Drilling and Pounding
Episode 1 of Pam & Tommy begins a year before the infamous sex tape of Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee is released. We’re in July 1995 and construction workers in a mansion are distracted by numerous moans and groans coming from upstairs. So what are these guys building? Well, as we soon come to learn, it’s the “Love Deluxe” pad to let the lustful couple live out all their sexual fantasies. There’s an expensive wooden bed frame and… a chain hanging from the ceiling? Tommy comes bounding downstairs in his underwear with new ideas. Specifically he wants to move the bed several feet to the left, despite it already being nailed down. Carpenter Rand isn’t exactly happy given it’ll cost more money and the bills are piling up. Rand is three months late on his rent so delaying the work even longer isn’t exactly what he wanted to hear. Seeing the difference between Rand’s little apartment and Tommy and Pam’s massive mansion serves as a nice little juxtaposition to show how the “little guy” is treated here. Rand continues to grow more agitated, especially when Tommy suggests they add a waterbed. Rand wants to be paid upfront for all this, which makes sense given how much he’s in debt. After a misunderstanding with Pam, Tommy loses his cool and fires the team. Not only that, he decides their work is “shoddy” and doesn’t pay them. Even worse, he refuses to let Rand back in his house to take his toolbox back, threatening him with a shotgun. This is the final straw, and Rand decides to get his revenge. Fast forward to October 1995 and Rand’s plan has developed into a full schedule to determine the best time to hit Tommy and Pam, codenamed Operation Karma. Rand’s on his own though, and when the time comes, he breaks in, disables the camera and steals the safe. Money, jewelry and even several guns; Rand has hit the jackpot and can now pay back his debts. However, among those items in the safe, he also finds a tape. So Rand rings a guy called Miltie under the alias of Austin Moore and shows him what he’s got. A sex tape of Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee.
The Episode Review
They really will turn anything into entertainment and this time that anything comes in the form of Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee’s sex tape. Even those not bothered by celebrity news will undoubtedly know about this and it’s certainly interesting to see the story through the eyes of the “bad man” rather than Tommy and Pam. Hats off to those in the makeup and costuming department here though, as everything looks absolutely stunning. There’s a vibrancy to the screenplay too, with a decent pace despite the episode serving as a set-up for bigger drama to come. Can an entire series sustain this sort of storytelling about a leaked sex tape? If this first episode is anything to go by, the answer appears to be yes! As far as opening episodes go, this one isn’t bad, even if it does drag a little during the middle.
