Warning: Spoiler Alert
Although only 45-minutes, Showtime Original Series “Ray Donovan,” presented one of their most powerful episodes in the eighth installment of their second season, including a shocking conclusion that this viewer realized was going to occur just seconds before it took place. The events of this episode radically changed the dynamic of the series going forward, as relationships got altered, in some cases permanently. It also continued the theme of this season, that’s shown us the world of “The Fixer Of The Stars,” crumbling in front of him on a bunch of different levels.
The episode opens with Donovan, waking up the morning after his son Conor’s birthday, which ended in a family feud. Ray wakes up hung-over, and quickly realizes his wife Abby never slept in the bed. He calls his assistant Avi, whose sitting in a motel parking lot where Abby is meeting her new lover, LAPD Detective Jim Halloran. They have breakfast in the motel’s diner and Abby tells Halloran she’s nervous that he’s going to breakup with her. The cop responds, that he isn’t but wants to make sure she’s serious about their relationship, she replies that she thinks she’s in love with him but that’s the only commitment she can give him. Halloran tells her he can live with that.
Ray drives by the school bus-stop and sees his daughter Bridget waiting for the bus with other students. He stops the car, asks if she’s alright and tells her he loves her. He drives away and seconds later the bus comes, but Bridget remains after all the other kids boarded. A minute later her boyfriend Marvin Gaye Washington, pulls up in his red sports-car and drives her over to his studio, so she can sit in on a session.
We see the first appearance this season of Ezra’s partner in his law firm Lee Drexler, whose been on an extended honeymoon with his new trophy-wife. He steps into his pool and starts to relax, when he feels the pressure of a foot on his head, standing above him is recently released convict Cookie Brown and two of his henchmen. The next scene shows Drexler at a table in his house with Brown and his two associates, Lee’s on the phone with Donovan, telling him that Cookie and his crew invaded his home and their going to kill him. Ray tells the attorney, that if Cookie had plans to kill him he’d be dead already and tells him he’ll be over shortly.
When Donovan arrives, he tells Cookie to put away his pistol and for his henchmen to wait outside. Cookie does as asked, then gets down to the purpose of his visit. Before Cookie went to prison, he gave Rekon, (Marvin’s guardian and owner of the record label he records on ) $30 thousand as seed money to start the label. Now that he’s free he wants control of Marvin in return for his investment. Drexler goes into “Lawyer-Speak,” talking about there was no written contract and Brown stops him mid-stream and informs Lee, that the rules are different in the hood. Donovan understands, Cookie’s not going to give up on this, so he asks Brown for a few hours to work out the details.
Micky gets a call from his contact at Paramount, Debra Gershon and she tells him that one of the biggest producers in Hollywood Jerry Weiss, (Richard Benjamin) loves Micky’s script idea and wants to meet with him. However Micky’s parole officer Ronald Keith, says he’s not going anywhere, so Gershon has to come see him. She shows up shortly afterwards and Keith tells her who he is and that the elder Donovan’s not going anywhere. But Gershon hires him as a consultant and he gives Micky permission to meet with Weiss.
Abby’s still in the motel with Halloran, when her cellphone rings, it’s a text from Bridget’s school saying she has yet to show up. Abby calls her daughter and Bridget lies, telling her she’s home and not feeling well, Abby offers to come straight home but Bridget tells her she’ll be fine and just go take a nap. Just after Bridget hangs up, Marvin steps into the recording booth.
Rekon shows up at Drexler’s house and the attorney attempts to show bravado, saying he’s not afraid of Cookie and Marvin will stay with Rekon. Donovan’s stunned at Lee’s ignorance, he tells the lawyer a restraining order’s not going to work with Brown. Drexler tells Donovan, he’s the boss and Ray will follow his orders, but Rekon jumps in and says Ray’s right. They have to give up Marvin for everyone’s safety. Donovan starts to leave to meet with Cookie, but Drexler tries to convince him not to, Ray tells the attorney to trust him.
Avi shows up at Ray’s office with Halloran’s police file, as well as his camera but he doesn’t want to show Ray the pictures of Abby and the cop. Donovan grabs the camera and looks for himself, but gets interrupted as Lena brings Cookie into the office. Donovan tells him that Drexler and Rekon have agreed to give him Marvin, but he thinks they should relocate because of “hard feelings.” Brown’s too savvy to fall for that and realizes Donovan wants him to relocate Marvin to keep him away from Bridget. He tells Ray that they’ll soon move to South Beach.
Donovan drives over to Halloran’s house minutes before the cop arrives. He lets the detective go into his home, then kicks the door in, but Halloran gets the drop on him, standing behind him with his service revolver. Ray tells Halloran he’s not to see Abby again, but the cop says that’s up to Abby. Ray steps closer to the detective, who has his revolver cocked and ready and Donovan dares him to shoot him, at which point the policeman lowers his weapon.
Bridget and Marvin have recorded a duet of the sixties standard “Sunny,” and Rekon tells him that this record will skyrocket him to the top. He has yet to tell Marvin about the deal he’s agreed to with Cookie, most likely wanting to discuss it with him in private.
Micky has made a new best friend in Jerry Weiss, who tells the ex-con he wants to sign a three picture deal with him. Unfortunately, the deal falls apart later that evening as Claudette’s husband Alan shows up at the party with a young lady. The two spar verbally at first, but then Alan throws a drink in Donovan’s face and Micky starts choking him. Jerry tells Micky he has to leave and minutes later Gershon receives a call in her car from the producer, telling her and Micky the deal’s off.
Ray heads home to find Abby fuming that he went to Halloran’s house. He tells her she’s no longer going to see him and she laughs him off. He then hands her the loan papers to sign so they can buy the new house in Truesdale, but she says it’s too late. She tells him to move to his apartment in Los Angeles and he replies it’s his house and starts tearing her clothes out of the closet. She starts hitting him and he tries to soften the tension by kissing her, but she bites his lip, which starts bleeding. As he heads out of the house, his phone rings and Drexler’s on the other end. He tells Ray that he spoke with Cookie and told him he couldn’t have Marvin, but that Drexler would give him $150 thousand five times his initial investment. Donovan tells him he’s made a mistake and we soon find out just how big a mistake he made.
Rekon and Marvin are sitting up front in Rekon’s vehicle while Bridget’s in the backseat. They are listening to the recording and Rekon praises it even more than before. Marvin compliments Bridget, she tells him she loves him and lies down on the backseat. As they pull up to a stoplight, Cookie shoots Rekon dead and Marvin begs for his life to no avail, as he’s shot through the head. Brown doesn’t see Bridget in the car and drives away. Shaking, crying and spattered with blood, she leaves the vehicle, walks about a thousand yards, then calls Ray as the screen goes black.
The story will pick up again next Sunday night on Showtime.
