Badass Jane Rizzoli strikes again. Sort of.
She had almost all of the key components in place:
Ponytail – check
Gun – check
Badge – check
Kevlar vest (which really seems too small) – check
Common sense – still missing
Seriously, Jane! You had just commented to Tasha that “if I
can find you, so can he.” So why in the world would you let her walk out of the
door in front of you like that without any hint of caution? Typical Badass Jane
would have stayed very close to, or in front of, Tasha as they walked out to
the car, not leaving her that wide open of a target. I know Tasha rejected Jane
ushering her out the door, which is why she put up her arms. But Jane should
have walked out first, allowing herself to be the human shield.
However, the real Badass Jane kicked in as soon as the
shooting occurred.
- Getting them both to safety in the elevator (taking a
quick second to grab the gun as they ran by would have helped immensely).
- Buying themselves time by stopping the elevator mid-floor.
- hot-wiring the phone to call for help
- calling Maura to use her googlespeak to keep Tasha
coherent
- getting out of the elevator to sneak up on the killer
- giving up herself (and baby) to save a teenager with a
promising future
So, that takes care of Badass
Jane. Let’s move on to something a bit more unpleasant.
Maura Isles. Or rather, the path
that they’re taking Maura down these days: That being Maura & Jack. Didn’t
we just go through all of this same stuff with Jane & Casey? Do we really
need a second go-round with Maura? We remember how much of a different person
Jane became when Casey was around. I’m hoping they don’t do the same with Maura
now. I’m quite disheartened that Maura’s main storyline revolves around Jack,
and spending time with him at work ‘on
the clock’ – even to the point of not answering her phone while in the office.
That’s totally unacceptable, especially for Maura. This was the same scenario
that Jane/Casey had during the building collapse at the end of Season 3 where
Jane was at Casey’s & reluctant to answer the phone. It surprised me that
Jack even had an inkling of a thought that he could somehow be allowed past the
crime scene tape just because he was “with her.” Really, Jack? Up until that
point, you had begun to earn my respect by being educated and respectful. Just
because you drove her to the crime scene doesn’t give you real privileges. The
“I’m with her” thing only works when Jane does it.
I’ve seen many complaints about the lack of Maura time
lately in each episode. I think people are just confused because much of
Maura’s screen time lately has been with someone other than Jane, or that the
storyline doesn’t revolve around Maura. In this episode, we got Maura/Angela,
Maura/Korsak, Maura/Jack and Maura/Tasha (phone) scenes. But, of course, very
little Jane/Maura, (and much of it was on the phone) which, I believe, is why
many are complaining. I love Maura Isles, and at this point, maybe even more
than I love Jane. Last week, we had the brief return of the Maura/Paddy
storyline – a storyline which I absolutely love! However, since they’re moving
Paddy to California, I’m guessing that’s history for a while. Right now, I’m
just concerned that any current Maura storyline is going to involve more of
Jack. That’s something I’m not sure I can accept. We need a good Maura
storyline that doesn’t include a boyfriend (aka beard). After all, these two
title characters are strong, successful, independent women. Why does there
always need to be a man hanging on in the background? Right now, we have Korsak
and Frankie to fill that role. Unfortunately, I think Cavanaugh’s male presence
has now been replaced by Jack.
There was only a tiny bit of Rizzles in this episode, and of
all things, it was them on a date with Jack. (yes, I know how that sounded, and
that’s exactly what it was – at least in my head!)
J: he’s great
M: you think so?
J: yes. There’s only one problem with tonight.
M: what?
J: you (throws drops of water on Maura’s sleeve) he’s
awesome. I’m awesome. You? Way too stiff. Relax, okay? The evening is going
great.
M: no it isn’t. now I have all these water spots on my
blouse.
J: great. Well, think about that instead of all that instead
of wondering if we’re having a good time, because we’re having a good time.
Tsk Tsk, Jane. You should know better than to mess with
Maura’s clothes like that. At least it was only water.
M: since we’re telling funny stories, I…
J: really? You’re gonna tell an embarrassing story about
yourself? Okay. This! This is a first.
M: no, but remember the time we went to the Adirondacks?
J: (under her breath) don’t you dare
M: Jane & I had never tried it, so we went camping.
Jack: Uh huh
M: she really doesn’t like this story.
HA! See what happens, Jane, when you mess with Maura’s
clothes?! But, COME ON!! I want to hear the story!!! Please?! Jane & Maura
camping. I can only imagine the hijinks.
In all seriousness, I do kind of like Jack. Only because
Jane likes him, and they all get along great. Unlike Casey, who seemed to be a
bit rigid around Maura. I mean, Jack even gave Jane the autographed baseball!
What a present for the LLBFF of your girlfriend. That earns him some points.
M: you really like him?
J: no
M: what?
J: well I answered ‘yes’ the first 17 times you asked, I’m
thinking it’s the wrong answer.
M: well I’m just waiting for the other shoe to drop.
J: I’m the other shoe?
