet and looking all malevolent to a speed-metal soundtrack?

Never translate Dutch (jaymc), Friday, 20 July 2012 15:44 (9 months ago) Permalink

it took me a while to even care enough to figure out who that guy was and what his role was in the whole thing
is he a nut? is he a cop? is he an assassin? who cares.

nicest bitch of poster (La Lechera), Friday, 20 July 2012 15:46 (9 months ago) Permalink

she live in my hood

The Cheerfull Turtle (Latham Green), Friday, 20 July 2012 15:48 (9 months ago) Permalink

not a fan of martin short.

I don't know where you are in S3, but I think his character is actually really interesting and complex and was kind of surprised at how well Short inhabited the role. Better than Darrell Hammond in S2, whose presence always seemed ridiculous to me.

Never translate Dutch (jaymc), Friday, 20 July 2012 15:49 (9 months ago) Permalink

Oh TOTALLY. I feel bad saying this but he seemed to be doing an exaggerated Al Gore, Hired Assassin. I forgot about that.

nicest bitch of poster (La Lechera), Friday, 20 July 2012 15:50 (9 months ago) Permalink

CAMPBELL SCOTT, right??? I love him.

horseshoe, Friday, 20 July 2012 17:48 (9 months ago) Permalink

campbell scott was the fucking shit in S3
i loved Martin Short too

Nhex, Friday, 20 July 2012 17:59 (9 months ago) Permalink

ooh thanks for reminding me that this is back. Just watched both of the first 2 eps, it's looking pretty good although I can't believe the flashforward bits especially after all the fakeouts they've done. Plus that Hoggle guy seems to only be there so Patty can explain things to him/us.

kinder, Saturday, 21 July 2012 17:13 (9 months ago) Permalink

Wow, what happened to this show? Not really interested in discussing which pre-Direct TV era seasons are the best but this new season is so weird. I'd like to chalk it up to "they're just lower budget now" but there's no mystery to it anymore and it seems to have lost that eeriness that made it so appealing.

Last night's episode was like some bad 90s movie with like, hacker keyboard battles and shit. What is this. So sad, this was really one of my favorite shows.

Turangalila, Thursday, 2 August 2012 13:02 (9 months ago) Permalink

3 weeks pass...

Anyone still watching? I have no idea what this show is doing. I do <3 John Hannah though.

kinder, Thursday, 23 August 2012 21:47 (8 months ago) Permalink

i got overwhelmed with other things to watch and i stopped watching like halfway through season 3
i figure pattyhewes will still be there whenever i'm ready to come back

these albatrosses have no fear of man (La Lechera), Thursday, 23 August 2012 21:53 (8 months ago) Permalink

3 weeks pass...

huh.

kinder, Saturday, 15 September 2012 18:09 (8 months ago) Permalink

she killed her? i think?

Jamie_ATP, Sunday, 16 September 2012 22:02 (8 months ago) Permalink

i had a thought today that michael's character reminded me of a blonde jackson browne
not sure where that came from but there you have it

totally forgot to watch the rest of this show. i think i'm partway through season 3? 4? i can't even remember.

these albatrosses have no fear of man (La Lechera), Sunday, 16 September 2012 22:07 (8 months ago) Permalink

she killed her? i think?

um what? I just watched the series finale. It was kind of a weird season but I liked it. AV Club has a good recap.

kinder, Sunday, 16 September 2012 22:12 (8 months ago) Permalink

3 weeks pass...

man i had no idea rose byrne is australian

j., Sunday, 7 October 2012 00:30 (7 months ago) Permalink

My wife talked me into reading "Gone Girl," which I did not like, mostly because it reminded me of the first season of "Damages" (which I also didn't really like) condensed into a novel, totally ridiculous but with no likable characters at all.

Josh in Chicago, Sunday, 7 October 2012 00:45 (7 months ago) Permalink

ok so in the first season there's this blond chick who chats up the molina dude in a bar and then later runs up on him with a gun in her hand (concealed). the hewes bodyguard guy shoots her in the boob and she dies (molina dude just runs away). there is never any mention of this ever again.

also after rose byrne is alluvasudden cleared of all douchey fiancé murder related charges why do the police stop investigating? they're like, ok, you didn't do it, case closed.

adam, Friday, 12 October 2012 13:33 (7 months ago) Permalink

The stalker chick in the first season was a red herring suspect for the murder of Malina. That was her only purpose -- viewer misdirection.

I believe they stated that the Malina murder was a cold case somewhere in season 2.

obamana (abanana), Friday, 12 October 2012 17:01 (7 months ago) Permalink

"I definitely have breast wound". The issue is casually dismissed and never revisited during the rest of the series.

kinder, Friday, 12 October 2012 17:14 (7 months ago) Permalink

I can't remember much about season 1 but it's never really clear whether the police are still investigating or why they do half the things they do in later serieses.

kinder, Friday, 12 October 2012 17:15 (7 months ago) Permalink

also after rose byrne is alluvasudden cleared of all douchey fiancé murder related charges why do the police stop investigating? they're like, ok, you didn't do it, case closed.

I didn't watch season 2 very closely but I thought a huge driver for Rose Byrne working as a mole within the firm was to help get more evidence to link Patty to the murder of her fiance

The Owls of Ja Rule (DJP), Friday, 12 October 2012 17:17 (7 months ago) Permalink

she's trying to screw patty for arranging her own [rose byrne's] attempted murder, i think she knows-for-sure that ted danson had her fiancé killed.

season 1 was entertaining nonsense, season 2 a little too silly--is it worth continuing?

adam, Friday, 12 October 2012 17:34 (7 months ago) Permalink

yes

Mountain Excitement (Nasty, Brutish & Short), Friday, 12 October 2012 17:40 (7 months ago) Permalink

yeah it's pretty ok

j., Friday, 12 October 2012 21:40 (7 months ago) Permalink


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