review of Ray Donovan 2.10 

Ray Donovan has just been scorching on Showtime these past few episodes, firing and burning on all cylinders since the killing of Marvin Gaye Washington, which itself was a superb episode, coupling the beauty of the duet between Marvin and Bridget with Marvin\'s brutal murder that Bridget witnessed.

That\'s still the main problem Ray has to address, with Cookie the killer breathing down his family\'s necks, and Abby only making things worse by bringing her police detective lover into this, and now priming him to take out Cookie.   That can\'t end well for either man, and my guess is the detective will get the worst of it. 

But, typically, and what makes this series really fly, is the plethora of crises Ray has to face and attempt to solve on a daily basis.   The FBI guy is more dangerous than ever, as he sees his appointment as FBI Chief under attack.   He\'ll do anything to get it, including killing Kate and Ray, too, if he has to, and can get away with it.   Cochran\'s been one of my favorite villains since he showed his colors, and it will be harrowing fun to see how this part of the story all plays out.

Meanwhile, Terry throwing in with Mickey is bound to result in some deaths, and I just hope it\'s no one we care about.  Mickey continues to be one of the most resourceful characters in the series, managing now to even bring his parole officer, under Ray\'s command, into Mickey\'s action.  Jon Voight\'s performance in this role continues to be one for the ages.

Even Ray can\'t deal with all of this, and the ending to last night\'s show, as it was to 2.9, was completely on-target.  Whether spending a night with a slightly psycho couple, or jumping naked into the Pacific, Ray needs something to calm his nerves.  He\'s certainly not getting that back home.

Which leads me to my final thought for now:  Abby continues to be my least favorite character on the show.   And if someone else has to go in the season finale, well ...

See also Ray Donovan 2.1: Back in Business ... Ray Donovan 2.4: The Bad Guy ... Ray Donovan 2.5: Wool Over Eyes ... Ray Donovan 2.7: The Party from Hell

And see also Ray Donovan Debuts with Originality and Flair ... Ray Donovan 1.2: His Assistants and his Family ... Ray Donovan 1.3: Mickey ... Ray Donovan 1.7 and Whitey Bulger ... Ray Donovan 1.8: Poetry and Death ... Ray Donovan Season 1 Finale: The Beginning of Redemption

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Paul Levinson, PhD, is Professor of Communication & Media Studies at Fordham University in New York City.  His 8 nonfiction books, including The Soft Edge (1997), Digital McLuhan (1999), Realspace (2003),  Cellphone (2004), and New New Media (2009, 2nd edition 2012), have been the subject of major articles in the New York Times, Wired, the Christian Science Monitor, and have been translated into 12 languages. His science fiction novels include The Silk Code (1999, ebook 2012), Borrowed Tides (2001), TheConsciousness Plague (2002, 2013), The Pixel Eye (2003), The Plot To SaveSocrates (2006, ebook 2012), and Unburning Alexandria (2013).  His short stories have been nominated for Nebula, Hugo, Edgar, and Sturgeon Awards.  Paul Levinson appears on "The O'Reilly Factor" (Fox News), "The CBS Evening News,"  “NewsHour with Jim Lehrer” (PBS),  “Nightline” (ABC), NPR, and numerous national and international TV and radio programs. His 1972 album, Twice Upon a Rhyme, was re-issued in 2009 (CD) and 2010 (remastered vinyl). He reviews the best of television in his InfiniteRegress.tv blog, and was listed in The Chronicle of Higher Education’s “Top 10 Academic Twitterers” in 2009.

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