M: well I didn’t mean you were a shoe
It’s cute how Maura gets the idioms about clothing correct!
Even cuter that she’s so worried whether Jane likes him or not. So, if Jane
were a shoe, she’d be…something made of leather. Tough & durable on the
outside, yet soft & pliable.
Maura still stands her ground on the subject of Guessing
M: time of death was after Sydney’s, but not by much
K: what about the weapon, can you determine if the weapon
was the same for both murders?
M: you know I can’t answer that question now, Sergeant.
M: you know I can’t answer that question now, Sergeant.
J: we know, but it never gets old asking.
K: how about the same caliber bullet
M: well, I will take a leap into the void and say that this
bullet is the same caliber as the one I removed from Sydney Allen.
J: let’s assume that both victims were killed by the same
person
M: I’m not willing to assume that.
J: okay, let’s say that Korsak & I are willing to assume
that both victims were killed by the same person. That narrows our list of
suspects down to people that needed them both dead.
Ha! At least Jane avoided using the eyeroll. After all this
time, Jane should really know how to phrase her ‘assumptions’ by now when it
comes to Maura.
Maura even wiggles out of a Korsak assumption:
M: ballistics confirmed that Sydney and her husband were
killed by the same gun. And these striations confirm that a silencer was used.
K: professional hit.
M: that’s not what I’m saying.
K: sorry. I’m not putting that in your mouth. I’m saying it.
Cuz I get to say whatever the hell I want and nobody asks me for scientific
evidence to support it.
M: well lucky you.
K: well you wouldn’t do it even if the Commonwealth said you
could.
M: probably not.
K: the real question is: why would someone hire a hitman to
kill ‘em? (Maura shrugs) oh, I don’t expect you to answer, I’m just thinking
out loud. Thanks, Doc.
Wow. Korsak was channeling Jane quite a bit in that scene.
The whole “say whatever I want” line was totally something that would come out
of Jane’s mouth.
I like how Vince is seeming to take charge more. It does beg
the question: have they actually gotten rid of Cavanaugh?
K: the most interesting of the textbooks is “Police
Administration: Structures, Processes, and Behaviors.” 720 pages of pure gold
J: you had to memorize all of that?
K: no, but they reserve the right to put anything from the book on the Lieutenant’s exam.
K: no, but they reserve the right to put anything from the book on the Lieutenant’s exam.
J: I mean, structures & procedures I get, but behaviors?
Pfft. We’re cops. We’re pains in the asses. They need 720 pages to dissect
that? You’ll do fine on the exam, by the
way.
K: we’ll see
J: you’re the best Sergeant Detective in the building. What’
idiot’s not gonna promote you?
K: If I don’t study a bit more, they might be idiots if they
do.
I really don’t want the Jane/Korsak dynamic to change. All
this talk about him moving up has me screaming “NO!” I love all of the moments
with these two. They always seem to have “mature” talks between them.
I’m glad to see they’ve still got Angela around. I had to
chuckle at how Jane still believes her mom can do miracles in the ‘cleaning’
department. I just KNEW when she mentioned that her mother got the motor oil
out of her confirmation dress, that Angela had actually just bought a new dress
instead. After all, do you remember back to when Angela was in charge of the
parakeet (Starsky) that Korsak found at the park a few seasons ago? Yes, the
parakeet died, and Maura was sneaky & bought a new one in its place. This
time, I don’t understand how she actually wiped off the writing. The coffee
stain was around the name, not ON it.
M: Grover Ver?
A: the ‘ben’ is silent
M: the ‘ben’ is not silent. It’s missing. What happened to
it?
A: I don’t know, maybe he got tired signing all those
autographs. All right. Jane spilled coffee on it and she asked me to get the
stain out.
M: well, you did. It’s just too bad the stain was on the
signature.
A: I know. I made it worse. Jane brought it to me because
she thinks I’m some kind of whiz with the stain removal.
M: she did say once that you got motor oil out of her
communion dress.
A: yeah. Kind of. I bought her a new one.
M: so you kind of didn’t
A: it’s mom logic
M: don’t worry. It’s not a big deal
A: yeah, it will be to Jane when she finds out. She doesn’t
want to hurt Jack’s feelings
M: she doesn’t? that’s sweet
A: no, I think it’s totally neurotic.
M: it’s sweet
A: so, it doesn’t matter that I erased half his name?
M: it’ll matter to Jane.
Ha! Of course it will. It seems that Maura knows Jane much
better than Angela does! Not surprising. I have a feeling that, in the next
episode, Maura will secretly buy a new baseball and have Angela give it back to
Jane. Kind of like Korsak’s Starsky/Parakeet scenario.
