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IN TREATMENT
NEW · Premieres Jan. 28
9:30-10:00 PM (HBO)
Dr. Melfi would be proud. The network that made it respectable for gangsters to seek therapy continues to build on its shrink rap with In Treatment, which follows psychotherapist Paul (The Usual Suspects' Gabriel Byrne, pictured with Blair Underwood) through weekly sessions with four patients, plus his own turn on the couch with therapist Gina (Law & Order's Dianne Wiest). In Treatment aims to make patients' problems relatable. ''The idea was to keep it as unintellectual as possible,'' explains executive producer Rodrigo Garcia, who adapted the show from acclaimed Israeli series B'Tipul.
Garcia and HBO have also imported B'Tipul's ambitious schedule, with the show airing five nights — Monday through Friday — for eight and a half weeks (43 episodes were shot). Every half-hour installment comprises one session, and each night of the week is devoted to a particular patient. ''It was very much like doing a play,'' recalls Underwood of the intense one-on-one office setting. Add up all these ''plays,'' and after a while, ''you think you know what Paul is thinking,'' says Garcia. ''You think you're Paul's therapist.'' The more we learn about Paul's faltering relationship with his wife (24's Michelle Forbes) and children, the juicier it gets. Just like therapy. —Ari Karpel
Episodes set to air: 43
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