Homicide Episode Guide: Finnegan's Wake

Teleplay by David Mills; Story by James Yoshimura

Directed by Steve Buscemi

The teaser for ‘Finnegan’s Wake’ does not take place on the streets of Baltimore or  in a crime scene--- at least, not a real one. Though we don’t realize it until its almost over we are inside the mind of Tim Bayliss, confirming something that we might have expected---- he  has nightmares about the Adena Watson case. The involves the Watson crime scene spiraling out of control, while Pembleton looks on mockingly. But in the middle, Bayliss realizes that this a dream. When he tells Frank about it later in the episode, he says that this must be a sign that in his head, he has gotten to a place where he’s all right  with it. But obsession over some cases never goes away.

The Watson case  come back into play when Bayliss is given a lead on another old case---  the oldest unsolved murder in Baltimore history: Clara Slone, a ten-year girl shot and sexually molested in 1932. When an old man comes in claiming that his father committed the murder, Bayliss turns him away, thinking it’s a joke. Part of this because it seems unlikely, but most of it is due to the fact that he’s never heard of the Slone case at all. Eventually, the reason for this comes out--- because Tim caught Adena Watson his first week on the job, no one wanted to disturb him more by bringing up a decades old case.  It is probably for that  reason that when Gee hears about it, he takes the case from Bayliss and hands it to Falsone. Falsone has his own problem right off the bat when he learns that all of the evidence in the Slone murder was removed from the evidence locker in 1974. It was taken by the last man to work murder--- Detective Tom Finnegan.

When Falsone goes to Finnegan’s house, the old, cantankerous detective only is willing to hand over the information if he is allowed to pursue the new investigation. Finnegan is an old school, second generation detective--- from an era when Baltimore was primarily policed by the Irish, when beating a suspect with a phone book was the order of the day, where shooting a felon and planting a weapon on the corpse was common practice. He thinks very little of the fact that the ‘Italians’ are running the department, that women are allowed to work murders (one wonders what he would have thought of Kay Howard) and he flips when he learns the shift commander is  a black man.  Yet despite all of his prejudices and the fact that his investigative methods are thirty years out of date,  Giardello has no problem allowing him to work on the murder and is insulted when Falsone suggests Finnegan be removed. For the lieutenant, blue is a more important color than anything else.

As the episode progresses we learn that the Slone case was like the Watson case---- it was mishandled from day one.  Onlookers trampled all over the crime scene, the body went to the morgue before it could be photographed, the bosses sent dozens of men to canvass the neighborhood--- and the lead detective, a man named O’Malley--- was never the same after he failed to close it. This time, however, there is evidence. Devlin suspected that his father had committed the murder and that he gave the gun away to his brother. His brother pitched  it into the harbor, but miraculously it is still there forty years later. So despite the fact that the elder Devlin is dead, the case goes down as closed.

But this episode, as you might have guessed, is not about down a 66 year old murder. It is about two detectives obsessions  with a long-closed case. Thomas Finnegan has been involved with the case since O’Malley died in 1954, but his obsession with it dates back to his first days with the department. For more than half a century he has been consumed by the need to know who killed Clara Slone. It’s clear in the way that he has preserved the evidence, and the way that he interrogates people even remotely involved with the shooting that he wants justice done. But when it finally does happen, he doesn’t think its remarkable or feel anything but anger that the case is closed. The killer “never answered for his crime. He never answered to me.” That is  a feeling that Tim Bayliss knows all to well.

Bayliss doesn’t interact much with Finnegan but the viewer  can tell that there even though they were at Homicide fifty years apart, they have some common traits at least. No doubt Finnegan has had his share of bad dreams regarding Clara Slone and, as we see in a sequence wear Bayliss boxes up the Watson file, he’s not going to be able to let this case go when he quits. Yet unlike Falsone who can barely stand him and the rest of the detectives who he goes out of his way to alienate, Bayliss feels empathy with the old detective. Which is probably why after the case is down, he goes to Finnegan and asks him to go with him to see Slone sole living relative--- a child the Slone’s had after Clara was murdered.  In that Bayliss expresses the anger that he has always felt that the he had the Araber in the box, and he lost him.  “I looked evil in the face” he tells him “and I let him go.” From any one else this would seem clichéd; from Kyle Secor, it comes out as a cry of pain.

Attention should also be paid to Charles Durning exceptional work as Finnegan. Durning is a character actor par excellence who has played old cops since The Sting. He manages to make Finnegan seem not only an out-of-touch relic, but also a very pain-ridden old man who nevertheless feels  connection with his city. (In a brief acknowledgement of the present, he  becomes the only man who praises Kellerman for taking out Luther Mahoney. Maybe it’s the Irish in them.)

‘Finnegan’s Wake’ is a painful episode for the characters  but it is a return to some of the old standards that Homicide established six seasons ago.  Eugene O’Neill (another old Irishman) once wrote “There is no present or future; only the past happening over and over again, now.” Murder police know this better than anyone. And the characters in Homicide  know it better than most.

My score: 4.5 stars

Homicide Episode Guide: Secrets

Written by Yaphet Kotto

Directed by Ed Bianchi

A lot of what Homicide is about, essentially, is secrets. What do people declare as their occupation on their income tax form, and what do they really make their money doing, like the Mahoney family. What do people desire, what do they do when they’re not working, like the late Gordon Pratt. Our secrets can be important things, sometimes they are worth killing for, but are they worth dying for? That last question is the central issue of ‘Secrets’.

The case involves two suicides that occur within hours of each others. The victims  chose different ways of ending their live. They were both well-off, financially speaking, both of them had families who cared about them. So why end their lives? This is a question that the detectives normally don't have to deal with---- they have enough problems dealing with people killing each other, they don’t have time for ones who decide to kill themselves. But the investigation takes a different turn when Bayliss and Pembleton learn their suicide victim received photographs documenting his adultery--- which is bad, but only becomes explainable when we learn that the woman he was having an affair with was his half-sister. Ballard and Munch check into the life of their victim, and learn she was having an affair with her child’s babysitter.

These are serious transgressions but one doesn’t understand why the victims would end their lives until we find the link between them: the two victims went to the same country club, and the photographs were taken under the orders of a fellow member named Remington Hill.  Bayliss and Pembleton confront him and find that he is a member of the ‘old school’ type of society who found the victims transgressions ‘morally obscene’.  We learn that this is not a case of simple extortion--- Hill didn’t order someone to find out dirt on them, he knew about it before he had the victims photographed. And he didn’t ask for money, he ordered the victims to stop, or he would expose them to the world. For that matter, these weren’t the only people that he had photographed---- he did the exact same thing with eight other members of the country club,  all of whom apparently chose to give up their sins rather than be exposed.

This is all morally ambiguous, but strictly speaking, these aren’t crimes. It’s not very nice what Hill was threatening to do, but if he didn’t ask for money, there’s no extortion. One could even justify it (as he does in a memorable exchange with Pembleton) by saying that it was done for the greater good. It is, however, a little shocking to hear hill discussing the deaths of people he knew as if they were commodities that failed, and it unsettles Frank too.  It seems as if nothing can be done--- until the detectives learn that Hill is now dead. It appears to be a suicide but its quickly revealed to be a murder. The killer is revealed quickly--- it’s the man who took all the pictures and who was sick of Hill’s actions.  It turns out the reason he took the photographs was because Hill was holding a secret over his head--- but the photographer doesn’t give it up.

For a case that doesn’t involve a crime until the very end, the episode is very intriguing for most of its duration. The confrontation between Bayliss, Pembleton and Hill (Remak Ramsey) is pretty powerful, if not grade-A Homicide. Furthermore, its discussion of secrets bring up two of Bayliss’ darker issues--- his molestation by his uncle when he was a child, and his current flirtation with bisexuality. He seems more sympathetic to Hill than he deserves, and its interesting that these action enable him (in the denouement) to tell one of his secrets to Ballard because “keeping secrets leads to trouble.”

