IMHO: "Hung" (1.9) "This is America: Fifty Bucks"

***Spoilers***

Well, that was an unusual experience. I just watched a man discuss the marketing of a business while he had his head between a woman’s legs, making her moan. While he was doing it.

We briefly covered Hung, HBO’s experiment in using what your mama gave you back when it premiered and then the show's stars really knocked our editor off his feet when he went to the TCA, but there’s not really been anything gay about it, and so we haven’t had a chance to talk about what this show is packin’.

That all changed Sunday night with the addition of an emo kid wearing a Slanket. How’s he fit in with our hero who has trouble finding jeans that fit right? And why’d it only earn a semi side arrow? How many penis jokes can I make before AfterElton editor Michael Jensen censors me? Feel free to count in the comments, we'll make it a game!

The main character, played with little shame by Thomas Jane (he strips completely nude in the title sequence after all) is Ray Drecker and in this episode, he's holding detention at the high school. And being really pompous about it which will not serve him well as television high school teachers do not get to be pompous – they may be doing God’s work, but they always get it knocked in the dirt for it.

Teachers don't get to be cocky on TV.

On cue, in walks an emo kid in various shades of angst, followed by what I discover is Ray’s son, Damon, trailing behind him like a puppy. Emo kid signs in, and they sit down together. Dad looks displeased, and calls his son into the hallway, initially to do the parent thing about getting detention. Naturally, as soon as he swells up to pontificate, he’s got to get knocked down.

I'm sure this is not the conversation Ray thought he was going to have.

See, Damon doesn’t have detention, emo kid does. For calling Ms. Butchik Ms. "Butt-cheeks." Damon just wants to hang out with emo, so he came with him to detention. Synapses start firing in dad’s head, but like most dads, he can’t bring himself to say it. And like most kids, Damon decides to stick it in and twist it:

Damon: “Are you homophobic?”

Ray: “What? I’m asking you questions about your life…”

Damon: “Powell’s not into labels and frankly neither am I.”

Ray: (internal monolog) Now I’m not above admitting George Clooney is a handsome man, but this is a whole ‘nother thing.

He later attempts to discuss the issue with his pimp, Tanya. He opens with “I think my kid’s a gay.” She tells him that’s great, that kids experiment. As they discuss his business, and the impact on his life, they have some really great lines, none of which are fit for this website. Then Tanya changes the topic back to his son and tells Ray he should say his kid is gay, not that his “kid’s a gay.”

There was interesting cinematography here. I'm not supposed to notice that if the story's good...

We then get a really odd scene, with Damon doing some indoor rock climbing with what turns out to be his twin sister and queer peer rolled all in one. She wants to know if he’s had sex with Powell. He says not yet. She says men are easy to please. I figure Damon knows that.

At this point Anne Heche’s character, who appears to be their mother, shouts encouragement to their climbing – she’s giving them $10 if they reach the top, as a weight loss plan. So skinny mom gave up Pilates to bribe her kids to be less embarrassing? Lovely.

Seriously though - how lucky is sis? She looks like the stereotypical QP, and she has her own gay twin. Perfect!

So here’s the thing about the side arrow: Nobody said anything anti-gay. Dad’s struggling with the news, but what dad doesn’t when his gay son goes for the moneyshot? I’ll even admit to being an old fogey who gets turned off by “we’re not into labels” thing that kids do these days.

The show seems to be trying to contrast the irony of Ray being a male prostitute with his issues surrounding his son’s own unconventional sexuality. It’s an interesting thought, and one they could explore. But instead, they drop it and go on to a graphic sex scene with Ray and a client, and start a story thread about his competing pimps. Because nobody cares about Ray’s family, including Ray, it seems.

Maybe emo saw Damon in the gym shower? They make an unlikely pair.

Maybe they’ll revisit the whole thing. Maybe they won’t. Maybe we’ll find out from emo kid that Damon inherited his father’s best feature. Perhaps we’ll see the father grow from his tiny world and extend himself as a result of his son’s revelation.

I don’t know if the show’s that smart. It dangles something real out there, but then whips around to something salacious and simple. Maybe it’s a pointed effort to show how low Ray’s sunk. Maybe it was just to fill some airtime because Ray's sex scene ended prematurely.

We’ll be watching, but for now, while the show posed some interesting questions as foreplay, it couldn’t quite get it up.