July 2, 2007: Two's a Crowd
Perhaps in preparation for/contrast to the next episode, which is a dramatic doozy, TNT's
The Closer this week served up one of its "lighter" cases, and an always interesting combo of whodunit and whowasitdun
to. Me, I just feel for poor Flynn and Provenza, who once again were cold-cocked by their separate and collective colorful pasts.
Having cued up this episode before reading
TVGuide.com's Q&A with G.W. Bailey, I was prepared for
some sort of coffin switcheroo but was not expecting the "uninvited guest" to be
sharing the space with Flynn's passed-on pal. That twist almost immediately cast a shadow on the funeral home, allowing us to meet that other "closer," thus offering a superb double-take by Brenda and Gabriel. That the actual culprit turned out to be a blackmailed plastic surgeon to the stars
as well as the B-story's bridezilla was, in my opinion, a letdown/egregious cheat, ergo making this episode the weakest of the young season to date.
That said, what the hour was
really about, for me at least, was the following:
" Said bride-from-hell's attack on poor Brenda: It almost literally pained me to see our stalwart, tough-talking deputy chief cower against the side of the squad car, defenseless not so much as unwilling to defend. Who here would not have liked to see Brenda unleash a solid right hook on that spoiled, nasty, litigious brat?
" The onset of Brenda's not-too-extreme makeover: Hinted at in Season 3 previews, our hero's misinterpreted consult with the plastic surgeon set in motion a slight rethinking of Brenda's look. Gone will be the harsh lips and dowdy duds, though I am sure the show won't swing to the
other extreme and bring to our screen a red-carpet-ready Kyra. But those moments of Brenda "hiding" her mouth during the squad briefing, or her asking Daniels for advice, were a treat.
A final note: Is it me, or did this episode appear aired out of order? There was virtually zero pickup of Brenda's agitation of Gabriel, vis-a-vis last week's former gang member done good. (A Monday-evening call to the TNT publicist shoots down my theory, saying the episodes
are airing in order.)