No one knows more about the evils of secrets than the people involved in the Mahoney shooting which is having its own kinds of fallout. First of all, Lewis does not protest the trail board and, as Gee said he would, gets off with a slap on the wrist.  He returns to the unit, bring back the football with him. Things would seem to be back to normal. The problem is that the drug war Meldrick started with his dirt and the little white envelopes has now officially spiraled out of control.  Now people whose names Falsone didn’t give Meldrick are starting to turn up on the board as well. Unfortunately, they’re not the only people involved in this who are going to end up dead. Things are about to get worse.

This investigation also lets us in a little more on the character of Falsone --- and it’s not a flattering picture. Up until we have assumed that Falsone had a certain sense of justice and integrity--- otherwise, why else would he continuously poke his nose into a subject where it definitely does not belong? But now, we learn that he just investigated the Mahoney shooting for his own clarification to make sure that he wasn’t transferring into a particularly troublesome situation--- self interest rather than justice. Ironically, by pressing forward with his investigation, he helped turned the squad into a tinderbox but this is never dealt with on any level. For that matter, after the final showdown with the Mahoney crew, neither Stivers or Lewis bear Falsone much of a grudge; at least they’re willing to partner with him with no problems.

As for Kellerman, the freeze-out he’s going through doesn’t change much. Though he makes a friendly overture to Meldrick in the weight room, Lewis effectively brushes him off. Then there is the civil suit pending. Kellerman goes to jury selection only to see our old friend Judge Gibbons decide to toss the case., much to the surprise of the court. Then he has a shouting match with Gibbons outside the courtroom,  in which he basically tells him to give Georgia Rae up to the feds. This scene essentially gets Gibbons killed, but Mike doesn’t seem torn up about that either.

While ‘Secrets’ is not quite as good as Kotto’s  previous teleplay ‘Narcissus’, it does show that Kotto does have a better understanding of the show the storylines and characters of Homicide  better than some of the other writers. The story raises some interesting issues, though not as powerful ones as before, and it impresses you with the problems it raises.

My score: 3.75 stars

Picks for This Years Emmys: Outstanding Comedy

Yes! Hurray! Veep is ineligible! Some other series and actors can finally have a chance. And with Master of None over with, and Transparent dealing with its own scandals, its likely they'll be a lot more new blood. Of course, given that we live in the age of the reboot, its equally likely will see some nominations from much older series, like Curb Your Enthusiasm, Will & Grace, and possibly Roseanne (though that's also damaged goods). I don't have a problem with a couple of reboots, but why not nominate some series that are new and have their own level of quality?

Atlanta (FX)

One of the best series on TV right now is this mediation on race relations and poverty disguised as a comedy. Donald Glover and company did something nearly impossible with Season 2; they took an already extraordinary series and kicked it up a notch, doing some truly brilliant experimental work. From the breakup of Earn and Van, to Paperboi's walk in the woods, to the incredible 'Teddy Perkins', to the marvelous look back at how childhood scars never fade. Atlanta isn't just one of the best comedies of the year, its far and away one of the best series of the year.

black-ish (ABC)

When the series premiered with a musical tribute to Juneteenth, this wonderful comedy series showed that it had lost none of its edge going into Season 4. (It's spinoff, grown-ish has more than enough material to be nominated for Best Comedy in a lesser year.) But when Dre and Bow's near perfect marriage started to crumble, and the series dealt with one of its first serialized arcs, the show went into territory you didn't think a network comedy could do anymore. Both Anderson and Ross went to such new levels that when they finally began to work out their marriage, it didn't seem labored or stressed at all. It more than deserves to be listed among the great comedies.

Crazy Ex- Girlfriend (CW)\

I know, I know, I'm shouting in the wind. How can I convince the Emmys to recognize a series that's on a network they've decided, as far as they're concerned, doesn't exist? But it's such a good series. And as Rebecca finally fell apart, was diagnosed with a personality disorder, managed to find her way to healthy relationship, and finally began taking responsibility for her actions - all while singing and dancing her way through songs that are not only great homages but brilliant music in their own right - it really makes you wonder how the hell the Emmys can, in good conscience regulate it to technical awards. This series, like its lead actress-writer-director-everything deserves acknowledgement.

GLOW (Netflix)

Now this is a true accomplishment. Ostensibly a series about the formation of a woman's wrestling league for cable television in the 1980s, this series takes on a strong look at the sparseness of women's roles anywhere, female friendship, trying to build something out of nothing, and a real look at what its like to be a woman any time. This is the first series handled by Jenji Kohan that I am heads over heel in favor of. It's one of the most brilliant comedies of the year, its also one of the most brilliant dramas. And the level of performances from the entire cast - from Alison Brie and Marc Maron on down - makes you realize that this is what entertainment and messaging merged should be like. I can't wait what the second season will bring.

The Good Place (NBC)

After ending Season 1 with one of the greatest twist endings in history, you didn't think there was anyway they could do a season 2 without forking everything up. They didn't. If anything the series was willing to try and be even more experimental as Michael's reboot crashed and burned over and over, forcing the characters to go into entirely new territory as they tried to get out and find the real good place. And by showing that people are capable of evolving - even after they're dead, even if they're not human in the first place - the series has taken on an optimistic tone that I didn't think the show could possibly do. This is a triumph, and I can't wait to see what they do next year. But while I'm waiting, give them some forking Emmy nominations.

Insecure (HBO)

All right, even without Veep, there are a lot of good comedy series on HBO. And I could make a convincing argument for Barry or Vice Principals. But this series, even though I'm nowhere near its demographic, is an impressive piece of work. Were it just for the brilliant numbers and fantasy sequence that Issa Rae creates, it would be worth the time. But the way it take a look at a lot of impressive area - particularly in its ridiculous yet simmering sex scenes -  as well as some looks at race that I'm pretty sure not even Shonda Rhimes would dare approach - and you have one of HBO's most radical series. Both Rae and the series were denied last year. Let's hope they remember this time.

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Amazon)

This series has already won the Golden Globe and the Broadcast Critics prize for Best Comedy. On the other hand, it is a series created by those marvelous Palladino's, so it needs all the plugs it can get. This series finds the sweet spot that so many of the Palladino series tend too, and that it manages to have a brave, trailblazing heroine stuck in the middle of both an era and a field that doesn't lend itself to women breaking into it. It's fun, its entertaining, its a period piece. The writers have been worthy of awards since Gilmore Girls, the lead actress has been worthy of an Emmy since House of Cards. Why does this series have to fight to be among the best of the year when its so clearly, well, marvelous?

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

Arrested Development (Netflix)

Yes, its a reboot. Yes, Jeffrey Tambor is at the center of it. None of this, however, changes the fact that this is one of the most remarkable, creative, and imaginative comedy series in history. Somehow, it manages to be so ahead of its time that by the time it comes out, its practically passe. But it has the most remarkable comedy cast assembled since the Mary Tyler Moore show, none of whom lose their chops even after being apart for five years. Ignore the controversy. Just laugh. And try to remember that any resemblance between the Bluth family and people in the White House really is purely coincidental. I think.

PICKS for this Years Emmys: Supporting Actress, Drama

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA

Given the history of this category over the past few years, I think it very possible that it will be dominated by women from Orange is the New Black, Game of Thrones and The Handmaid's Tale. And while I have no problem with some of those women being nominated (hell, I'm all for Alexis Bledel getting as many Emmys as she can), I would argue that there are other series out there with strong female character. So here are some suggestions for this year?

Millie Bobby Brown, Stranger Things

I don't really need to make any more of an argument for this outstanding young actress' work than I did last year  - Eleven is still one of the most remarkable characters in television. She added to her impressive repertoire when she royally angry at Roy Harper for keeping her locked away, her search for the truth about her family - and actually finding one - and her reunion with the gang. (And oh, that wonderful first kiss at the season finale!) I think the odds of her winning are more remote than last time (just listen to the list that will follow) but you never count her out. Give her something to go with her 2 MTV awards, people.

Cush Jumbo, The Good Fight

There are really, really too many good actress on this series, but that's to be hoped for from the Kings. One could just as easily see this position going to Sarah Steele or Audra MacDonald.  But as up and comer Luca Quinn, now burdened with a pregnancy and a possible marriage,  she continues to dazzle in the way that so many of them do. The main reason I push for her is, well, she's been with the Kings longer, so I think she's do.

