Ray Donovan - Viagra - Review: "Sex Is An Emotion In Motion"

Note: Please be aware that English is not my first language


“Viagra” premiered on Sunday, August 17 at 9:00 PM on Showtime.

Last week, Ray Donovan offered a game-changing episode giving a conclusion to the main plot of the beginning of the season. Of course, it was kind of difficult to outmatch “Irish Spring” so I didn’t expect much from this episode, especially since I was sure that Kate wouldn’t be back yet. But “Viagra” was a really nice surprise confirming that this second season is really good and is one of the best summer show this year.

“Viagra” written by Brett Johnson (Mad Men) and directed by John Dahl (Californication, Dexter and the brilliant Hannibal) was certainly the most sexual episode of the show since its beginning. “No shit Sherlock!” would you tell me, given the title of the episode talks pretty much for itself. But sexual doesn’t mean senseless and meaningless and it’s indeed, a very interesting way to see the characters evolving towards the path they have chosen to take.

Since Kate left Los Angeles after the alliance between Ray, Cochran and Mickey to get rid of her by giving her a false story to finish her book, Ray have to find officially some dirt on Cochran to take him down once and for all. Ray doesn’t want Cochran to be number one law enforcement officer in the United States.

Therefore, Ray contacts Volcheck after Frank told him that there is a rumor telling that Cochran is having sexual relations with Volchek’s wife, Donna. Thus, Ray is setting an ambush with the help of Lena so that he can talk to Volcheck and get him on his side.
Plus, the episode opens with a scene confirming that Cochran, Volcheck and their wife are ‘’swingers’’.
Volcheck agrees to join forces with Ray, as he feels trapped in this sex rhombus, not enjoying having sex with Cochran’s wife because she is too old. Volcheck proposes to Cochran another sex orgy at his place and tries to apologize to Donna after being distant with her. Ray puts cameras in Volchek’s apartment to get tapes of the video involving Cochran in whatever-they-consider-this-sexual-oddness-to-be and the plan is working, leaving us wondering what will be Ray’s move in the next episode.

I enjoyed this episode also thanks to the evolution of the storyline about the relationship between Ray and Abby as a gap widens between them and we can see that in the behavior of their children towards them especially in the powerful scene between Bridget and her parents, full of meaning:

Bridget: “You’re a victim. You don’t think we hear you crying yourself to sleep every night?”
Abby: “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Bridget: “You’re so fucking full of shit.”
Ray: “Hey. That’s not how you talk to your mother.”
Bridget: “Of course, you don’t want me to say anything… the only reason she’s crying is because of you.”

Bridget spoke the truth. We are witnessing slowly the breakdown of this couple and in a very interesting way.
After the clash with Bridget, Ray tries to make it up to Abby and invites her to dinner in a chic restaurant. But later in the episode, we realize that Abby prepared herself to go out with the police officer at a bar rather than join Ray to the restaurant. We see them kiss for the first time with Abby saying “Holy shit” as she doesn’t realize that she’s kind of free and releasing herself from the ties that bound her with her husband.

This episode was also the episode marking the return of Ashley, Ray’s handcuffs girl in the bathroom from last season. We’ve quickly seen her this season in the third episode in the arms of Stu Feldman. On “Viagra”, Ashley is back in the arms of a new character that is asking for Ray’s help, as he is ready to pay him big money. Ray the fixer is back. The character is Steve Knight, an on-stage-guru-trying-to-help-people-with-their-problems. He got himself in trouble and needs Ray’s help. Steve beat the hell out of a delivery guy because he interrupted him in his meditation session. The delivery guy is now restrained in a closet and Ray’s goal is to convince him not to press charges against Steve and for that, he offers him 350.000$.

This storyline is not vain as it helped make Ray and Ashley reconnect, which is an important part of the episode because it’s linked to the Ray/Abby separation. So Ashley’s reappearance comes at a very propitious moment in the story. At the end of the episode, she comes to Ray’s office and reconnects with him in a whole new level if you know what I mean.



Otherwise, after their absence from the previous episode, Terry and Bunchy reappear with a game-changer for the first one and a very nice, funny and disturbing storyline for the second one.
Terry had to get a check-up from his doctor and he (strangely?) met his ex-girlfriend, Frances, there. He took advantage of the situation to get back Frances but she said that she wanted nothing to do with him, as he was an accomplice for the murder of the priest that raped Ray and Bunchy. Later in the episode, Frances changes her behavior and has sexual intercourse with Terry because she missed him. Terry comes up with an idea: marry Frances, sell the gym club and take the money to start a new life with his beloved in Ireland. Frances is not even against this idea.

Do you remember Bunchy new love interest in the first episodes of the season? She invited Bunchy on a date at her place as her child is staying over at his friend. As he is a sexual anorexic, Bunchy asked for help from his brother Terry who gave him Viagra.
At the date, when things start to get a little hot between Patty and Bunchy, he takes the Viagra. Little problem: the kid comes back home because he wet the bed at his friend.
But the Viagra was already taken and Bunchy was getting an erection he couldn’t control.
As I said, this scene was also disturbing because they are subtly turning Bunchy into a pedophile. It’s perhaps too soon to say that, but we have every right to think that it’s the case especially since he actually works at the bike shop, which is related to his rape.

Verdict: 6/10. I truly enjoyed “Viagra” and its interesting ways to take the story further in the craziness, intelligently. I love how they handle every storyline with brio, making every single one of them fascinating. They should just give us back Kate in the next few episodes and it would be perfect.

Hit the comments section below and tell us what you thought about this episode of Ray Donovan. Did you enjoy it? Did you hate it? Let us know !