Last Wednesday, HBO’s premiere for their newest comedy series, Hung, previewed the show’s first two episodes at the Paramount theater for cast, crew and critics, starring The Punisher’s Thomas Jane as Ray Drecker, a former high school sports legend turned down-on-his-luck, middled-aged high school basketball coach who’s searching for a way to cash in on his biggest asset — his large penis.

Set in Detroit against the backdrop of a financially ruined automotive industry skyline, we find Ray coaching a losing high school basketball game as he narrates his predicament in flashback as he’s forced to re-evaluate his life while everything he cares about slowly slips away. Given the current economic crisis many Americans are experiencing, you can’t help but empathize with the likable Drecker, even to the point of absolving a character who’s about to let himself be man whored out by former one-night-stand and fledgling poet Tanya Skagle (Frasier’s Jane Adams) in his quest to make ends meet.

A constant thorn in Drecker’s side is his ex-wife (played to the shrilling hilt by Anne Heche) who divorced Ray to marry the former high school nerd, now a rich dermatologist.  Rounding off the characters are Ray’s two teenage kids, a portly daughter and awkward-looking Goth son who seemed to have lost out on Ray’s looks and charm but whom help add to his (and the show’s) appeal.  It’s clear his kids love him since he’s got primary custody.  Even when his house burns down and they’re temporarily displaced to their mother’s, both of them can’t wait for Ray to rebuild so they can return home.  Somehow this element is what gives the show its heart.  Inasmuch as Ray wants to make money in any way he can to get back on his feet, his real motivation is his kids.

Credit lead Thomas Jane for making the most of this work, as well as the artful direction by Sideways director for Alexander Payne, who manages to capture the desperation and charm of the premise without having to resort to the obvious “dick” jokes (though the post-premiere party wasn’t so subtle — serving foot-long hot dogs and chocolate-dipped bananas for dessert).

On the surface, Hung seems to be a natural fit with Showtime’s marijuana mom, Weeds, given the similarity of set-ups (Weeds featured a recently widowed suburban mother who resorts to dealing pot to keep a roof over her family’s head); it also seems reminiscent of HBO’s Entourage as well.  Movie stars or Man Whores, the worlds are as similar as they are diametrically opposed.  Vincent Chase’s moral dilemma is how far will you go for stardom; Ray’s a bit more modest — an ends to the means to get his house built.

But like Entourage, they saw a creative downturn when lead character stumbled on success and he and his cast of losers were suddenly winners, giving audiences little to relate to as they lost all their charm once they began taking advantage of all the pitfalls of fame and became synonymous with the Hollywood types they once despised.

The same seems to ring true for Hung.  Though the first two episodes barely dipped a toe in the water of his career of male prostitution, one wonders what will happen once Ray uses his appendage to help rebuild his home and get his family back in order.  Without the financial and emotional impediment, Ray’s nobility plummets and he becomes exactly what he is: a man-whore.

For now, however, Hung remains an entertaining treat — a fresh alternative to a sea of TNT and Lifetime dramas airing throughout the summer. If Hung sticks around long enough, it may very well prove the adage that size really does matter.