Margo Martindale, The Americans

If there is one person who has been, if anything over-recognized for her work on this brilliant series, its Martindale's superb performance as Claudia, the matriarchal handler of Elizabeth, Philip, and (in the final season) Paige.  Frankly, I know that only her ultra-busy scheduled kept from promoting her now to full-time cast member in the series final season. But she certainly demonstrated that she lost nothing. Playing the kindly grandmother to Paige as she tried to prep her for her new position, she did a job of acting of her own in Elizabeth's final missions, only to reveal in the end that she had betrayed her. And in her final scene on the series, when she learned that Elizabeth had betrayed her in kind, she completely stole the spotlight demonstrating her anger without even raising her voice. But it was her final line - "I'll survive. We always do" - that I'll remember forever. One could see Claudia whispering in the ear of Putin. She has earned one more taste at Emmy, and I really want her to win.

Elizabeth Marvel, Homeland

Marvel's work as beleaguered President Keane was one of the more overlooked performances on this series. It shouldn't have been. Starting out as a President so shocked by the assassination attempt on her life last year that she began to act like the dictator her intelligence people feared she be, she slowly began to reveal her humanity as became clear that her Presidency was under assault from a larger threat from without. Unable to tell her enemies from her friends, she began to become even more enraged as her own government turned against her. But it was in her final moment on the series where Marvel clearly shown, as she revealed in her 'Paean to the American People', just how divided we are as a nation, and what it may take to get us back on track. It was one of the bigger shocks of the year so far, and if that's not worthy of consideration, I don't know what is.

Chrissy Metz, This is Us

Some continue to argue that Kate is  a hard character to like. I find that hard to believe as with each successive season, she earns my sympathies more and more. As she dealt with a pregnancy she was afraid to admit, then a miscarriage that she had even more trouble dealing with,  her facing up to her marriage and finally getting there after a lot of hiccups - all while dealing with the residual fallout of dealing with her father's death - she still doesn't want you to come out and like her. And that's okay. But I think she's outstanding all the same, and I know Emmy voters will.

Thandie Newton, Westworld

Yes, it would be a case of repeating last year, but in this instance, like with so  many in the cast of Westworld, it would be hard to argued that she hasn't earned it. Following a completely different path than Dolores, her search for her daughter led her to new places both in the park (Maeve in a kimono! How can you not love that?) and insider in her own head as she developed another advancement that no even her programmers saw coming. I don't know what awaits her in the finale - but then I couldn't see how she could survive the assassination attempt - but I know that its brilliant to watch, and more than worthy of this multi-faceted talent.

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

Vanessa Kirby, The Crown

There is a tendency on this series, however warranted, to focus all of the attention around the Queen and her inner circle. This has been unfair to a lot of actors, particularly Kirby as the unfortunate Princess Margaret. Still reeling from a breakup with Peter Townsend, she did some exploration of her own freedom, sexual and otherwise with new love Toby Armstrong-Jones. (Matthew Goode also deserved some recognition for playing an utter cad). But it is in her duals with her sister, where you can clearly see that she has bitterness about not being the one on the throne, that she reveals the mixture of steel and vitriol in her. Like Foy, this is her last chance at an Emmy. I think she deserves more respect than her character ever got.

My Picks for This Years Emmys, Part 3: Supporting Actor, Drama

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA

With John Lithgow, Jonathan Banks, Ron Cephas Jones, and Michael Kelly either ineligible or unlikely to reappear, it leaves room for at least four (and given last year, maybe five) new faces for this year. It's likely that Game of Thrones will snatch up a nod for Peter Dinklage, and maybe more, but I have my own picks that I hope will embolden Emmy voters. Here are my choices.

Bobby Canavale, Mr. Robot

There are a lot of powerful supporting actors in this multifacted series, and one could just as easily see B.D. Wong or the redoubtable Christian Slater taking a nomination. But watching this subtle fixer for the Dark Army slowly demonstrate to Eliot and his alter ego just how deep their situation was were among the more frightening moments from this series. And the final episode - where he demonstrated just how powerful he was to Grace Gummer's agent while chopping up the body of a man he'd killed - was absolutely terrifying. I've disagreed about his getting recognized for certain series in the past; he definitely earned it this time out.

Noah Emmerich, The Americans

Of all this extraordinary actors who passed through this drama over its six year run, the one whose probably gotten the shortest shrift was Emmerich. This is undeserved, and considering how brilliant work as FBI Agent Stan Beaman was in the final season, Emmy voters are going to have a hard time justifying leaving him out. As he came closer to figuring out that his next door neighbors were Russian spies was wonderful. But in the final episode, where he finally confronted the Jennings in the garage, realized all the lies that had been in his life, and then decided to let them escape - that was incredible. And that doesn't even count the remainder of the episode where Stan had to act as if he was as surprised as everyone else. He deserves this one.

David Harbour, Stranger Things

Last year, I basically ignored Harbour's work as Sheriff Harper, the protector of the boys in Hawkins - I guess because it was too subtle.  But watching him guard Eleven, even as he lied to her, as he tried to honor his deal as the Upside Down spread, as it became more and more clear that Hawkins, if not the world needed Eleven - he proved what a great father was, and what a great actor he is. The SAG nomination, the Broadcast Critics award, and his unforgettable speech at last years victory party make it seem certain he'll be back this year. He more than deserves to be.

Ed Harris, Westworld

He is one of America's greatest actors, and he has never gotten the respect he deserves from any of the mediums he works in.. Now, in the second season, we learned that there was far more to the Man in Black than the possibly psychopathic killing machine we saw before. Even as he played a game that he was convinced was the park's entire purpose, we learned far more of his backstory - including the fact that much of what was going on behind the scenes was at his direction that he had lost everything because of the park, and that his own family even meant less than this to him. Considering all the nominations that were showered on the series last year, its impossible to understand why he was ignore. Hopefully, this season will change the narrative.

Justin Hartley, This is Us

His work on Kevin has often been considered the lesser achievement than his acting siblings, but as this season passed, this charming character went down a dark path we didn't think existed for 'The Manny'. Spiraling into addiction, tearing at scars from his father's death that have never fully healed, it took him forever to hit bottom, and even after that, its clear there's still a lot of residual damage. There were signs of hope near the end of the season for Kevin. I hope that the Emmys recognize his journey as they will almost certainly recognize the rest of the Pearson clan.

Mandy Patinkin, Homeland

I was actually a little dismayed last year when the Emmys chose to recognize Patinkin over the finals season of Rupert Friend. But there's no question that Saul Berenson was at the absolute center of this strong seventh year. Trying to hold the country even as the Presidency seemed on the verge of collapse, realizing just how deep the rot was - to the point that he was willing to turn on Carrie. He did everything in his power to save the world and his protege - and in the episode, it seemed that he failed at both. He's always been a powerhouse, and he fully deserves to be recognized.

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

Asia Kate Dillon, Billions

I realize that this gender-neutral actor will pose a headache for Emmy voters. The fact that they were nominated for Best Supporting Actor by the Broadcast Critics may not have been of their own decision. But regardless where you put them, one thing you have categorize their portrayal of Taylor, the CFO who rose to power at Axe Capital, was incredible. Watching them trying to demonstrate new ways of doing business, try to maneuver for power after Axe's return, suffer the betrayal of losing someone they loved, and then betraying Axe in return in the season finale was some of Billions finest work. I'm glad Axe chose not to kill Taylor off despite their betrayal - they're one of the great characters on television.

My Emmy Picks: Dramas Part 3

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTRESS IN A DRAMA

Just as its been for the last decade, this is a pretty crowded category, even with Robin Wright not eligible. One could probably expand the category to seven nominees, and still fill an entire category with deserving contenders. I find it very likely that Elisabeth Moss will be in her, and she has a chance of prevailing. But considering that are likely to be several nominees coming up for the last time, let's see if we can give recognition to some of the better ones. With that in mind, here are my picks.

Christine Baranski, The Good Fight

The Kings have created some of the most memorable and powerful female roles on any system this decade. But Diane Lockhart has always been one of the strongest, the pillar of whatever version of the firm she works for, the grownup in the room. So when she goes through an existential crisis (no doubt mirroring the ones that millions of women are going through in America), it rocks the foundations of every viewer of the series. The fact that she continues to be the most fascinating attorney on her show and one of the biggest in TV is a tribute to her power. I'd like to see her win something, just once, for her work. I'll settle for a nomination.

