Ep 1. I Love Dick

I Love Dick is an Amazon original series that follows the lives of Chris and Sylvère, a married couple who move to a small town in Texas so that Sylvère can focus on his academic writing. The first episode, appropriately titled "I Love Dick," sets the stage for the show's exploration of love, art, and identity.

As the episode opens, we see Chris (played by Kathryn Hahn) and Sylvère (Griffin Dunne) arriving in Marfa, Texas. Chris is an accomplished filmmaker who has put her career on hold to support her husband's work, and she seems to be growing increasingly restless as she struggles to define herself in this new place. Sylvère, on the other hand, is in his element - he's excited about the prospect of focusing on his writing, and he's quickly embraced by the local arts community.

One of the show's primary themes is the tension between art and commerce, and we see this play out in the first episode as Chris meets the eponymous "Dick" (played by Kevin Bacon). Dick is a local artist who's gained renown for his provocative work, and when Chris sees his exhibition, she's immediately drawn to it. She becomes obsessed with Dick - not just his art, but the man himself - and begins to write to him as a way of processing her feelings.

As the episode unfolds, we see Chris grappling with her attraction to Dick and trying to reconcile it with her love for Sylvère. One of the show's strengths is its nuanced portrayal of desire - Chris's feelings for Dick aren't simply sexual, but are intertwined with her artistic and intellectual curiosity. And as she begins to communicate with him more directly, we start to see how these desires are impacting both her and Sylvère's sense of self.

The show is shot in a somewhat dreamlike manner that underscores the blurry boundaries between reality and fantasy. This is especially true in the scenes where Chris is writing to Dick - we see her sitting in front of a typewriter, typing away, and then suddenly we're transported to a surreal, otherworldly landscape where the boundaries between the two characters begin to blur. It's a trippy, hypnotic effect that adds to the show's overall aesthetic.

There's also a strong sense of place in the show - Marfa, with its stark, desert landscape and vibrant arts community, is almost a character in its own right. The show explores the tension between the town's rural, conservative roots and its current identity as an arts hub, and we see this play out in various ways, from the reaction of Chris's landlord to the local residents' reaction to Dick's work.

Overall, the first episode of I Love Dick sets up a complex and nuanced exploration of desire, artistic identity, and the tension between commerce and art. The performances are strong across the board, with Hahn and Bacon standing out in particular for their ability to convey complex emotional states without descending into melodrama. It's a show that demands close attention and rewards those who are willing to dive into its surreal, provocative world.