THE PLOT THUS FAR
Ray Donovan, a professional “fixer” for the rich and famous in LA, can make anyone’s problems disappear except those created by his own family.
WHAT WE THOUGHT
“Ray Donovan” is a show that underwhelmed me for the first four episodes. However, I stuck with it as I have a hard time with most Showtime shows. While I liked a lot of the setup, the end result was a program that I never committed to watching all the time. Now, that I have the entire first season in front of me, the issues with the narrative are apparent. Plus, what’s up with the wife’s shit Boston accent? Is the lady a British accent and only learned how Bostonians talk from a bad Kennedy impersonator?
Liev Schreiber is sincere as hell in the title role, but his interactions with Jon Voight showcase the weak points of the series. After all, who needs one more cynical family drama about scumbags? Jon Voight is supposed to be the biggest badass in history, but I’m not sure if I buy all of the stuff that his character has been accused of doing. He might’ve killed his daughter, plus a ton of other people. Voight gives the attitude of a Whitey Bulger knock-off, but I never buy for a moment that he did any of the dirty deeds. Surprisingly, I buy it coming from Liev Schreiber. His Ray Donovan is far more on the ball and seemingly willing to mangle anybody up. Hell, I was waiting for Elliot Gould to catch a bullet during the season.
The Blu-Ray comes with no special features. But, it sports an insane Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track. The 1080p is on par with most recent TV on Blu-Ray. Still, I would’ve thought that some special features could’ve been produced. In the end, I’d recommend a purchase.
RELEASE DATE: 06/10/2014