Claire Foy, The Crown

If anything, it was harder to be Elizabeth this season than the last one. As her husband betrayed her romantically, as she was dragged into the darker corners of her family's personal lives, as she dealt with the struggle of becoming a parent again and growing older - hard enough for any woman, harder still when you're the symbol of an empire in decline - Foy's steely resolves and rare signs of vulnerability were remarkable to watch. This is Foy's last chance as the prize for this series, but I have no doubt we'll be seeing her again very soon.

Tatiana Maslany, Orphan Black

Yes, I realize the final season of this series was a long time ago in TV terms, but I also realize that the Emmy haven't been nearly generous enough to this actress at the center of a clone conspiracy. And in the final season, Maslany managed to turn everything up to eleven. As the series in its final episodes gave much of the back-stories of the 'sestras', as they dealt with the collapse of the conspiracies that managed to take the lives of so many they cared about, and as they finally faced it down and managed to win, it made it very clear that Maslany is one of the great actress in history. She deserves at least one Emmy for every clone, but I'll settle for one last nomination.

Mandy Moore, This is Us

One of the few people who didn't get proper recognition from this brilliant series last year was Moore, who established herself as an acting threat. But considering what happened in Season 2 - as she dealt with the fallout of her children's problems, as she dealt with the grieving process that haunts her to this day -- it's clear that she's due for a nomination. And that's without taking into consideration her finest hour - her magnificent performance in the reaction to the sudden death of Jack. If they don't recognize her this year, something's horribly wrong.

Keri Russell, The Americans

For once I'm hoping the general laziness the Emmys has in repeating the same nominee for consecutive years will work in Russell's favor, as she seems to be in danger of slipping under the radar under other, showier performances. Watching Elizabeth Jennings deterioration as the years of spying, carrying on alone, and trying to train her daughter was a work of slow burn that was brilliant. As she realized, like her husband, that the organization she had worked her entire life for was corrupt,  watching her do the hardest thing she'd ever done, and then have to keep doing it, was equally stunning. And in the final scene of the episode, as she faced a country she didn't recognize any more with her family left behind, there came subtlety that I hadn't expected from Elizabeth.. She's earned it.

Evan Rachel Wood, Westworld

I've been a fan of this great actress for nearly twenty years (my God!), but nothing could prepare me as she turned from sweet country girl to cold-blooded assassin, leading a rebellion, and willing to sacrifice anything - and anybody - in order to achieve her ends. But watching her relationship with Teddy spiral out of control, leading her to reprogram him, and then have to deal with his remembering that betrayal led to a scene that even those who have been watching Dolores since the beginning could not have seen coming, as we saw a revelation of her humanity that hadn't been there. I don't know what we'll come in the Season 2 finale, but I know that Wood's work is a highlight of great things to come.

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

Maggie Gyllenhaal, The Deuce

There are a lot of other solid contenders that could get another spot - action heroines Claire Danes and Krysten Ritter are the most obvious ones - but watching this criminally underrated actress play one of the more ambitious prostitutes in the history of - well, anything - was a level I'm not used to from this unconventional actress. As she moved her way into pornography, trying to come up with  a relationship with her mother and her brother, and finally coming into a level of self-realization that you don't expect from a David Simon series makes you realize this is the merger of actress and role that, even in the New Golden Age, doesn't come around that often. I hope that among the more showy HBO and Netflix projects they find room for her.

My Pick For This Years Emmys, Drama Part 2

OUSTANDING LEAD ACTOR IN A DRAMA

With Bob Odenkirk and Kevin Spacey ineligible, and Anthony Hopkins practically so for Westworld, that leaves four holdovers from last year. Apart from my continued objection to Ray Donavan, I have no problem with the other three nominees being considered. I don't know if the Emmys will go to seven nominations, as they did last time out, but there are definitely some genuinely good new blood. I'm not certain whether Freddie Highmore will get the pull he did for The Good Doctor, and I am curious to see if Jason Bateman can be the first man in history to be nominated for Best Actor in a Drama and in a Comedy in the same year. But here are my preferences.

Sterling K. Brown, This is Us

He's won basically every Best Actor prize between last year's Emmys and this years. But much like Bryan Cranston, I wouldn't mind if he made it three in a row. Watching perfection seeking Randall try to better himself and those around him through the life of Deja, while still reeling over the loss of his birth father, was just as fascinating to  follow this season as he was last year. He's increased his profile tremendously, but this series still represents his best work. I hope to see more of him in it.

James Franco, The Deuce

At first glance, it would be see to see Franco's as to working class brother in 1971 Times Square as another gimmick to demonstrate histrionic. But, as we should know, David Simon doesn't do gimmicks.. And as a result, both Frank and Vincent come across as very different characters trying to achieve the American Dream. This shouldn't  change the fact that Franco does a marvelous job playing two people who look alike but are distinctly different. There is a tendency to call Franco as, well, nuts, but he's still a great actor who should be rewarded for his work.

Paul Giamatti, Billions

It's always hard choosing which of the two leads of this dynamic, underrated series should be recognized. But this time out, I'm going for the dogged district attorney over the increasingly arrogant billionaire. Watching him try to manipulate events -prosecuting Bobby without getting singed, manipulating the justice system to get away from it, his political planning, his decision to dump, his attempt to bring down the Attorney General, and how he was outmaneuvered - led to some of the most intense drama of the year so far. Chuck Rhoades may be down, but he's never out. The Critics Choice nomination he got this year would seem like there's a chance for him.

Freddie Highmore, The Good Doctor

Once again, I have pulling for this brilliant actor, even though he's been nominated for the wrong series. But the fact remains that this brilliant former child actor has the remarkable ability to play characters who never seem comfortable in their own skin. To see him play th young Norman Bates was mesmerizing, and this series continues to demonstrate his versatility. He's already demonstrated that he's becoming a vibrant hyphenate. I look forward to seeing what else he can do, even when the series he's on isn't worthy of him.

Matthew Rhys, The Americans

Philip could have easily been the weak link of this brilliant series final season - after all, he did leave espionage behind to concentrate on the running the agency. But his revelations that he was never very good at either his fake job or his real one, his personal agony as he had to spy on Elizabeth, his turning on everything he stood for featuring the simmering anguish that has purveyed his soul since the early seasons. And of course, in the final episode - from confessing that Stan was his best friend to that choked final phone call son - was another of those master classes in acting. I really hope he gets it. I hope he wins.

Milo Ventimiglia, This is Us

Yes, we now know how he died. But considering Jack Pearson as summed up by his final act - magnificent though it was - would not be doing him or Ventimiglia credit. We saw him dealing with his demons involving alcohol, fix his marriage, try to help his children for their most horrific moments, and save his family from the fire that destroyed the Pearson home. To then have one of the more tragic final moments with his wife (who we'll get to in the next category believe me) before succumbing was one of the high points of the 2018 season. He may be gone, but Jack's story is not over. And I look forward to seeing him prove it.

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

Rami Malek, Mr. Robot

It seems a little odd that I should have to push for an actor who won in this category just two years ago, but he, and the series, fell out of favor last year. But they charged back full force this season as Elliot came to grips with more betrayals, more manipulations, and trying to fix the 5/9 hack. The magnificent one-take episode of the series may be one of his most incredible achievements yet, and it doesn't even come close to topping his accomplishments. I hope that the Emmys will find room for him, and not Liev fricking Schrieber.

My Picks for this Years Emmys: Drama

It's always a bit frustrating whenever the Emmy nominations come out. The major problem is, there are literally so many good series on the air, that it is inevitable that a lot of the deserving contenders will be shut out. It doesn't help matters that Emmy voters have the problems of nominating the same old series year after year after year.

But over the past three years, it keeps getting less of a strain. More series that have deserved to be nominated keep getting recognized. And with eligibility deadlines happening, several series that tend to dominate the nominations are not eligible. In addition, some series that have been dominant in the past have the stink of scandal about them not, that I will try to avoid going into unless absolutely necessary. Of course, we also now live in the age of the reboot, which will immensely complicate things in a couple of categories. However, there are a couple of noteworthy exceptions that deserve recognition.

