Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #603 in DVD
• Released on: 2009-08-31
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Format: PAL
• Subtitled in: English, Hindi
• Number of discs: 3
• Running time: 300 minutes

Synopsis
There have been 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.

Customer Reviews

Can't quite give it full beans
I enjoyed the first series of DAMAGES and knew I had to watch the second. Yes, I enjoyed this one too but there was something missing this time around. For a start, I'm not totally convinced that Rose Byrne has the ability to play the pivotal role of corporate femme fatale Ellen Parsons. Much of what happens in this series revolves around her one way or another, but she doesn't actually DO much, apart from put on those glassy eyes once every now and then. One minute super-smart Patty has Ellen sussed, the next she's underestimated her. And at the end of the day, Ellen is no match for Patty, even if that's not how things work out here. Then there's The Case - the big one being Patty's attempts to bring down UNR (a kind of Union Carbide, but in Virginia), who she reckons are responsible for poisoning the local populace with a chemical called Aracite. So Patty's planning a class-action suit on behalf of all the many plaintiffs, but we see relatively little of them (in order to personalise the story, win more audience empathy) and instead we get the more simplified focus of Patty vs UNR's arrogant CEO Walter Kendrick (played by John Doman, well-known for his role as a senior cop in THE WIRE). There are occasional appearances by Arthur Frobisher (played by Ted Danson) as a carry-over from the first series but ultimately he's little more than cosmetic dressing and not central to any of the main stories.

The central theme within Hewes & Associates is that Ellen is collaborating with the FBI because she has a personal vendetta hanging over from series one - that Patty arranged to have her killed. This was strained as a concept stretching 13 episodes and although it had some twists and turns, there wasn't enough meat on its bones, partly because Rose Byrne, excellent actress though she is, seemed slightly out of her depth up against ruthless, stone-hearted Patty Hewes. Meanwhile Walter Kendrick in this role lacked the anti-hero likeability of Ted Danson from the first series, while key figure William Hurt (as Daniel Purcell) was consistently a nuisance, for being (imho) miscast.

But I liked it. And that's because Glenn Close carries it. She is quite perfectly cast and she has made Damages what it is and as good as it is. She is magnetic in every scene and has the star-quality to be so. She makes some of the peripheral characters - not least new partner Tom Shayes - appear weak and breakable, and I would have thought that such a ball-breaker as Patty Hewes wouldn't have chosen such partners in real life.

One of the surprise newcomers who made a good impression on me was Timothy Olyphant (as Wes Krulik), Ellen's new lover and I liked the uncertainty he portrayed as to which way he would ultimately swing - and we didn't find out until the very last minute.

The script is generally tight and economical, full of intelligent touches and with some interesting spin-off threads such as Patty's relationships with her husband and son. I don't think Series 2 has done any harm to the product's brand image and I will be one of millions eager to see where things carry on in the third series. I also appreciated the high-definition broadcast, which made for an enhanced viewing experience.

Just about cuts it
Damages' brilliant first season was an out-of-the-blue treat for me. I've never enjoyed a legal drama before and had no real interest in a show that starred Glenn 'Cruella De Vil' Close, but after a few insistences I took the plunge and spent two fab nights enjoying it's tightly plotted, superbly acted joys. To say it's second season is a disappointment is something of an understatement.

This is mainly due to the creators' decision to fall back on that plot staple which so dominates modern major American drama- the government conspiracy. Yawn. Prison Break, Lost, 24, Heroes, all once-great programs that fell to the temptation of having their characters face and surmount immeasurable odds. This is a step down from the first season's plot (wherein an astoundingly good Ted Danson screws over his entire company to make a quick buck). The Wire's John Doman serves as our main villain but he's still part of a faceless company, and considering the wealth of co-conspirators, heavies and good-guys-gone-bad-gone-good-gone-who-knows, the whole thing seems a tad impersonal.

While things pick up mid-season for a vast improvement, the show is still marred by cheap shock plot twists (daddy issues all across the board) and a disposable-character attitude I felt somewhat offended by. Thanks the Gods for the cast then, who make sure this is still an ensemble worth tuning in for. Rose Byrne is as excellent as ever, as is a top-billing Close (treading a insanely crooked line between ice-queen villain and champion of the weak). Of the new additions, it is not an all-over-the-place William Hurt that shines but Deadwood's Timothy Olyphant, at times apparently channelling a young Eastwood as Ellen's love interest Wes. Danson's back too, as mesmerising as he was the previous year as amoral charmer Arthur Frobisher. As before, it is he who comes across as the hero, not Close's Patty Hewes.

Still a show I'll follow, I just hope the writers have the fortitude to go smaller next year. Apparently the cast have another four seasons on their contracts so at least there's time to improve.

As good, if not better, than Season 1!
Not knowing what to expect, I thoroughly enjoyed Season 1 as it's not the kind of drama I normally watch. I got Season 2 despite reading some reviews that it was not as good as Season 1 and had a muddled plot. Upshot of this - I watched the entire season in a weekend. Having finished an episode I couldn't leave any time before wanting to watch the next episode. I love the way they give you glimpses of what happens in the future, but they do it in such a way that you totally get the wrong idea about what is about to happen. Yes, the plot was more complicated than Season 1 and there were more characters, some of whom dissappear for a couple of episodes at a time, but that made it all the better for me because I love having to concentrate on what is going on and how all the pieces gradually come together. Having a couple of the actors from The Wire feature was also a masterstroke. I only have one minor criticism. In order to wrap everything up and conclude the story I felt a couple of the characters towards the end said and did things that didn't (to me) totally fit in with the character they had played up to that point. Only a minor criticism to what was compulsive viewing.