Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

Hung: The Complete Third Season Blu-ray Movie Review

Gone but not forgotten. Yet...

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown October 2, 2012

It's not TV, it's HBO. I would add: unless it's a half-hour series, in which case there's no guarantee. While the premium cable network's hour-long, Emmy-darling dramas are nestled all safely and snuggly in their beds, its half-hour comedies and dramedies aren't afforded the same luxury. Quality may be higher, content may be more adult in nature, the writers' rooms freer to pursue their showrunners' visions, but the chance of cancellation? Cancellation can come just as swiftly on HBO as anywhere else, particularly when it comes to shows that clock in at thirty-minutes per episode. How to Make It in America: booted after two eight-episode seasons. Bored to Death, one of HBO's finest and funniest: gone to the great city in the canceled series sky after three eight-episode seasons. And now Hung as well, ousted after three quirky, desperate-to-offend ten-episode seasons. Truth be told, though, the announcement that HBO wasn't planning to bring back creators Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson's divisive series didn't stir up any emotion whatsoever. No pleasure, no tears, nothing that might suggest I was attached to it in the least, which is more telling I suppose than anything else that follows.

Mano e mano

When last we left Hung... er, sad-sack high school coach turned intrepid male prostitute Ray Drecker (Thomas Jane), he had come within an inch of reconciling with ex-wife Jessica (Anne Heche) and walking away from his night job. But then Hung wouldn't be Hung. It would be Everyday Ray. This season, Ray and self-made pimp Tanya (Jane Adams) take the fight to embittered rival Lenore (Rebecca Creskoff) as "Happiness Consultants" with a legitimate startup business: the Female Wellness Center. Lenore isn't about to roll over, though, and soon reveals a well-endowed ace up her sleeve: rookie stud Jason (Stephen Amell). As the twosomes go head to head, Jessica strikes out on her own, Drecker twins Damon and Darby (Charlie Saxton and Sianoa Smit-McPhee) wallow in the depths of manufactured middle class angst, Charlie (Lennie James) returns to steal the show (in and out of jail), and Lenore encounters an obstacle unlike any other: Jason's fiancée, Sandee (Analeigh Tipton). Otherwise, it's a battle for business in a town that isn't big enough to handle two hot talents.

Hung hits something of a commendable stride in Season Three, wobbly and off-balance though it may be. It still lurches from dark comedy to awkward farce to sentimental satire, always beyond the boundaries of good taste and with hit-or-miss laughs aplenty, but it finally does what it failed to accomplish in 2009 and only began to pull off in 2010: function as a sustainable, self-respecting premium cable series. What was just two years ago an acquired taste, and a bitter one at that, suddenly has a bit more zest and flavor. It just turned out to be too little too late. Yes, irritations still abound -- Damon and Darby are more obnoxious than ever, Jessica no longer matters all that much, and Ray and Tanya's new business venture is suspiciously Weeds-y -- but the enjoyable outweighs the unbearable. So much so that the series' ongoing missteps are easier to tolerate. No small feat considering Jane, Adams, Creskoff and James walk away with the show, leaving one to wonder why Lipkin and Burson are so desperate to still keep up with Jessica, the twins and other recurring characters who shoulda, woulda, coulda been written off a long time ago. Tragic bridge collapse, anyone? Ah well, their roles are significantly reduced this season, so that helps.

Irreverence and shock tactics can only take a series so far, after which watching Ray hem and haw, resist and relent, hasn't been all that much fun. Until now. With the Wellness Center open for business, the dynamics of the show shift subtly yet dramatically. More crucial to the show's evolution, though, is that even the slight change of venue gives the cast and creators more freedom and room to work. At its core, Hung has always been high-concept low-brow fluff. Lipkin and Burson spent two seasons apologizing for it; the bulk of the third season is spent embracing it. Whether this is what they had in mind all along is irrelevant at this point. Hung is no more. Had Lipkin and Burson been more discerning gate keepers, the series may have hit its stride years ago, attracted more viewers and lived to fight another season. Instead, the pair painted themselves into a proverbial corner; an ugly, quirky corner that didn't look all that attractive before. With everyone on their B-game, writers included, there's a good chance Hung could have spun me around, to say nothing of others like me, who tend to roam from show to show in search of the most fertile feeding grounds. There are only so many TV-viewing hours in a day after all. But we'll never know. Regardless of whether you love it, loathe it, or like it just a little, Hung failed as a series. Cast blame wherever you prefer; at the end of the day, Lipkin and Burson didn't bring in enough viewers or retain enough fans to make it past three seasons.

Hung: The Complete Third Season Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Hung's third season comes to Blu-ray with an *insert well-endowed pun here* 1080p/AVC-encoded video presentation that hits the same frequent highs and thankfully limited lows as its previous season counterparts. Noise surges on occasion and crush plays a small role, but little else distracts. Colors are warm and gratifying, skintones are seductive (with only a few minor saturation mishaps), primaries are primed to please, and black levels are deep and satisfying on the whole. Detail is terrific, with crisply resolved fine textures, clean edges and decidedly decent delineation. Encoding anomalies are few and far between too; the vast majority of the inconsistencies that appear trace back to the series' source and nothing more. There isn't much in the way of artifacting, banding and what not, making Hung's third and final Blu-ray release a solid one.

Hung: The Complete Third Season Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Hung lets it all hang out with another impressive DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track that, like its predecessors, is more involving than you might expect. Street noise, crowd chatter, passersby, the sounds of a healthy Wellness Center with... erm, active membership; the soundfield is full of huffy hustle and breathy bustle. Directional effects are nimble and precise, pans are smooth and dynamics are excellent, as is low-end output, restrained as it often is. When the music kicks in and lust is in the air, though, the LFE channel responds with confidence and charisma, granting the soundscape welcome weight and presence. Dialogue is clear and nicely prioritized as well, without any muddled voices or unsupported ambient effects to report. Cancellation be damned. Hung looks and sounds like a winner.

Hung: The Complete Third Season Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentaries: Four commentaries are available: "Don't Give Up on Detroit or Hung Like a Horse" with series creators Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson, "Take the Cake or Are You Packing" with the creators and writer Julia Brownell, "Mister Decker or Ease Up on the Whup-Ass" with the creators and writers Eduardo Machado and Drew Lindo, and "What's Going on Downstairs or Don't Eat Prince Eric"with the creators and writer Micha Schraft.
• Inside the Series (HD, 15 minutes): A look at the ins and outs (and ins and outs) of the third season with Lipkin and Burson, who I must say pop up in more special features than your typical showrunners.
• Deleted Scenes (HD): Five axed scenes and an alternate ending, but no real standouts.
• Pimpin' Ain't Easy (HD, 4 minutes): Charlie laments the economic decline.
• Wellness Center Tour (HD, 4 minutes): Tanya and Ray's new house of business.
• Music Video (HD, 3 minutes): Damon and Darby bust a move.

Hung: The Complete Third Season Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Here lies Hung, a deeply flawed guilty pleasure that was on the road to recovery when it met its tragic end. Loved by only a few, it teetered between the perverse and the poignant to its fans' delight without sacrificing its sensibilities, even as ratings fell and viewers drifted away. It will be missed. Not by all, but by those faithful few who will find comfort in the series' final Blu-ray release. With an excellent video presentation, a strong DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track, and more than two hours of commentaries and additional extras, it should help take away some of the sting from the series' passing. It was a decent run, Hung. You weren't for everyone, but you were a decent show all the same. Here's to you, buddy.