"Royal Pains" Is No Pain To Watch

Royal Pains is the new television show on the USA Network that airs Thursdays at 10pm. It follows highly successful New York Doctor Hank Lawson after he is fired from his position for treating a dying child over a billionaire benefactor of the hospital. He and his accountant brother, Evan, take a trip to the Hamptons and find themselves permanent residents as the area's concierge doctor service. Pretty much they make house calls whenever one of the Hampton’s billionaires has a stomach ache. His brother becomes the CFO for the newly launched Hank Med Company.

Mark Feuerstein and Paulo Costanzo, who play Hank and Evan respectively, have both had unsuccessful runs on other television shows. Feuerstein with the short lived Good Morning, Miami, and Costanzo in the even shorter lived Friends spin off, Joey. But I have a feeling things are different this time. Royal Pains was the highest rated premiere on USA and its ratings are continuing to climb. It is currently the highest rated cable show, getting about six million viewers a week; more than any show on the CW gets. The success is the combination of the delightful writing and brilliant comedic timing and acting. Feuerstein plays Hank’s "medical MacGyver" persona perfectly and Costanzo is hilariously scene stealing as the goofy yet likable Evan. Evan is offset by the straight faced Divya, Hank’s Physician Associate, who leaches onto Hank Med after trying to start several unsuccessful concierge services.

Royal Pains is not just about helping the rich spoiled residents of the Hamptons but about helping the everyday person that lives there, too; the fisherman, the gardener, the dog walker. Jill Casey, Hank’s love interest and executive-level administrator at the Hamptons Heritage Hospital, wants to make sure these people do not get overlooked in regards to health care. Hank struggles between his want to help the helpless with Jill and his need to have a sustaining business. In last week’s episode, Jill offers Hank a position at the Hamptons Heritage, but that would mean he’d have to give up Hank Med, leaving Evan and Divya out of a job. He declines the position, “for now”.

Some of the best scenes of the series involve the exclusive clientele of Hank Med, many of whom reoccur throughout the series, much to the delight of the viewers. Teenage couple Tucker and Libby were “patients” of Hank in the first episode. Libby is a cyberchondriac, a hypochondriac that uses the internet to “self diagnose” herself, and Tucker is a wise cracking hemophiliac whose neglected by his rich father. Then there is “New Parts” Newberg; A middle-aged cosmetic surgery junkie whose new breast deflates in the first episode.

Royal Pains is a light hearted show that’s enjoyable to watch and doesn’t require you to know anything about medicine. Hank does make use of medical jargon, but because the surrounding characters have no idea what the hell he is talking about, the viewer can relate, creating hilarious situations and enjoyable dialogue.

***1/2 (3 and a half) stars out of 4