Ray Drecker (Thomas Jane) is a down-on-his-luck high school basketball coach in Detroit.  Not only did his wife, Jessica (Anne Heche), leave him a couple of years back to marry a nerdy, well-to-do dermatologist (Eddie Jemison), but his uninsured home was recently badly damaged by an electrical fire and he is now living in a tent.  His teenage kids, who have their own set of weird problems, are back living with their mother, and Ray is on the verge of bankruptcy with no viable prospects…except one.

Free-spirited, insecure friend (and one-time lover) Tanya (Jane Adams) convinces Ray that the fact he is endowed with a very large penis would make him the perfect candidate to be a “male escort,” and that lonely wealthy ladies would be “standing in line” for his services.  She even agrees to become his manager (i.e. “pimp”).

However, embarking on this new career and keeping it secret from the people at his high school, is not as easy as it might appear, particularly when Ray also has to deal with the needs of Jessica, his kids and crafty “life consultant” Lenore (Rebecca Creskoff), who wants to horn in on the sexual action.

CRITIQUE

Hung boasts a fine cast of players.  Aside from Thomas Jane, Anne Heche, Jane Adams, Eddie Jemison and Rebecca Creskoff, Alanna Ubach’s performance as the sex-starved wife of Ray’s nasty next-door neighbor and Natalie Zea’s as one of his “clients” both make a strong impression.

That said, I must admit that, as a viewer, I didn’t really like or even care about any of their characters.  I found it virtually impossible to relate to their problems, financial or otherwise, probably because these basically irresponsible people deal with them in such unconventional and unsavory ways.

Yes, bad things do happen to good people and that’s a tragedy.  But, when you allow your house to become a firetrap, don’t pay your homeowner’s insurance premiums and you spend way beyond your means, what do you expect?

That aside, the main problem with this series is that it has a “one-joke” premise (i.e. “well endowed guy sells himself as a male prostitute”).  It looks funny on paper, but for ten half-hour episodes (on 2 DVDs), it has trouble sustaining itself.  I may have smiled once or twice watching first season, but there were certainly no laugh-out-loud moments.

What really surprises me is that this show is back for a second season.

THE VIDEO

The widescreen picture is has no noticeable flaws.

THE AUDIO

The Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound is without problems.

THE EXTRAS

3 Audio Commentaries with series creators/executive producers Colette Burson, Dmitry Lipkin and writer Brett C. Leonard.

About HUNG and The Women of HUNG, are 7-9 minute “Behind the Scenes” featurettes that include cast and creator interviews.

Ray and Tanya’s Personal Ads: I did laugh-out-loud at these homemade possible television commercials that the characters made to promote their service.

FINAL THOUGHT

Hung is a not-very-funny comedy series that probably looked better on paper than it plays on screen.