In this episode, we got the introduction of Idara Victor as
Nina Holiday. I like how they subtly brought her in as a ‘crime scene analyst’
and working from BRIC instead of the regular bullpen (and not sitting in
Frost’s chair). I like that they have her in a different role instead of a
detective, even though she had been a former cop from Chicago. (And thankfully,
a Cubs fan, not a White Sox fan – or at least she didn’t deny it. And myself
being a MN Twins fan, the White Sox are the hated rival.) And I have to love
the lady (the actor, that is) even more since she tweeted me last night during
the airing of the show, replying with an answer to a tweet that wasn’t even
originally directed towards her. I love it! I’m looking forward to getting more
of Nina’s backstory as we go along. I also like that they had Nina come along
with them to the crime scene. I’m glad she’s going to be doing more than just
sitting at her computer.
I had to chuckle a bit when we were first introduced to
Nina. Frankie walked into BRIC and all of the desks were taken. I don’t think
I’ve seen that many people in BRIC ever before. Many times, we see the room
empty – or just with Korsak, Frost & Jane. Since it’s officially the Boston
Regional Intelligence Center, you’d think it would always have a bunch of
people working there, and working on ‘intelligence’.
K: what do you think of her?
J: Who, Nina? She seems all right. Helpful. Less likely to leave Cheeto crumbs on the keyboard. Why?
J: Who, Nina? She seems all right. Helpful. Less likely to leave Cheeto crumbs on the keyboard. Why?
K: she’s our new homicide hire.
J: what?
K: yeah, I got wind of a Chicago PD uniform that was
transferring in the department.
J: so why ain’t she on the streets?
K: she wanted to make a change. Didn’t think it’d be
received well back home.
J: there’s got to be more to it than that
K: probably, but what I cared about: she has a perfect
service record, a clean psych eval, and BPD bought my argument that for now,
we’d be better off with a dedicated BRIC homicide analyst than another detective.
J: what about Frankie?
K: same job. He just got a new employee.
J: you did this so it’d be easy on me, didn’t you?
K: I did it because it’s the best thing for the unit.
Awwww I just want to reach out & give Vince Korsak a
very big bear hug right now!
Before we get to the screen caps, I had to chuckle at the
little continuity mistake as Jane walked into the building when she was first
looking for Tasha. The wide shot has her holding up her badge in her left hand.
Immediately, we come to the close-up shot and the badge is in her right hand.
Just a tiny ‘oopsie”!!


A couple other quick observations:
1. Isn’t
the ‘new’ break room actually Cavanaugh’s office?
2. The
little blue “on official business” sign in the corner of the front window of
Maura’s car made me chuckle. All she gets is a sign? At least they could give
her some kind of flashing light to make it seem cooler. She also needs a cooler
ID badge so that the unis at the crime scene can recognize her as an ‘official’
person and she doesn’t have to keep explaining herself each time.
3. On
the park bench when Jane kisses her mom on the head, Angela gives an “ewww”
look and pushes her away. That is so Jane! Like mother, like daughter.
4. And
Jane’s strange joke when trying to distract Tasha in the elevator… I just had
to roll my eyes.
5. I also just realized that it was another life & death situation for Jane, and she was wearing a blue t-shirt again. She really should avoid that color.
5. I also just realized that it was another life & death situation for Jane, and she was wearing a blue t-shirt again. She really should avoid that color.
Thoughts on the continuation next week – (stop reading now
if you don’t want spoilers)
I saw the preview with Jane on the phone asking about what
it takes to be a foster parent. I’m not believing that Jane is asking for
herself – because we all know how much danger she always gets into and how much
time she’s away from home – but I’m thinking that maybe that she’s asking for
her mother, Angela. Last week, we heard Angela was giving up everything and
starting over. Maybe her next move is being a foster mother. Or maybe that’s
just because on this weeks’ episode of The Fosters, the Girls United ladies were
back on the show, and that’s fresh in my mind.
Or a second (and more plausible) theory would be:
Since next week’s episode is titled, “It takes a village”-
maybe that means, since Jane’s place has only one bedroom, Angela moves into
Jane’s condo (or even to some new place); Jane moves into Maura’s guest house;
both Jane and Maura (and maybe even Angela) become registered foster parents,
allowing Casa Isles to begin filling up with a few foster kids run by “the
village” (aka Jane, Maura, Angela). I’ve asked this before fairly recently –
does anyone remember the kids in “Rondo’s Rejects”? Jane & Maura mentioned
they were going to ‘keep an eye’ on Danya. I’d love to see the ladies start
following up with some of the previous ‘troubled’ kids – even like Ricky from
last week’s episode.






















































































































































































































































































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