In Treatment Week 1 Alex Tuesday 10AM S01E02 (HBO)

This is a surprising show on HBO. I was really dumbfounded when I discovered that there will be 43 episodes of In Treatment. Wow, 43. These are only half hour shows, or almost half hour shows, but still. That is just incredible.

In Treatment is based on the Israeli series Betipul. Gabriel Byrne plays Paul Weston, a psychologist trying to deal with his patients while going through some personal problems. Each show focuses on a different patient. Mondays feature Laura, an anestheologist infatuated with Paul. Tuesdays feature Alex, an ex-fighter pilot traumatized by events that happened a few years ago. Wednesdays feature Sophie, a suicidal teenage gymnast with Olympic aspirations. Thursdays feature Jake and Amy, a couple in couple’s counseling. Fridays feature Gina, Paul’s own therapist and mentor that he stopped seeing 8 years ago for some reason.

I’ve always loved psychology. This show really feeds that need. The sessions are almost verbatim of what would happen in a real session. This show is about characters, not actions. It’s a very smart show and I am also very surprised that Marky Mark is the executive producer. Marky Mark has had success with Entourage so it makes sense that he decided to try out other projects.

Now don’t say it! He’ll always be Marky Mark for me. I’ll never call him by his other name. That’s how I first knew of him and his funky bunch, so that’s that!

This is a great show. I really liked it. I find that it’s best to watch it a few episodes at a time. On the weekend I watched the first five episodes. Tonight I watched the last three. I recommend this show.

In today’s session we meet a navy pilot called Alex. Alex is played by Blair Underwood and is deeply troubled about something that happened to him. He has a thing about perfection and finds anyone who doesn’t conform to his strange elitist version of perfection beneath him. The trouble goes deeper than that. Alex won’t admit it at first, but his marriage is in deep trouble as well.

Warning: Spoilers ahead.

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Paul’s next patient is Alex. Alex is a new patient and this will be his first session.

Alex asks him if he recognizes him. Alex says that Paul is the best. He researched him.

Alex says that he flew the Madrassa mission. Madrassa was an Islamic school in Baghdad where they were grooming young boys. The army went there and something happened. Somehow there was a leak and Alex’s photo is all over the Islamic net and he’s got a death sentence.

Alex drops bombs on people. He hits his targets. He sleeps like a baby. Paul asks how many children were killed.

Alex says that 16 boys were killed. That’s what the media says at least. The Navy doesn’t say anything. Alex heard about this the next day after the mission.

When his mother died, Alex helped his father. A year after she died, his father remarried. He says that his mother’s death was the most traumatic event in his life. Alex says that he is on R&R. Alex says that he runs. He runs with his gay friend Daniel. He said that recently he challenged his friend. They ran and ran. At 22 miles, Alex had a heart attack and died. In the clinical sense he died. He was brought back. It’s the first time that he talks about his wife.

Everyone wanted to know about the tunnel and the white light. He didn’t see a tunnel. He was trying to decide if he had a hard-on. He tells a story about his grandfather dying with a gigantic hard-on. He didn’t want a hard-on. That would mean that he would be dead. Alex says that Daniel is a doctor.

Alex talks about his father. Paul inquires about his father and their relationship. Alex went into this when he talked about losing consciousness. His father equated everything in terms of profit and loss. Alex is saying that they are getting into this too soon. Paul tells him that he won’t open up to him just like that.

Alex says that he was frozen. He was frozen for 48 hours. All that Alex remembers of his time with the dead is the mental exhaustion.

Alex says that his brother proved to him that the best quarterbacks were also the best looking. In life, the brightest people are also the most athletic. When they get their talent, they get the whole package. Good looks and good athleticism. He says that his life was perfect. He is meant to excel. Life choose him. He knows that he was going to be the best.

Alex decided to go to the site where he dropped the bomb. He says that he doesn’t have a guilty conscience. He says that he was interested. From the moment that he came out of the freezer, he knew that he wanted to go back there. Daniel told him that this would be dangerous. He wanted him to see something. Alex talks about Michaela his wife by name for the first time in this session.

Alex wants Paul to tell him if going back to the site of the bombing is a good idea. Alex tells Paul that he is leaving tonight.

Paul asks him how long the fatal run took. He says that it took about 3 hours. Paul says that he is avoiding going back to duty. Paul asks him if he is trying to atone for his actions. He has a strong desire for it. He pushed himself to the brink of death in order to avoid going back to the navy.

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