Season 1 - Episode 2
Showtime (US)
House of Lies' pilot episode was a tour de force, a biting black comedy that was as outrageous as it was funny. The second episode had a lot to live up to if it was going to prove to be weekly must-see television.
And while "Amsterdam" wasn't quite as good as the pilot, it stood up well and took us further into the world of management consulting with Marty and his team. Basically, be utter bastards and get paid a shit lot of money for it. After shagging his ex-wife in the toilet of a posh restaurant, Marty and his team are dispatched to Phoenix to help solve a dispute between the warring husband and wife team who own the fictional NBA franchise the Huskies (I'll let it slide that Huskies is a pretty ridiculous name for a team from the desert - but only because I'm happy that my team, the Phoenix Suns weren't brought into things!). The team are once again completely unscrupulous when it comes to getting the job done, and that's the whole point in the show. Whatever it takes.
But then again, Marty is seen to be a deeply caring father to his pre-pubescent transvestite son. The contrast is stark between his business persona and personal persona. In business, it looks like he killed the opportunity for Jeannie to move to a higher paying job with another company because he wants her on his team (he never explicitly states that he did so, but it is highly implied - although she did seem strangely happy about it); but in his home life, he wants his son to be happy and able to express himself. It's great character dynamic, and I hope something we'll see more of as the season progresses.
There's also a bizarre cameo from Cat Deeley. Seemingly just to paint Doug as some sort of pervert. Really quite a funny cameo, and if this is the type of thing House of Lies can do on a regular basis, I'll be more than happy to watch every week.
****
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