The Man In Me
by MOLLY LAMBERT
Cool, handsome, and very well endowed. This is how Kenny Powers sees himself. Hung's Ray Drecker is not so self-assured, although he shares some strong similarities with Kenny, including employment as a high school gym teacher. Yes it's hard to be a big swinging dick in a castrating emasculating modern world.
After the non-stop bodice ripping romance novel that is True Blood, it's interesting that Hung cares so little about titillating the audience. The women in Hung are horny harpies sure, but they are complicated characters first. For a show named after the lead character's penis, it's so far been considerably chaste. There's nudity and sex to be sure, but nowhere near the amount of gratuitous boobs in Bon Temps.
On the commentary track for Boogie Nights, P.T. Anderson blisses out discussing Thomas Jane's performance as Todd Parker in the pivotal drug deal scene. A small incredible performance in a movie full of incredible small performances, Jane comes in and makes you believe that he could easily talk anyone into anything. Hung's Ray is not much of a talker, and even less of a doer, and it's here that the great actress Jane Adams comes into play.
All of the praying I do in my coven with Lauren Bans has paid off, and there's finally a show about a really hot guy and an average looking smarter woman. Considering that the opposite has been the norm across media forever it's nice to see it flipped. Jane Adams goes far beyond caricature and makes her character Tanya a believably neurotic temp with an MFA who would consider dating Kenny Bania. She gives me flashbacks to writing workshops.
And although Hung bears similarities to many other cable shows, the chemistry between Jane and Adams turns it into something new, a buddy sitcom crossed with a serious hourlong drama. Alexander Payne directed the pilot, and his penchant for setting scenes in the parking lots of big box stores fits perfectly here. Anne Heche is believably nuts as Ray's beauty queen ex-wife. The two weirdest looking kids I've ever seen are cast as their offspring and styled to look like "midwest starter alts".
Did I mention that Thomas Jane is incredibly hot? I really can't emphasize that aspect enough. Yes, women are as stupid as men when it comes to sex, and just as easily led by beauty. Maybe Hung will inspire some copycat hot male hookers the way Fight Club inspired all those fight clubs. Plenty of women could use a Happiness Consultant. It can only be good for society. He just wants his goddamn kids back.
Molly Lambert is the managing editor of This Recording. She tumbls here and twitters here.
"Molly's Chambers" — Kings of Leon (mp3)
"Soft" — Kings of Leon (mp3)
"Taper Jean Girl" — Kings of Leon (mp3)
