Damages: Everyone Has an Angle

The lawyers at Hewes and Associates were working their angles hard this week as Damages continues to gain momentum and intrigue.  Flashing between the present day – where Ellen’s taking someone out – to six months ago, it’s still a mystery as to who’s at the end of Ellen’s two bullets, but this week helped wheedle down one potential victim.  Let’s narrow down the suspects …

Ellen continues to work her angle with the Feds against Patty this week with the infant mortality case.  But unfortunately, after Patty commits to defending Daniel Purcell, she drops the case and hands it off to Tom (Tate Donovan, who is sure aging well).  Ellen tries to get Patty back on the case, but it’s a no go.  So it’s Tom that takes the bait instead when their plaintiff asks for a little extra, totally illegal upfront money – just a meager $60,000.  At first Ellen is okay with setting up Tom, as long as he leads them to Patty, but she begins to have second thoughts after Tom announces his wife is pregnant again.  She tries to talk Tom out of giving the spy/plaintiff the money by appealing to his young daughter’s innate sense of justice, but Tom writes her off saying the world is much more complicated than that.  Sometimes justice requires some clawing.  Lucky for Tom, Patty has the conference rooms wired and learns that Tom was going to pay off his client.  She calls him and tells him to drop the infant mortality case at the last second.  She needs him to help her with the much larger Purcell case.  Tom walks away scot-free.  But he doesn’t keep himself completely clean of dirty deeds.  Flash to six months later and there’s Tom handing Ellen her shiny silver gun.  Looks like Tom’s not at the end of it.

Last week, I guessed it might be Ellen’s new buddy in grief, Wes, taking the shots, and this episode proved I might be on to something.  Ellen met with hottie Wes this week to confess that she saw her fiancé’s killer, but just walked away.  In no time flat, Wes puts the pieces together and realizes that the man Ellen wants revenge on is Arthur Frobisher.  Wes warns her not to mess with a guy like that.  He’s powerful and can come after her.  Ellen doesn’t seem to heed this warning much, so Arthur Frobisher could still very well be Ellen’s mysterious victim.  But at least Wes seems to care about her welfare.  Maybe I was at least right about him being a good love interest for Ellen.

Flash to six months later and there’s Ellen and Wes having a healthy romp in the sack. (Score one for me!) Ellen gets a phone call to meet someone in ten minutes and rushes off.  She won’t tell Wes who was on the phone and tells him he better not be there when she gets back.  Okay so maybe he’s less of a love interest and more of a lust interest?  Or maybe, he better get out of there before she returns and shoots him up for lying?

Flash back to six months ago and there’s doe-eyed Wes taking the article about Frobisher and pinning it up in his armoire, which is lined with articles on the dangerous billionaire and one article on Ellen’s dead fiancé.  Pan over, and lo and behold, the armoire holds some more secrets: a serious amount of weaponry.  Looks like Ellen and Wes’ meeting was no accident.  What angle are you playing sexy Wessy?

One thing’s for sure, on Damages even the victims are working angles.  Last week we left Patty with Daniel Purcell and his murdered wife.  Back at his townhouse this week, Purcell’s looking like the main suspect, especially since there’s no sign of entry and Purcell lies about being threatened at work.  Patty calls him on his lies, and he claims to be protecting his daughter.  He doesn’t want Patty pursuing it.  But since when does Patty listen?  She takes his incriminating documents to a scientist she knows will leak the info.  Quickly Doctor Sure-I’ll-Keep-This-Confidential runs off to Purcell’s scheming coworkers and tells them Patty Hewes has some incriminating documents.  Scheming coworker runs off to scheming lawyer, Claire Maddox (the fabulous Marcia Gay Harden – love the new short ‘do) who easily finds a judge with a grudge against Patty who signs a document allowing the cops to seize the stolen docs.  Purcell is furious when he finds out Patty leaked the docs, but soon changes his tune when Patty reveals that Claire Maddox is head counsel for a super powerful energy company.  That‘s who killed his wife, she tells him.  Daniel looks pleased.

But victims lie too.  Flash to a little later and there’s Purcell in a car with none other than Claire Maddox.  Did you tell anyone about us, asks Claire.  No, says Daniel.  Flash to Daniel burying something.  My oh my, what are you up to, Mr. Purcell?

Is it one of these two that gets shot courtesy of Ellen for telling too many lies?  Or is it Frobisher?  Or Wes?  Or Patty?  Or those unhelpful FBI agents?  One thing’s certain, it’s time to choose an angle.

Season 2, Episode 2: Burn It, Shred It, I Don’t Care (originally aired January 14, 2009)

For another take on this episode, check out What’s Your Angle? by Alana D.

For more on Damages, click here.

Wednesdays at 10pm E/P on FX

Photographs courtesy of FX and IMDbPro