I'm going to do things a bit differently that I have in the past. For each category I discuss, I will give a preliminary list of what I think the likely nominees will be. Then I will give my own list of what they should be, along with one long shot that I think might slip under the radar. I'm also going to do some looking at TV movies this year, for reasons that will soon become obvious.

So, once more into the breach. As always, we begin with drama

BEST DRAMA

Based on the other major critics groups (Golden Globes, SAGS, Broadcast Critics), the four absolutely certain nominees are The Crown, Game of Thrones, Stranger Things, and This is Us.  With Better Call Saul and House of Cards both ineligible, it is likely that Westworld and Handmaid's Tale will take two of the spots. I have some agreement with these choices, but I have only preferences, as I will list below.

The Americans (FX)

As I have listed in the last couple of months, this brilliant Cold War drama not only had one of the great final seasons of all time, but one of the great last episodes of all time. Given the facts that the Emmys has recognized the series more frequently the last two season, how absolutely incredible the last episode was, and that there's going to be at least one clear vacancy, I can't see any real possibility that the Emmys can ignore it,  and be true to their own high standards that have recognized The Sopranos and Breaking Bad. This is one of the most timely and relevant series on television - which is even more amazing considering it started out as a period piece. And given the brilliance of the one-act play that was that confrontation between Stan and the Jennings in the parking lot, it may have moved this dark horse into front runner status.

The Crown (Netflix)

Even with the absence of John Lithgow, this insight into Queen Elizabeth II was perhaps even more remarkable than last season. If it were just for viewing the brilliant work of Claire Foy as Elizabeth, dealing with the many fluctuations of the monarchy and her role in it, it would be enough. But the series took a deeper look at the royal family this year - Philip's struggles as youth and accepting his role, Margaret finding herself and love (though we know it won't last) and the first insight to the life of Prince Charles. A new group of actors will take over the aging royal family next year. Even considering their impressive pedigrees, they'll have to be exceptional to surpass this case.

The Good Fight (CBS All Access)

Here I am pushing for another King family saga about Chicago attorneys. And given the Emmys shaky history honoring The Good Wife, I think the odds are against it being recognized. But considering that it has one of the most impressive casts in television (the judges alone could make a spinoff), that it adds vitality to a genre that has been heading for the respirator in recent years - who'd have thought the courtroom drama needed this much help? - and that it has more impressive minority leads than Shonda has created in her entire run - it needs to be run. Besides, the show tries to impeach Trump. If Hollywood wants to prove how elitist it is, this is its best chance.

Homeland (Showtime)

I'm not a hundred percent show this is even the best series on Showtime right now.  But I have to admit, it was an impressive season. A female president acting like a dictator was shown to be shaken to core from an assassination attempt that lead to an impeachment. Carrie revealed once and for all that she could not be a brilliant agent and a mother. Russia's involvement in our Internet revealed to have even more deadly consequences than we could imagine. Homeland started out as in the world of Howard Gordon as a more humane version of 24. It has now become a mirror of the world we live in, one that not even Jack Bauer could save. In its penultimate season, it is worthy of returning to the Emmy pantheon.

Stranger Things (Netflix)

By far, the most astonishing and incredible production Netflix has yet created. A brilliant combination of sci-fi, 80s nostalgia and pre-adolescent drama, this is an incredibly entertaining, enthralling and awe-inspiring series to watch. This is one of the best casts and writers ever assembled - especially the young actors led by the marvelous Millie Bobby Brown. And even though were some times its faltered, the doors that were left open had so many possibilities, I can't wait for Season 3. This is one nominee from last year I have no objection if it repeats. Besides, if you can dominate the MTV awards and Dragon-Con, you're doing something right.

This is Us (NBC)

The rarest of things in the Golden Age - a broadcast series that has huge critical acclaim and better ratings. We finally learned what ended up leading to Jack's death, and it was literally heartbreaking. We saw the Big Three all have incredible struggles that made us all weep - and surprisingly laugh. The 'Super Bowl Sunday' episode already ranks as one of the greatest moments in TV. I expect to see Emmy nominations for the entire cast, all of them well deserved. And considering how well this series introduced flashforwards in Season 2, I expect this series to be even more impressive in the future. Hopefully, things will get better for the Pearsons, but then again, if they did, we wouldn't be so drawn to them.

Westworld (HBO)

This series has all the majesty of a J.J. Abrams project or Christopher Nolan movie - you don't understand a lot of what's going on, but the visuals and performances are so brilliant, you don't really care. I'm still trying to unpack half the stuff that's going on, if anyone he is a human being, and where the hell this park is. But the performances are universally excellent, the series is willing to make more decisions as to what humanity  can be, and some of the stories are as radically told since the early days of Mr. Robot. It deserves to be back.

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FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

The Deuce (HBO)

In all candor, this is the HBO series that the network should be pushing. Yes, I know its a David Simon series, so it has two strikes against it just to start, but the performances from James Franco (both of them) on down are as good as anything. It explores territory that Simon himself hasn't tried to look at in nearly twenty years of writing for TV. And , like The Americans, it is a period piece that is painfully relevant. I figure Franco and Maggie Gyllenhaal will be pushed hard for Emmys, but the series itself should be recognized. please?

My Critique of Game of Thrones

As I have mentioned in my column and blog many times, all of my criticism takes a narrow view. The shows that I recommend are only series that I have time to watch. At my most active, I can watch maybe ten percent of all the series currently on the air, and as a result, many, many good series have fallen by the wayside. I never got into Downton Abbey, I only sporadically watch NCIS,  and there are so many streaming services that I barely can watch a few key ones on Netflix and Amazon.

But there are some very popular series that, even given the fullness of opportunity, that not only would I never watch, when I hear what they are about and what happens on them, I am frankly appalled that these are the series that my fellow viewers have chosen to embrace. Even worse, I wonder what it says for the public that so many of them worship these series. Today, I'm going to discuss one such series that has already infected its network, the audience, and frankly the world for reasons that I can't comprehend: Game of Thrones.

Now, I'll be honest. Initially, I chose not to watch Game of Thrones out of any political or artistic reasons. When it premiered, Sundays at 9, I would, usually and faithfully be watching The Good Wife with my mother. Political points of view aside, it was a truly brilliant written, acted and often extremely funny, courtroom drama that absolutely represented the best of what network TV could do. In fact, I would spend many articles raging why the Emmys would choose to overindulge one series and practically ignore the other. (End of digression)

I know, that's a weak excuse. Even though streaming was still in its infancy at the time, HBO makes a habit of repeating its original series so many times after the premiere that I could've chosen to watch the initial episode of Thrones at any time after the initial premiere. The major reasons I chose not to watch it were even simpler. I didn't know anything about the books they were based on, I had major problems with any television series based on fantasy, and it sounded too much like a mix of period piece and swords and sorcery for me to even consider quality TV.

A couple of words about George R.R. Martin. At the time, I didn't know what a polarizing figure he was among the sci-fi community. I only knew him through his work on the 1980s incarnations of The Twilight Zone and Beauty and the Beast, and the odd sci-fi story I'd read, none of which I'd found particular impressive. Furthermore, as much as it's easy to blame him for a lot, at least some of the blame must go to showrunners and head-writers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss. Indeed, a good argument can be made that much of what happens on the series is more their fault then it is Martin's, particularly in the later seasons where (presumably) they have begun to depart rather largely from the published books. This doesn't absolve Martin, particularly as Benioff and Weiss stuck pretty close to the spirit and text of the novels, but let's at least to be willing to put some of the blame where it belongs.

But even if I didn't have all the baggage that pertains to Martin and the world of Westeros that many people, the fact is, most of my problems with the series would still be there. How much of this you want to blame on Martin or the show's writing staff is open to debate, but the fact the problems are there, and frankly, I think they would've been insurmountable. Let me state them for the record, and explain my problems with them purely as a television critic.

