californication
the devil’s threesome (10/12)

Continuing tonight is the US comedy-drama about a jaded New York novelist who relocates to Hollywood after his best-seller is made into a hit film. In tonight’s episode, Charlie convinces a reluctant Hank to help him get lucky; Mia passes off Hank’s new novella as her own; and Karen and Marcy have a heart-to-heart about love.

After having lost what he thinks is the only copy of his new manuscript (see last week’s episode, ‘Filthy Lucre’), Hank is back to square one in terms of his career and turns to booze for comfort once more. Upon waking up in his messy flat, he drinks a stale lager and gets out of bed to find his agent at the punchbag. Charlie has been staying with Hank since breaking up with Marcy, and he is now determined to get in shape in order to attract other women. “That is a fool’s errand, my friend,” is Hank’s cynical advice.

Later, the ‘roommates’ visit the local boxing club where Charlie spars with an attractive boxer called Laura. He tries to chat her up and she agrees to go out with the pair, on the condition that Hank join her in the ring. Hank reluctantly agrees, but only then finds out that he once dumped the girl. Laura is clearly still upset about the incident and expresses her frustration by raining an array of punches on her unfortunate sparring partner, including many below the belt.

That night, Laura joins the two friends at Hank’s flat and seems willing to put the past behind her as she climbs on top of her host. Hank, however, has other ideas and goes to bed, but it is not long before his sleep is interrupted. It seems that Laura will not sleep with Charlie unless Hank is involved. “I think you need to take one for the team here!” Charlie pleads. Hank is hesitant but agrees to the threesome as a favour to his friend. Then, as the trio are in flagrante, Hank suddenly remembers why he never returned Laura’s calls...

While Charlie and Hank are out on the tiles, Mia pays a visit to Charlie’s office clutching a copy of Hank’s new manuscript. Keen to become an agent herself rather than just an assistant, Danni offers to read the document in her boss’s absence and asks Mia what the story is about. “It’s Nabokov meets Judy Blume with lots of f**king and punching,” she replies. Danni is immediately impressed with the novella and offers to represent Mia herself. “Let me help you with this,” she says. “This thing is going to be huge!” “Maybe Hank Moody could write the screenplay,” suggests Mia.

Elsewhere tonight, Karen and Marcy go out drinking together and discuss their love lives. Marcy equates her own situation with Charlie to Karen’s relationship with Hank. It seems that Marcy has grown bored of her brief dalliance with lesbianism and is keen to return to her husband. “I miss all of us,” she informs Karen. “Me and you and Hank and Charlie... I want to go back to the way things were.” It is at this point that Marcy accidentally lets slip that Hank bought Karen an antique ring. “He loves the sh*t out of you,” Marcy says. “His sun rises and sets on you.”

With Karen seemingly affected by Marcy’s words, the drunken duo head across town and sneak into Hank’s flat to surprise the boys. However, on entering the bedroom, it is they that get the surprise as they interrupt Hank, Charlie and Laura at a key moment in their activities. The girls run out of the flat in shock, but the seminaked boys follow them. When Hank catches up with Karen, she confronts him about the ring. “It’s not about the ring,” Hank assures her. “It’s about you, Karen.” She seems ready to accept that Hank really does love her, but Laura’s farewell at that moment wakes Karen from her reverie and she drives home. Is she having second thoughts about marrying Bill?