In new Showtime drama, Ray Donovan, Liev Schreiber (X Men Origins: Wolverine, Salt) and Paula Malcomson (Lost, The Hunger Games) play antihero Californian fixer, Ray, and his wife, making arrangements for Hollywood's rich and famous, doing a bit of dirty work as an enforcer for two entertainment lawyers, much to his wife's concern. The first episode introduces the titular antihero and father with his unique career path, Donovan, as his own interminable father Mickey (Jon Voight) is released from jail after twenty years. Ann Biderman (Southland) spoke to Think Progress of the Californian setting, the underlying themes and the show's commentary on the glitzy lives of the rich: "it's pointed humor but underneath I'm hoping there's kind of some tenderness and that it is real and that everyone here is kind of trying to do the best they can."

Liev Schreiber
Liev Shreiber: Star Of New Showtime Drama, Ray Donovan.

The Huffington Post's Maureen Ryan describes the show as a "Frankenstein's monster" of TV, deriding it as "more than just an average letdown" with much of the show feeling "disjointed, or tired, or both" culminating in a step in the wrong direction for Showtime, who are responsible for the hugely successful Homeland political thriller.

Jon Voight
Jon Voight is Ray's Menacing Ex-Con Father.

The LA Times gives a more balanced overview, explaining that once Ray Donovan settles into a rhythm "it works very well - something like "The Sweet Smell of Success" crossed with "The Long Goodbye," in terms of "dirty town" pictures, but with more family feeling. A few caricatures stick out among the characters, but the subtler conceptions, on the page and in performance, win out."

Watch The Trailer For Ray Donovan:

Whereas the NY Post goes all-out in its praise for the Ann Biderman-penned drama: "Do you remember the first time you saw "The Sopranos," "Breaking Bad" or "Six Feet Under" and you knew you were watching something you'd never seen before? Get ready for that to happen to you again. Showtime's "Ray Donovan" is every bit as good as any of those other "What the hell did I just watch"?", praising it's "great acting, writing and direction." 

Paula Malcomson
Paula Malcomson Plays Ray's Wife In Ray Donovan.

Clichés and crime: whether you're into that or not, Ray Donovan is set to run throughout the summer until September 22nd this year.