Homicide Episode Guide: Work Related

Written By Tom Fontana

Directed by Jean De Segonzac

To put a character’s life in danger as a cliffhanger is nothing new. Indeed, Homicide  had done as much to three of its detectives over a year ago. But somehow--- especially if the character is central to the show--- you know they’ll come out all right  What Tom Fontana did in ‘Work Related’ was something far more radical and daring. So much so that when this episode first aired, many viewers—and a few TV critics—were sure that Frank Pembleton had died, even though his actual fate was far more precarious then merely dying.

Perhaps the most remarkable thing about ‘Work Related’ is that, for the first forty minutes, it seems like just another episode of ‘Homicide’. Pembleton’s wife has had a daughter but for Frank this is almost business as usual, and he’s back at work, investigating a high-profile--- but ordinary—double shooting at a restaurant. Tim seems happier about the birth than Frank does and—for what maybe the first time--- invites himself over to Frank’s house to see his baby.

Lewis is back from  his honeymoon. Unfortunately, it seems that his marriage has already turned sour—he and his wife appear to have separated after they did not consummate their marriage. Meldrick throws himself into his work by investigated a literal ‘red ball’--- a stone whodunit in which the victim died when a bowling ball dropped from an overpass and through his windshield. Unfortunately, this is the high point of Meldrick’s marriage. It’s all downhill from here.

              Gee is going through some anxiety of his own involving last weeks shooting. The death weighs heavily on his conscience--- so much so that Howard will exercise ‘sergeant’s prerogative’ and erase his name from the board.

              All of this is traditional Homicide but there is no indication that anything  special is going to happen. Then Pembleton and Bayliss learn that a supposed witness to the shooting was actually an accessory. They call him in for an interrogation and we witness one of the better ‘box’ sessions that we have seen all season— Tim and Frank slowly and musically tearing holes in the suspect’s story. Then, literally mid question, Frank starts to seize and shake, and he collapses on the suspect. Several disconnected minutes follow until the paramedics arrive and diagnose a possible CVA. Or as we know it, stroke. The intense pressure that has been around Pembleton almost since we first met has caused a vessel in his head to burst.

              The squad is understandably shocked--- Munch in particular seems unsettled--- but the most upset person--- possibly even more so than Mary Pembleton--- is Bayliss.  For the last act of the episode, he seems to be wandering in a daze as he realizes what may be happening to his partner. We also finally see the level of Tim’s devotion to Frank. When Gee tries to get him to go back to his interview, Tim flatly refuses. He is not leaving his partner and that is that. Tim also expresses the clear difference between his and Pembleton’s approach to the job--- he obsesses over why a person was killed, while Frank is only focused on the how. He knows that he is good ‘murder police’ but he is honest enough to admit that he doesn’t know whether he  will be without Frank. The first half of season 5 will focus on Bayliss’ proving that to us and himself.

              The squad goes back to work. Russert and Munch find out who the killer is in Frank’s shooting, only to find the killer has committed suicide. Lewis decides to abandon his search for his killer and continues to demonstrate his skewed priorities.  But Tim, Mary and Gee wait until the doctors have finished operating on Frank for news on his condition—and it’s not what we expected. There may have been some brain damage, possibly some paralysis, but right now Frank is in a coma and the doctors aren’t sure if he will ever recover. Fontana has not killed Frank; he has trapped him inside his own head.

              This may have been the best plot twist that the creators of ‘Homicide’ ever did and it is a great finale to what has been, for the most part, a great six months of television. Admittedly, it doesn’t give a lot for several of its actors to do--- particularly Melissa Leo and Isabella Hoffman (appearing as a regular for the last time) but Braugher and Secor retain the level of excellence they have all season. Braugher would get his first Emmy nomination  after the season ended; Secor deserved one just as much.

              Because ‘Work Related’ seems so ‘ordinary’ in its first half, the  audience is absolutely floored by the second half which is why I consider this one of the best cliffhangers in television history and one of the best episodes in the series run.

My score: 5 stars

Ranked by Fans 12^th