By Brandon Nolta
Chief Johnson (Kyra Sedgwick) is having what my middle-aged female relatives call “power surges,” in keeping with the themes of vulnerability and weakness that THE CLOSER introduced last week. Not being a doctor, I doubt my diagnosis would stand up to critical review, but it seems pretty damn likely the show’s writers are headed down the menopause path, which ought to make things interesting between the chief and her FBI beau Fritz (Jon Tenney). Anyway, that’s for the future to reveal. This week’s episode is about baseball. Well, kinda.
Two Latino teens are shot to death right outside one teen’s house, and since the house is in gang territory, it makes things a little more exciting than the usual random murder in Los Angeles. Because of a number of recent gang-related shootings, Commander Taylor (Robert Gossett) asks for Priority Homicide to lend a hand, presumably all a part of the ongoing thawing of relations between Taylor and Johnson. As Spock once observed, “Only Nixon could go to China.”
Geek non sequitur aside, the investigation unfolds as you’d expect, eventually focusing on a rising high-school baseball star and his hardworking dad, but the emotional turmoil and physiological changes Chief Johnson experiences hamper her investigation. Fortunately, Detective Sanchez (Raymond Cruz) is there to pick up the slack and, to a certain extent, act as Jiminy Cricket.
What’s noteworthy about this episode, besides the continuing trend of giving Chief Johnson a chance to not be so superhuman all the time, is that one of the more neglected characters in the Priority Homicide squad is given a little more to do. Up to now, Sanchez has been around mainly to spout the occasional smart-ass remark and glower menacingly at suspects in interrogations (which, admittedly, he’s damn good at doing). Cruz is often not given enough to do except be menacing, which is unfortunate, because he can do so much more; check him out sometime in TRAINING DAY. Here, he shows a depth of emotion and character that fleshes him out more than viewers have seen so far. Hopefully, Detective Daniels (Gina Ravera) will get a similar chance soon.
For shows like THE CLOSER, strong acting has become so de rigeur that it’s only noticeable when it’s gone, so all I’ll say is that Sedgwick et al are at their usual standard of performance. There are a few nice touches that go hand-in-hand with Johnson’s wavering abilities, the best of which is that despite the obvious symptoms and the fact that the squad room is male-dominated, nobody makes any smart-ass comments about hot flashes or menopause. In fact, the only emotion her squad, or even Commander Taylor, shows is concern for her predicament, a definite mark of respect and a change from the first season.
In other words, ho-hum, another excellent episode from an excellent series. I don’t mean to sound so blasé about having such choices to watch, but when you hit them out of the park every week, triples don’t have the same allure.