Ray Donovan: The Texan – Xbox and Hector (Recap and Review)

Ray Donovan “The Texan” picks up where last week’s episode ended. Cochran and The Texan are in the same hospital. Ray  pays Ed off and then visits with The Texan.  Mickey is out of County, Marisol is out of control and Hector starts losing it.

The Texan asks Ray to keep his daughter from learning just how “bleak” his work for Ezra was.  Ray meets Mickey at the jail and treats him to breakfast.  Teresa’s brother Marco has her committed and after Donovan plays an Xbox “Just Dance”  game with Conor, the neighbor comes to complain about Ray’s son shooting his bouncy castle.

Abby actually joins in as well before Marcioni stops by. Things get a bit physical between Conor and Ray before the teen gives up the gun. Mickey stops by the Fite Club and Terry expresses his admiration for Mickey’s actions.

Mick learns from Bunchy that Teresa left him and is now is in the asylum at Bakersfield. Initially Bunch feels that she is beyond saving. His father helps him to change his mind.  Ray takes Conor for a drive and talks to him about the gun.

At the Fite Club, Terry is not overly impressed with Hector’s sparring match. On the television in the gym, Hector, and the entire gym, see Marisol reveal that she and her brother are having sex. Campos leaves the ring and Terry is upset.

Ray and Conor drive to “skid row.”  Avi meets them there and brings a file full of pictures. They are of young men who died from gunshot wounds. Conor is not impressed and after talking back to Ray, he is ordered out of the car.

Donovan drives off leaving Conor with his gun in the middle of the street. He is surrounded by homeless people and hard-cases. Ray stops the car and Conor runs to get in. The teen is clearly terrified.

Terry calls Ray about Hector and Marisol.  Mickey  meets a patient at the Bakersfield facility and Bunchy explains that Teresa’s brother thought she was suicide risk. He goes to speak to his wife and she refuses to leave with him.

Ray talks to Hector who talks of killing himself. Campos has lost his rematch and Joxy Maguire (Cathal Pendred) will fight instead.  Terry asks his brother to fix things and Ray agrees. He tasks Daryll to help.

Lena has to “ghost” the computer of  Stu Feldman (Josh Pais). Ray tells her to keep an eye out for porn. Abby and Conor talk and the teen  reveals that he feels like “a little prick from Calabasas.”

Lena  catches Stu watching “tranny porn” and masturbating.  She slaps a FBI hold on his computer and Stu bellows for someone to call Ray. Abby takes Conor to the shooting range. He apologizes for taking the gun and she tells Conor that she has cancer.

Ray forces Stu to play golf with Randall Dyckman. Daryll goes to Joxy’s bar and meets the Irish  replacement fighter.  While he is there Daryll  punches the Irishman in the face with the  brass knuckles.

Bunchy goes to Teresa’s  brother’s house to pick up part of her wrestling uniform. He learns that Teresa has been committed several times, her first time was at age 11.

Stu records his conversation with Randall. Ray then uses the footage to blackmail Dycker into replacing Joxy with Hector for the fight. He then stops by the gym to tell Hector the news.  Ray explains that Terry set the whole thing up and that Hector needs to make him a trainer.

Bunchy rescues Teresa from the mental hospital and then takes Mickey to Nevada to pick up his “woman.” Ray clears out Ezra’s safe and The Texan dies.

This episode saw Mickey welcomed back into the fold.  All his sons, except for Daryll,  are accepting him after he volunteered to do jail time to save the family.  Teresa actually looks like she can be saved from her postnatal depression.

“The Texan” has a good bit of humor. Ray’s smirking at Randall’s comment about his wife’s “p***y” and the Xbox dance game were both quite funny.

Daryll’s punching Joxy to put him out of the fight could well rise up and bite him in the nether’s later on. The episode ended on a bit of a down note for  Ray. He  tells The Texan’s daughter (played by Eve Harlow) everything that her dad did was for her. 

Mickey got the line of the episode when he tells Bunchy about a poem by “easy comings.”  The show ends with Ray apologizing for being too hard on Conor. He explains that he and Conor’s mother are different from his son and Bridget. He finishes by saying that they are both trying hard to keep it that way.

A bit slow in terms of action, “The Texan” does move the Hector Campos story forward. Previews of next week’s episode show the Russians and the art dealer have not gone away and that things could turn really ugly for Ray and his family.

Ray Donovan airs Sundays on Showtime.  This is the best drama series on offer right now, do not miss it.

CAST:

• Liev Schreiber  –  Ray Donovan
• Eddie Marsan  –  Terry Donovan
• Dash Mihok  –  Bunchy Donovan
• Paula Malcomson  –  Abby Donovan 
• Kerris Dorsey   –  Bridget Donovan
• Devon Bagby  –  Conor Donovan
• Jon Voight  –  Mickey Donovan
• Pooch Hall  –  Daryll 
• Steven Bauer  –  Avi
• Katherine Moennig  –  Lena 
• Embeth Davidtz  –  Sonia Kovitzky 

Guest starring Stacey Keach as The Texan,  Alyssa Diaz as Teresa and Ismael Cruz Cordova as Hector Campos.