Ray Donovan recap: Federal Boobie Investigator

With a new grandkid he hasn’t seen yet, Mickey Donovan has decided it’s time to roll back into town. He’s been separated from the rest of the Donovan clan for too long, and he’s ready to be back in their lives. The problem is, not everyone wants Mickey around. After all, last time he was in town, he ended up roping Ray and Avi into murdering a bunch of Armenian mobsters — which is partly why Ray and the rest of the family are in such deep trouble now.

Speaking of deep trouble, Ray has Lena monitoring the home of District Attorney Jackson Holt, the man responsible for bringing charges against Belikov. Ray wants to see if they can find some dirt on him to use as leverage in getting Belikov out of prison. However, as Lena and Avi can unfortunately attest, Holt doesn’t have much in the way of dirt. (It must be that bidet he uses.)

Meanwhile, Ray is experiencing all sorts of different feelings about his family. First there’s Abby, still insisting she has no interest in getting treatment for her cancer because “it’s just a test some asshole doctor made up to make money.” (Oh boy; I’m betting Abby probably didn’t vaccinate her kids, either.) Ray takes matters into his own hands, sending Lena and her ex-girlfriend Jeannie — an oncologist specializing in breast cancer — to talk her into getting treatment.

Then, when Ray and Abby visit Bunchy, Teresa, and baby Maria at the Fite Club, Bunchy asks Ray to be Maria’s godfather. Ray’s taken aback, but it’s everyone else’s reactions that matter. Bunchy obviously didn’t run the idea by Teresa, who’s livid when he just throws the offer out there; both Darryl and Terry clearly feel shunned. Bunchy has a bit of a problem with thinking more than one step ahead.

Anyway, with some of these pesky family matters out of the way (for now), Ray can focus on trying to get Belikov out of prison, getting Sonia Kovitsky off his back, and keeping the Russians from coming after his family. With Holt not showing any signs of bad behavior, Ray comes up with another plan. He goes to see Ezra’s widow, whom he hasn’t seen since the funeral; when he’s there, he forgoes all pleasantries and says he needs to get into Ezra’s safe.

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Inside the safe are tapes from old cases, and Ray finds the one he’s looking for. It’s a taped interview with a man named Mr. Price, and from the sounds of it, the man killed his wife — and Ezra helped him cover it up. Ray takes the tape to Mr. Price in an attempt to blackmail him, telling him he needs to go to Jackson Holt and convince him to drop the charges against Belikov. It’s a long shot, but it’s one of the only options Ray has left.

As if that’s not enough of a problem for Ray, Hector is spinning out of control. He’s back to spending time with Marisol, having sex and doing drugs, and he nearly dies on the floor of their hotel room. Ray manages to save him, but it feels like he’s just delaying the inevitable. Hector and Marisol are stuck in something destructive, and it might kill them both.

NEXT: Lucky horseshoe

After a particularly frisky car ride with an older woman who offers to take him to Los Angeles, Mickey shows up at the Fite Club and receives a chilly reception — to say the least. Darryl barely talks to him, Teresa seems pissed he’s back, and Terry, who eventually shows up with Damon in tow, isn’t too happy to see him either. Mickey does have Bunchy, the one son who still idolizes him.

Mickey’s back to see his new granddaughter, but he’s also jonesing to get that $4 million. He tries to rope in Darryl, who has no interest, but Bunchy may be more easily influenced. He has a kid now, he’s trying to assert his independence, and the money would certainly be good for him and his family. Those circumstances could put Bunchy in line for the gig.

Back to Ray’s blackmailing plan: Price ends up going to Holt’s home to tell him he needs to drop the charges against someone who’s up for murder (Belikov). When Holt agrees, because he seems to owe Price his career, he asks the name of the man he needs let go. Price doesn’t give a name, instead breaking down and admitting to murdering his wife — and the subsequent cover-up. Avi and Ray look on in disbelief. They’re really in it now.

Luckily, Ray has two backup plans. First, he goes to see former FBI agent Ed Cochran, who’s drinking tequila in a run-down karaoke bar. (Really, he’s living his best life.) Ray says he wants something to get Holt on his side, and he’s willing to pony up cash to get it done. Cochran says he has a file on a guy that will give Holt huge headlines when he prosecutes. He’ll give Ray the file for a tidy $5 million. Cochran accepts Ray’s counteroffer of just $2 million, but forces Ray to do one thing for him: Sing some Bob Seger. It’s every bit as cringeworthy as you can imagine.

His other plan? Well, he’s interested when he hears about Mickey’s potentially bulletproof job to get the $4 million. He doesn’t want to work with Mickey, but what choice does he have? So after refusing to let Bunchy be part of the job, Ray tells Mickey he’ll pick him up at 5 a.m. to get to work.

In a nutshell, a lot happened in “Federal Boobie Inspector.” Abby has quite the time with Jeannie, making out with her and feeling up her breast implants — all in the name of thinking about getting treatment, of course. Then there’s Damon looking good in the ring, Teresa and Bunchy constantly fighting, and Ray teaming up with his father to snag $4 million from Mickey’s old business partner and a guy named Pinky. That’s Ray Donovan for you.