What’s Worth Watching: ‘Sex&Drugs&Rock&Roll’ on FX for Thursday, August 13

Sex&Drugs&Rock&Roll, “Doctor Doctor” (Thursday, Aug. 13, 10/9c, FX)

“You’re like a symphony of narcissism,” sputters a supposedly Zen guru (guest star Griffin Dunne, very funny) who attempts to heal the rock band’s dysfunctional ways with his “therapeutic shamanism”—or, as the musicians see it, “creeped-out Grateful Dead bull—-“—in the best-yet episode of Denis Leary’s raucous comedy Sex&Drugs&Rock&Roll. To say group therapy doesn’t come naturally to this motley crew of self-absorbed, insecure egomaniacs is an understatement, and hardly a surprise.

And yet this potentially futile exercise in “soul retrieval” gives the ensemble a chance to shine, including John Corbett, Elizabeth Gillies (as Leary’s rock-star daughter) and especially Elaine Hendrix (as his stubbornly loyal romantic partner, Ava). Stick around for Ava’s awesome manifesto declaring, “This ain’t no democracy, it’s a dictatorship always on the verge of a military coup.” Hers is a necessary reminder that the world of rock is by definition a messy one, and can’t be tamed by platitudes. Nor can Leary’s voice, which has found a home again on FX, and you’d be wise to check it out.