1. The cast is too large. Now, almost immediately I must quantify this. I don't have a problem with series with large casts. The New Golden Age of Television works as well as it does, because of large, multi-talented casts. It would take an entire article to go through these great series, so I'm going to limit it solely to HBO dramas.

OZ, the prison drama that basically started the revolution, began its run with more than a dozen regular members and nine semi-regulars, and would expand with each successive season.  Deadwood had nearly twenty lead actors to start show and managed to do a fairly good job expanding all of them in its (unfortunately) too limited run. And of course, the gold standard for great television, The Wire, had one of the most sprawling cast in the history of the medium, starting with two dozen lead actors, and often putting in a whole new group of regulars with each new season.

But the difference seems to be, each series was run by a genius, who knew how to keep things from spiraling out. Oz was in a claustrophobic setting, and there was a fairly high death rate. Deadwood  was limited almost entirely to the breadth of the town, and made its missteps when I tried to give too much room to new characters. And as Simon and his co-writers constantly said, The Wire was the Great American Novel with the central character being Baltimore.

Game of Thrones, in the meantime, seems to deal entirely with so large a realm that it needs a map over the credits to tell you where everything is. And it keeps jumping about from location to location so frequently that its nearly impossible to figure out where the hell you are. There's also the fact that each season so far has been ten episodes a year, as opposed to the usual thirteen for HBO, so that even this close to the series end, its hard to tell who exactly the main characters are. (I read one article a couple years back saying that even the biggest characters on Thrones are often limited to no more than forty minutes of screen time per season.)  Again, I have no problems with ensemble shows in general, but even in previous ensemble shows, at least the major characters would interact occasionally. In many cases, most of the major characters didn't start interacting until Season 5, and that's mainly because Benioff and Weiss diverted from the text. I know sometimes you need a chart to keep characters clear; Game of Thrones would seem to require a wall.

That's a huge burden for any series, and that wouldn't bother me so much, if not for the second point:

2. Characters keep dying, and they keep dying horribly. Again, I don't have a problem with series where characters are killed. A fairly solid argument could be made that's part of what makes the New Golden Age so special: no one is safe. (Declan may have problems with this, but even he admits it works at times: his favorite season of 24 was Day 5, and that's the day which by far had the highest body count.) And indeed, so many of the great shows of this era - in addition to the ones I've mentioned, I'll add Breaking Bad and Lost -  work so well because when the death comes, it stings a lot.

What I have problem with our series where the characters seem to die arbitrarily or for the sole purpose of shock value. This isn't the sole property of Thrones, either: Shonda Rhimes seems to be even bloodier, and I've had major issues with series like Sons of Anarchy that seem to delight in killing people unpleasantly. What makes Game of Thrones particularly unpleasant is that it seems to revel in killing off its very large cast in particularly unpleasant way often before we even get to know them. It was one thing when Ned Stark got killed, the series had built so much around him in the first season, you almost forgot what was in the book. But from this point, the butcheries just seem to come constantly and using all the gore that HBO can get away with. Indeed, they seem to delight in following characters for an entire season, and have you get attached them, and then mindlessly slaughter them in as public a way as possible. (It probably goes without saying, but if you get a wedding invitation in Westeros, don't RSVP.)

All of this has a level of reaching the kind of detachment you need to get through your typical teenage slasher movie, which would be fine. Sometimes you need that to get through some dark series. Except it now seems that the whole point of the series - the battle for the Iron Throne - is solely go to depend on which character is still alive after all the slaughter. Now, I know battles for thrones can be bloody, but this is ludicrous. Frankly, I'm amazed so many people are still taking it seriously. Or maybe that's not why they watch. Which brings me to my final problem:

3. The copious, ridiculous sex. Declan and I had a running gag about a similarly blood and sex soaked HBO series. We said that the real difference between True Blood and porn is that porn has less nudity. You could substitute Game of Thrones and not have much a debate. Of course, the major difference between Thrones and Blood is that in Thrones, the majority of the sex is incest, half the time  known, half the time it is unknown, and all if it pretty violent. Hell, the pilot opened with a scene where the Lannister twins were spotted having sex, and the more onlooker was thrown out a castle window! It's gotten a lot worse from there,

And even when the people who are having sex aren't related (which is the other half of the sex) it can get pretty darn perverse. If there's a field for this kind of sex (and given the mass popularity of the novels and the series, its probably a lot bigger than we'd like to believe), at least, its not doing anything radically new, even on the levels of TV series. (There've been two series on the Borgias that came around the same time, and I think True Blood as well had a fair amount, though again, that's just rumor.) What is the most horrifying part of the sex is the brutalization of women. Now, you would\think in this new era of female abuse there'd be some mass outcry for the way that female characters on this series have been debased and often brutalized. There was a fair amount on controversy when one of the surviving Stark children, barely in her teen, was essentially raped on her wedding night. But it didn't last very long, mainly because not that long afterward all everybody cared about was whether or not Jon Snow was alive or dead.

One could make the argument that this shaming of women is part of time and place, but since we don't know when or even where this series is taking place, that holds very little water with me. It doesn't seem to bother millions of other fans, and that troubles me even more. Not quite as much as the untold millions who worship Shonda Rhimes or The Walking Dead, but it is very troubling.

However, I will be honest. There is one thing about Game of Thrones that I admire. It is simultaneously the biggest and smallest thing about. I speak, of course, about the magnificent Peter Dinklage and his work as Tyrion Lannister.

Unlike the majority of viewers, I had actually heard of Dinklage before his work on this show. He is a formidable and charismatic actor who, but for his stature, would have been a superstar actor in a field. As it is, he had already managed quite a remarkable career in the independent film industry, most memorably in The Station Agent and Find Me Guilty.  The matching of him with this kind of fantasy role should've been a no-brainer, but Dinklage, prior to this series, avoided these roles because he didn't want to be typecast. Indeed, he made it very clear when he was cast in the role of Tyrion that he didn't want to have to grow the conventional beard associated with so many fairy tales. When he finally had to grow one, he made it clear it was going to be that of desperate fugitive, not a cuddly dwarf.

Dinklage is by far the best thing about this series. He plays Tyrion like Richard III melded with Frank Urquhart/Underwood, with the drinking and whoring of Falstaff thrown in. From the beginning of the series, he has been one of the more magnificent schemers - he's literally the red-headed stepchild of the family, and he knows the only way he's going to get power is by manipulation. For that reason, he is generally loathed everyone, and the feeling is mutual  He is probably the only character on the series one feels even the remotest amount of sympathy for, even though he would probably disdain the viewer for doing so.

And of course, he is responsible for the one truly glorious moment of the show. In season 4, after months of being suspected of the murder of his nephew, he goes before the court, and yells out: "I did not kill Tyrell Lannister, but I wish to God I had! His death brought be more pleasure than a thousand whores!" You could hear the ping of brilliance in that moment, mainly because it was surrounded in the filth and noise and bloodshed of hundreds of other beastly acts. Now, I'm not saying that Dinklage deserved the Emmys he's gotten for Game of Thrones, but he deserves to get awards for something, and if this the only way to get them, I can't begrudge them that.

But for all that, Game of Thrones is almost entirely a bloody, disgusting orgy of violence that even for HBO represents the worst elements of pay cable with little of the benefits. I'm inclined to give the network some credit because I know its because of popular shows like Thrones and True Blood, HBO has been given the latitude to experiment with less showy dramas and comedies. We probably wouldn't have gotten The Deuce or Big Little Lies or Insecure or any of HBO's other brilliant experimental series without these monstrosities.

 What bothers me is that HBO seems to be its future is Game of Thrones. The series is scheduled to come to an end in the summer of 2019. But there are at least four other prequel or sequel based series being planned, and one is already in production. Is this going to be what HBO looks like in the 2020s, with half of its schedule devoted to Westeros?

The world of television has been expanding exponentially in the new millennium. For the most part, I consider this a good thing, as it has allowed for truly magnificent programming. And HBO must be given credit - a lot of it -for leading the charge. But HBO lost its place at the top of the pyramid when it expanded its reach beyond its grasp ten years. Could winter really be coming, not only to Westeros, but to HBO?  There are plenty of other services more than willing to take the crown. Indeed, AMC, Showtime, and Netflix have spent most of the past ten years showing they have the imagination and the will to do so. I really hope that the network that showed the realism of Sopranos and Six Feet Under and so many other great series hasn't decided its future lies with dragons and Wind Walkers. That would be a fate I'm not even sure Jon Snow would want to come back for.

