by James Whitely - SGN Staff Writer

Fans of the hit Showtime series The L Word might be pleased to know that Katherine Moennig, who played the fiercely independent, true-love-fearing Shane McCutcheon on the series, will be playing a Lesbian again on the new Showtime series Ray Donovan.

'I got involved the old-fashioned way of just getting sent a script and reading it, but I immediately responded to the pilot and I think I read it twice in a row because I loved it so much. But, you know, maybe there was a benefit to Showtime knowing me before, but I really just did the way any other actor would,' said Moennig.

Ray Donovan premiered on Showtime on Sunday, June 30. The show, which (like The L Word) takes place in Los Angeles, centers on the titular character, played by Liev Schreiber (Salt), a 'fixer' or problem-solver for the rich and famous. This entails covering up deaths and the like to make the drama of L.A.'s social elite disappear. However, his life begins to change when his father, Mickey Donovan, played by the accomplished Jon Voight (star of Midnight Cowboy and father of Angelina Jolie) is unexpectedly released from prison.

'NO-NONSENSE LESBIAN'
Moennig plays Lena, Donovan's on-call 'badass' Lesbian assistant. No doubt she's poised to become somewhat of a fixer for Donovan's own new set of problems. Fans of The L Word might be curious just what 'badass' means, exactly - Shane was quite a rebel herself, especially early in the series - but after only one episode it seems too early to tell.

Moennig recently chatted with After Ellen about the new series, but she couldn't say precisely what L Word fans might find in it.

'Well, they're two very different shows. That's like comparing a sleepover to going to the Los Angeles Gun Club. They're two opposite ends of the spectrum. In terms of Ray Donovan, the story is so rich, the actors are so fantastic - the writing is impeccable. And it's such beautiful storytelling with complex characters,' said Moennig. 'I really believe it's the quality of television that seems to be making its mark these days. I'm hoping fans of The L Word see that in Ray Donovan and just enjoy the storytelling and the ballsy way it's executed.'

Lena is touted as 'a no-nonsense Lesbian who is both sexy and tough' as Ray's right-hand woman. In the first episode, viewers get a glimpse of her in bed with a woman, and while Moennig is already investigating the character, she's still not sure herself where the writers plan on taking all of Lena's details.

'I'm under the impression it's someone that she's dating. Again, she's not really a relationship person - she's very work-oriented. So anything that gets in the way of her work, she doesn't tolerate.

'I think she looks up to him [Ray] very much and that maybe one day she'd like to be like him. I find her to be very goal-oriented and nothing sways her. But also I think there's an element of wishing she could do more. That comes later on,' added Moennig.

'COME ALONG FOR THE RIDE'
While certain details of Lena's character may sound very similar to L Word fans, the two shows are certainly different. Ray is 'the go-to guy who makes the problems of the city's celebrities, superstar athletes, and business moguls disappear,' and Lena is there to help him as he works both inside and outside the law to make it happen.

Moennig calls the show 'a class act all the way.' It can be seen on Showtime every Sunday at 10 p.m.

Regarding her L word fans, Moennig said, 'I just hope they come along for the ride, because it's a really fun, interesting, dark ride.'

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