A one-night-stand causes Hank Moody (DAVID DUCHOVNY) to be late in meeting twelve-year-old daughter Becca (MADELEINE MARTIN) at home, much to the disgust of ex-girlfriend Karen (NATASCHA McELHONE). A romp with a hot bookstore shopper (MADELINE ZIMA) will upend Hank’ s life in ways he could never imagine. In an effort to get his client to settle down with a nice girl, Hank's agent Charlie (EVAN HANDLER) sets him up on a blind date that goes horribly wrong. After Becca sneaks out to a party, Hank and Karen go in search of their daughter. Later, Hank and Karen have a heart-to-heart where he admits he wants her back, but she reveals she's engaged and moving on.

After receiving encouragement from all sides, Hank starts his blogging gig at Hell-A online magazine. Under the guise of inviting Hank to family dinner at her and Bill's (Damian Young) house, Karen sets up Hank with her friend Sonja (Paula Marshall). At dinner, Becca reveals how Hank met Karen. After dinner, Hank and Sonja have a tumultuous sex session in Bill and Karen's bedroom. As Hank is leaving, he runs into Mia, who reveals some surprising news. Hank's dreams of Karen intensify.

Hank's book signing is interrupted when Todd Carr (Chris Williams), the director of his film, arrives screaming about character defamation. The two fight, Hank is arrested. At a bar, Hank runs into former blind-date-from-hell Meredith (Amy Price-Francis); she gets a bit of retribution. The two end up having dinner and later, fall into bed. Mia arrives at Hank's looking to steal some of his old writing to pass off as hers for her creative writing class assignment. Charlie initially fires his lackluster assistant Dani (Rachel Miner), but quickly reconsiders after viewing her webpage, in which she stars in some unorthodox positions. They begin a naughty affair.After Meredith reveals sad details about her long-term affair with a married man, Hank stages a friendly, vengeful home invasion.

In a bid to spark more than a vertical relationship with Hank, Meredith (Amy Price-Francis) convinces him to escort her to an environmental fundraiser. Before the event, Hank stops off at Karen's to deliver a gift for Becca and learns Karen is off coincidentally to the same function. Hank catches Charlie in a compromising position with his assistant Dani (Rachel Miner). He convinces his agent to talk to his wife about spicing up the marital bed before straying again. After Bill (Damian Young) won't, Hank defends Karen's honor.

Bill arrives at Hank's asking for a favor – will Hank speak at Mia's creative writing class? Hank relents, but not without taking something in exchange. Hank wins over the sexy students at Mia's all-girl school and also learns some surprising things about her teacher. In a public radio show interview with host Henry Rollins (as himself), Hank rants about the internet and its detrimental affect on the written word. That evening at dinner, Meredith blames his actions on the show for her decision to break up with Hank, but she later admits the truth behind her speedy actions. Charlie's wife Marcy begs for his affections, but he refuses. Becca's pre-teen crush on her guitar teacher ends in her first heartbreak.

Hank meets a sexy Surfer Girl at the market that lead to a night of getting high, listening to vintage rock LPs and sex. Marcy surprises Charlie at work for a quickie and nearly catches him in a compromising position with his assistant, Dani. Becca's band rocks out at her school's Battle of the Bands. Afterward, Hank, Karen and Becca's ice-cream outing is interrupted when Mia phones Hank for help. Hank is later angry to learn that it was all a bid for his attention. With Bill still away on business, Karen invites Hank in for a drink where they reminisce over absinthe. Hank stays over in the guest room and after an awkward morning there, he returns home to find an apologetic and eager Surfer Girl on his doorstep.

Still reeling from his kiss with Karen, Hank cannot stand how much Becca dogs the ideal of happy endings. Bored with her sex life, Marcy proposes a threesome to her husband Charlie but Marcy selects none other than his assistant Dani as the third member. Todd Carr wants to option Hank's Hell-A Magazine blog for a potential movie. In the discussion Hank finds out Todd owns an architectural masterpiece of a home that needs a remodeling. Hank brings Karen to Todd's home and Karen's been hired to remodel a home of her dreams. Charlie finds himself left out of the threesome as the two women have at it. When they eventually do let him in, Marcy practically rips Charlie's nipple off. After ignoring seemingly unimportant phone calls from Mia, Hank arrives at Karen's house to find out that Mia is indeed in trouble with her teacher.

Hank receives a phone call informing him that his father, Al, has died. In a flashback sequence, Hank takes Al on a set-tour of the film based on Hank's novel and Al belittles Hank's writing career then argue at the dinner table in front of Karen and Becca. Back on the set, Hank nearly hooks up with the hot actress. Back home, Karen admits to sleeping with Bill. They decide to split up for good. Back in present day, Karen tries to get Hank on a plane to go to his father's funeral. Instead, he holes up with Trixie, a hooker he meets at a bar. Hank returns home and begins reading an old unopened letter his father wrote him years ago in which Al apologizes for all of his shortcomings and tells Hank how much he loves him and his writing. Hank breaks down just as Karen arrives. They hold each other and, in a confusing, emotional moment, make love.

Hank returns home from New York. Hank bought a ring for Karen and is waiting for the right moment to present. Hank tries to pick up where he left off with Karen and presents her with a manuscript to read. Charlie gives Hank a bonus check for A CRAZY LITTLE THING CALLED LOVE. Hank drops the news about the manuscript. Bonus check in hand, Hank goes to a car dealership to buy a new ride and cozy up with a sexy Saleswoman. Charlie tries to normalize his relations with Marcy after their threesome with Dani. Marcy reveals that she feels sexually awakened by the experience. Mia finds out about the manuscript, surreptitiously making a copy for herself. Meanwhile, Hank takes the manuscript back from Karen after she refuses to read it. Hank is carjacked, losing the manuscript along with his new car. Arriving back home, he gives the ring to homeless woman, totally despondent.

Hank wakes to the noises of Charlie working out as he is now a single man and he convinces Hank to join him at the gym later. Dani informs Charlie that she wants to be an agent and threatens to go to Human Resources with stories of their sordid past. At the gym, Hank and Charlie meet a girl, Laura, who beats Hank up. Dani met with Mia and is impressed. At a bar, Hank and Charlie are interrupted by a phone call from Laura asking them to meet her at Hank's. On their way out, they run in with Karen and Marcy. Karen and Marcy decide to go visit Hank and Charlie to try to make amends. Charlie persuades Hank to have a threesome with him and Laura. During said threesome Karen and Marcy walk in on them. Dani offers to help Mia get published and Mia agrees.

Becca informs Karen that she wants to live with Hank. Karen is devastated. At UTK, Charlie tries to reconcile with Marcy, but fails. Dani enters with news of her meeting with Mia about her book and forced Charlie to put it on the fast track or a sexual harassment case. Hank discovers that it's his work that Mia is passing off as her own over lunch with Charlie. Hank attempts to confront Mia at UTK, but found himself in a meeting with an old publisher acquaintance, Charlie, Dani, and Mia. He is kicked out of the meeting. Outside UTK, Hank confronts Mia. Charlie reads the manuscript and finds out from Hank about the affair with Mia. Later that night, Karen comes by and realizes that maybe she's making a mistake in marrying Bill.

Hank can't shake his ongoing nightmares of Karen's imminent marriage to Bill, only to wake up and find that today's the day. His nightmare has become real…