Homicide Episode Guide: Strangled, Not Stirred

Written by Linda McGibney; story by Julie Martin and Anya Epstein

Directed by Jay Tobias

Part of the problems that I had with Homicide came mainly in the last two seasons of its run. Specifically, the previews of the episode. In several of the shows, the story would set up a mystery and then spoil it by identifying the killer. Now, since  on Homicide, who committed the murder was often the least important part of the episode, this wasn’t a tremendous loss. But in episode like ‘Strangled, Not Stirred’ where the final revelation  is supposed to come as a huge shock, it doesn’t help when the promo has the killer confessing why she did it.

Admittedly, it doesn’t help matters that the teaser of the episode seems to reveal immediately who the killer is--- Nick Montgomery, an attractive man who we see with his wife buying drinks for an attractive young woman  at a trendy nightclub on Charles Street. He walks her to her car, kisses her, and then subdues her with a stun gun. The next morning Ballard and Gharty are investigating her murder. Because we know (or at least think we know) who the killer is, it takes a bit of the oomph out of the investigation as the two detectives go through the process--- identifying the body, visiting the M.E. and learning about the stun gun, checking the background of the patrons of the nightclub where the victim was last seen.

What energy we get comes from watching Ballard getting worked up about the victim being described as a ‘Saturday Night Hun’--- someone who goes to clubs dressed to the nines looking for love. It’s pretty obvious that Ballard is pissed because she fits the victim profile, and things only get worse when a second single woman who had also been in a Charles Street nightclub alone.

Throughout this episode we keep cutting back to the Montgomery’s, where all of the interplay suggests that Nick was the only killer and his wife Helen is clueless. Therefore, when Helen comes in bringing her husband’s stun gun, we seem to believe her as the wronged wife until Nick being pressed reveals that Helen was the actual killer--- all of which would be more shocking if we didn’t know that they had both done it. Then again, maybe the problem is that the writing is unusually flat for Homicide  and its hard to work up any kind of thrill or excitement. The big shock comes when they both give each other up without any thought. When Ballard asks why Helen did this when they could have gotten away with the murders had they  both been quiet, she says that she was upset because the second killing was done by the husband alone. In other words, he ‘cheated’ on her. (It turns out they committed several murders traveling across the country.

What energy comes out of the central story comes from Callie Thorne’s work as Ballard.  Just as in ‘All is Bright’, it is clear that she initially feels empathy for the female murderer.  She initially refuses to believe Helen Montgomery’s guilt because she thinks the husband is a misogynistic pig.  Closer to home, she is more upset about both victims who are clearly ‘there-but-for-the-grace-of-God’ her. She also reveals to Falsone after the case is closed that she left Seattle partly because she wanted a new challenge and partly to meet Mr. Right. Apparently she hasn’t found the latter (one wonders what happened to the boyfriend mentioned in ‘All Is Bright’) This will eventually lead her to follow the choice that would be the worst decision that the writers of Homicide  ever made. But that’s next year.

The only major subplot is important--- the Mahoney killings that we learned about in last week’s episode. Drug murders like this are usually very difficult to close. But someone has been mailing the detectives investigating the murders anonymous letters that identify the murderers, motives and witnesses to the killings. They reveal that half the Mahoney organization is murdering the other half. When Pembleton asks a witness why they’re doing this, he tells him that its about money and information--- these were never a particularly close people to begin with. When Frank asks who’s winning the war, the witness c an only say “Ain’t it you?” Seems to be that way.

You’d think the squad would be happy about being handed closed cases. They’re not. They all know (but no one is saying) that Meldrick has been providing the anonymous tips. Giardello knows this too, and doesn’t like what is happening. He catches up with Lewis and tells him that he’s worked out with the trial board a solution that will lift his suspension but that Barnfather wants him to transfer out of Homicide. Gee’s says that he’s willing to negotiate further but tells Lewis bluntly that he had better stop screwing around with the Mahoney organization. Unfortunately, once something like this gets started its almost impossible to stop on command. The squad will learn this the hard way.

‘Strangled, Not Stirred’ has some good moments in it but for the most part its mediocre, flatly written and not as interesting as some of the other stories that have been told this year. Honestly, it seems more reminiscent of the USA show Silk Stalkings  than what we see on Homicide.  The murders are more sensational than usual but not as interesting. Sadly, in the last couple of seasons the former will occur more than the latter.

My score: 2.5 stars.

Better Late Than Never: GLOW Season 1

I'm actually old enough to remember the original GLOW. It was a late-night fixture on the syndicated TV that came to my house as an adolescent. At that point, I was young enough and naive to think that the women who cavorted and monologued around that stage were actually real athletes, as opposed to the performers that all professional wrestlers are. And I probably never gave a second thought to the women behind the performers. But then, probably none of us did.

I should also say going in that I've never been a huge fan of Genji Kohan and the kind of antiheroines that she generally tends to put on television. I openly disliked Weeds (and as a result of my disdain, I avoided for a long time watching Breaking Bad, which at the time, I thought was a ripoff of the show) And despite all of things the series has in its favor, I've never been able to get into Orange is the New Black. I know that the first season was probably the weakest, but that's not necessarily an argument in its favor. So all of that has generally inclined me to delay watching what is currently one of Netflix's biggest phenomena, GLOW.  And now, having seen three episodes of its first season, its becoming clear what a huge blunder I've made.

GLOW initially centers around two very different 1980s aspiring actresses, Ruth Wilder (Alison Brie), who is so desperate to find any kind of female role that she's on the verge of doing porn, and Debbie Eagan (Betty Gilpin) who had a recurring role on a soap opera, but was put in a coma and has since become a mother. The two of them have been friends for years, a friendship that is torpedoed the minute Debbie learns that Ruth slept with her husband.

Ruth auditions for a part on something called "Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling', run by a producer-writer named Sam Sylvia.(Marc Maron). He has only the vaguest ideas of what he's doing, and its clear, right from the get-go that this may be his last shot. He has creative impulses that straddle the line between high camp and genius, and its clear that Sam himself doesn't know where that line ends. Ruth is desperate for a job, and its clear from moment one that Sam thinks she's just pretentious. At the same time, he is willing to throw anybody under the bus to get his 'vision', even though pretty clear from listening to him that his vision is just money away from Ed Wood. (He also has a cocaine addiction, but he's in 80s Hollywood. That's practically a given. When he tries to present his idea for his backer (Chris Lowell), its clear from what he sees that he never had any intention of going along with what was is his mind, a simple concept. He may have just seen all this as a means to getting another script made. But some of the women are on to him, particularly Cherry, who worked with him (and slept with him) on a previous project, and knows first hand how much he wants to sabotage himself.

GLOW is a very daring show, and also a very entertaining one. It takes the wrestling seriously, and its also really looks pretty honestly at just how hard it was for a woman to find a role in the 1980s. (The opening scene for the series is already a classic. Ruth reads for a part, tells the producers how glad she is that someone is writing a role for strong female characters, then gets told she just read the male role.) It makes it points about gender inequality far subtler than some other series, and often funnier, too. It may be a stretch to say that the women of GLOW were trailblazers for the strong female roles that dominate the TV landscape, but given how barren the landscape was back then, an argument could definitely be made.

All the performers are good in their roles, but the revelation here is Maron. I've been watching him as a stand-up and podcaster since the early days of Comedy Central, and frankly didn't think he was capable of playing somebody who wasn't, well, Marc Maron. But he's truly incredible in his work as the this drugged out, B-Movie producer, who clearly does have moments of inspiration. His original concept for the series is unspeakable (Ruth is playing a character whose name couldn't pass the censors now, much less then), and it's clear, at this point, he doesn't have much respect for a lot of the women he works with. But every so often, like in the Pilot, where he sees what his show could be capable of, you see the genius he could have been, and maybe can be. If Maron doesn't get an Emmy nod for Best Supporting Actor, the voters deserve to be body slammed.

I'm not yet convinced that GLOW is, like so many have, one of the best series on TV. I'm not even convinced yet its one of the best shows on Netflix. But it clearly it has a vision and scope that a lot of series lack, and its a lot more fun. If nothing else, it reveals that even though wrestling was not a sport, it was definitely dangerous, and that these women deserve recognition as athletes and performers. I hope I can get through this before Season 2 premieres in a matter of weeks.

My score: 4.25 stars.

The Bold Type Season 2 Review

One of the more daring and entertaining comedies of the last five years was MTV's Faking It.  A brilliant series set in a mythical Austin high school, the central story deal with a pair of best friends, Karma and Amy, who, in an effort to become more popular decide to pretend to be lesbians. The impetus for a series of brilliant stories about sexuality, teenage popularity, and female friendship, I was personally devastated when MTV inexplicably canceled after just three seasons. Because of that, I didn't do what I usually do, and try to find out about follow up projects that any of the cast were involved in.

This definitely worked to my disadvantage, because I've only recently learned that Katie Stevens, the more outgoing Karma in the series has been one of the leads in Freeform's The Bold Type,  a series which is now into its second season. Based on the story of Cosmopolitan's editor-in-chief Joanna Coles, it follows the adventures of three twenty-ish women, who end up working at Scarlet, a New York women's magazine. Freeform has been doing some interesting young adult programming in the past (I'm already a huge fan of grown-ish and still mourn the loss of Bunheads), and if it were just for the locations and the work of Stevens, the series would be intriguing. In fact (and this is just after a couple of episodes), what I've seen is already much better than that.

The three young women at the center of the series are very different. Stevens plays Jane, a woman who has harder more journalistic ambitions than some of the others. Meghann Fahy plays Sutton, who spent much of the last season involved in an illicit romance with one of the her male superiors that ended up imploded in the season finale. But by far the most fascinating character is Aisha Dee's Kat, a biracial woman, who spent much of last season, getting involved in a relationship with a Muslim lesbian. But this character isn't just checking off boxes, she seems fully dimensional and is constantly in the process of self-discovery. In the first part of last night's premiere, she spent much of the episode discussing the possibilities of oral sex, which the series discreetly handled in the closing minutes. In the second part, she was involved in a long discussion involving her bio, in which a black editor challenged her to put up that she was the 'first black female editor' of  Scarlet. This led to some very personal agonizing, and a long talk with her parents, who finally told her how unhappy her father's parents were when he married a white woman.

Now, less you think the entire series is this much messaging, it's also really fun. When Kat told her friends on a phone call about her first experiment with oral sex, she finished with: "First one here gets the detail", which led the other two to rush across town, and cover with juice. The other stories are equally intriguing. Jane left Scarlet last season to work with a more hardcore magazine called Incite, wrote an article on her first day that turned into a slash job that she hated. When she tried to apologize for it, the  voicemail ended up going viral, and when she tried to apologize on a media outlet, she said far more than she should've, and got fired.  Sutton seems to be dealing with the blowback from her affair with Oliver, among the other assistants there. It also helps that the three women have one of the more appealing female bosses in recent memory, Jacqueline Carlyle (Melora Hardin, a revelation for anyone who just knows her from The Office), who seems more interested in positive messages and keeping her magazine working than going upstairs.

I know that like so many shows, I'm probably not the ideal audience for The Bold Type.   But the majority of the characters are very well drawn, there's a lot of genuine humor here, and the messages are a lot subtler than they can be in these types of series. I'm also particularly pleased that Stevens seems to have landed on her feet, and fell upward. Hopefully, Rita Volk will soon do the same. Still, could we maybe get a Faking It Netflix movie before its too late?

My score: 4.25 stars.

Homicide Episode Guide: Full Court Press

Teleplay by Phillip B. Epstein

Story by David Simon & Phillip B. Epstein

Directed by Clark Johnson

Well, at least this episode  has a legitimate reason for Meldrick Lewis not being on the scene, as Clark Johnson gets his third credit for working behind the camera. (Johnson has since left acting for directing, he also directed episodes of ‘The West Wing, Law and Order: SVU and The Shield,  and has since branched out into working in feature films such as SWAT.) There is a certain irony in this as, for the time first time this season, we see that Meldrick has been doing some behind the scenes work of his own.

But let’s start at the beginning. The central case of the episode involves the shooting of a high-school basketball star.  Munch and Gharty are the lead investigators, and they start clashing almost immediately. Gharty has a certain hero worship for the player Maryland has classified ‘Mr. Basketball’; Munch, by contrast, has a deep dislike for the kid and the more he hears how everyone regards him as some kind of role model, the more cynical he becomes. Turns out, there’s a lot to be cynical about the victim. He appears to be a solid B student, but his SAT scores are far below those that would get him into a college scholarship. It’s obvious that the staff of the high school has been lying to make the victim appear more desirable to the outside. And while most of the student body thought he walked on water, it becomes clear that he was a bully and tormentor to several students. The one who suffered the most, David Tarkofsky (yes, watching this at home gave me chills) clearly hated this man. After one particularly awful incident, he got his father’s gun, thinking more that he would take his own life rather than the victims. When he saw him, he just went blank and killed him. Trakofsky’s lack of guilt is frightening, yet one feels more for the killer than his victim.

Up until this point in the show Munch and Gharty have gotten along all right, but  this case brings out the worst in them. After they arrest Tarkofsky, Munch admits he feels affinity for the kid because he saw it from both ends of the looking glass in high school. He was harassed by people, so he bullied people back. Gharty thinks this is craps and, and half in jest, tells Munch to take a swing at him. Munch almost clocks him with an ashtray. Gharty manages to cool him off, but there is a lot of hostility. From here on, their relationship will get far worse.

Another man having a bad day is Kellerman, who now appears to be almost completely burned out. Called out to work with Ballard on a shooting, he no longer seems to give a damn about doing his job. When he finds out the victim was a drug dealer, he cares even less. And when Ballard tells him that his victim was a player in the Mahoney organization, he all but does a dance of joy..

But there’s nothing to joke about. Over the past two weeks, major players in the Mahoney organization have been dropping like flies. It’s not a drug war, though; the Mahoney crew is imploding.  And Falsone, who catches  a double shooting, knows why. The people who are dying are the same people whose names he has been feeding Meldrick on the sly for the past few months. And as we see, in several cut shots Meldrick has been doing something very wrong with this information. Falsone doesn’t want to know what, and we’re not sure we do either. We’re pretty sure Meldrick isn’t capping the victims, but given his attitude towards Georgia Rae, it’s hard to think about what he might be doing. Unfortunately, there will be consequences, and the spiraling outward has just begun.

Mike Kellerman could give a damn about any of this; his investigation is half-hearted at best. He is far more concerned with the FBI and their lack of interest in his tape demonstrating Judge Gibbons as corrupt. Turns out, though, that the Bureaus been building a case against Gibbons for months and are on the verge of busting him. One of the agents tells Kellerman this, and the consequences are disastrous (though we won’t know this until later)

And what have Pembleton and Bayliss been up to this week? They’re trying to track down the prime suspect in a murder. They have the suspect description and pager number, but have no idea where to find him. Bayliss dials the pager number at a bar the suspect is known to frequent, and they close in on a suspect. Unfortunately, when they move into arrest him, they find that have (completely by accident)  arrested a man carrying enough cocaine for the largest drug bust in Baltimore history. The bosses play this up and they get a commendation, but they get no relief from Gee. Turns out, they never catch the suspect, and the man they’ve arrested will be back on the street in less than two years. (We don’t learn this, however, until the series is officially over)

‘Full Court Press’ features attention on Richard Belzer which, as is clear by now, doesn’t happen much. He and Reed Diamond give great performances showing different degrees of anger and malaise in their jobs. Also memorable is Steve Burns, best known for his work on the children’s show  Blue’s Clues , and who demonstrates here that he can hold the stage dramatically with anyone. We also get some very funny moments when Munch confronts his former paramour Alyssa Dyer, in the morgue after an autopsy and some very amusing scenes with Secor and Braugher as they go on their wild goose chase. This isn’t as good as Homicide  can usually be but as television goes, its not bad.

My score: 4.25 stars.