Homicide: Life on the Street (1993-1999) (1 Viewer)

[The Drifter]

Part 2 of my H: LOTS review:

-The crimes/criminals that are investigated in this series are in many cases pathetic & sad. I.e., instead of being cookie-cutter evil characters, you really feel sorry for many of these people - while still agreeing that they need to be punished.

-Office/Departmental politics are very much in play on this series. Very realistic.

S06 is especially very fresh in my mind, and is definitely one of the best seasons:

Spoiler: SPOILER

-The episode where Dr. Cox refused to lie on a report by stating that a car accident victim was under the influence of alcohol; this resulted in the state having to pay a huge sum of $ to the victim(s). As a result of Dr. Cox taking this stand, she ended up getting fired. Very realistic to end the episode this way.

-The final episode of S06 where Junior Bunk suddenly shot up the police station & killed several people (before being killed himself) was shocking, even the second time around. Very horrible & unexpected.

Homicide: The Movie (Made for TV Movie, 2000):

From a DVD stand-point, it's interesting that the DVD of Homicide: The Movie was available on DVD before the DVD's of the actual series - makes perfect sense, since DVD's of TV shows weren't popular in the earlier part of the 2000's, but is interesting none-the-less.

Spoiler: SPOILER

- Though this came out almost a year after the series itself ended, it was a brilliant swan song to the series. The beginning scene with the unexpected shooting of Giardello was very disturbing, but I liked how this brought all of the cast together from all of the seasons of the series (even if they hadn't been on the show at the end) to look for the perpetrator. The ending scene with the ghost of Giardello in the squad room with the ghosts of Felton and Crosetti was extremely unexpected, but very well-done. The song by the Smashing Pumpkins (from the Adore album) that went over this scene was perfect.

-My only complaint about this show had nothing to do with the characters or storyline - but rather the change in opening credits/theme: I.e., in Seasons 1-4, the opening theme was this amazing black & white montage that really encapsulated the show, time period, and Baltimore area to a great extent. However, from Seasons 5-on the opening credits/theme were completely changed to be a much more generic, color opening that showed the various stars, with some neon/flashing lights in the background - very unimpressive & bland. I completely understand that as the show got more popular they probably wanted to change the theme to be less "arty", but as far as I'm concerned the original theme worked perfectly - and shouldn't have been modified.

-H: LOTS is very often & unfairly compared to The Wire (2002 - 2008), an iconic HBO crime drama that also took place in Baltimore City & even featured some of the same actors (though not playing the same characters). However, I strongly feel that TW & H:LOTS are two completely different types of shows, despite the common Baltimore setting & crime drama elements.

And, while I give the highest accolades to The Wire from all standpoints (acting, story, setting, editing, etc.), each season has a theme running throughout, and there are no real stand-alone episodes. That was obviously the whole point of the series & was completely intentional. The series obviously also had a much higher budget than H:LOTS, which was a network TV series. However, I find H:LOTS a much more complex show - it was grim & gritty, and didn't have the high budget that TW had - which I feel worked in it's favor. And, it successfully blended numerous stand-alone episodes with other storylines that ran throughout the seasons. And, sometimes there were characters from some of these seeming stand-alone episodes that would recur in later episodes/seasons.

Comments on the DVD set(s):

Though I didn't see the show on TV when it first aired, on the DVD sets they do mention that some of the episodes were aired out of chronological order when the series first came out. However, apparently they were put back into the order that they were originally intended to run/air on the DVD sets. I suspect this is something that viewers may have noticed when the show was originally out, especially if they were taping the episodes.

 

[The Drifter]

Part 3 of my H: LOTS review; I'm skipping around somewhat, since I couldn't fit everything into the last post.

One of the many elements I liked about the series was the "human" element. I.e., the detectives were fairly complex people, and this was something that hadn't been seen as much in previous crime dramas (at least up to that point), i.e.:

Re: Mike Kellerman: Not long after he joins the Homicide Dept. (from Arson) he's accused of taking bribes - which he denies. It's later proven that he wasn't taking bribes - but the suspicion still hangs over him. So, you would think the character would go out of his way to stay on the straight & narrow from then on.

Spoiler: SPOILER

However, at the end of S05 he guns down drug dealer Luther Mahoney - in a fairly obvious unjustifiable killing. This killing hangs over Kellerman & the other detectives who witnessed this throughout S06....which then culminates in one of my favorite interrogation scenes at the end of the season....amazing acting here.

One of my favorite scenes with Kellerman was not long after he made his first appearance on the series. He was at the station on Thanksgiving evening, and talking to another character about how Thanksgiving had changed over the years for his family. He said that when he was young, family would come over to his home & there would be a big production made of the holiday, etc. However, as time went on relatives started passing away & his parents got too old to cook for the family, etc. Very relatable re: how the passage of time affects everyone - and this really humanized the character to a great extent.

Richard Belzer as Detective John Munch. Prior to seeing H: LOTS, I would never have thought that Belzer would "work" on a show like this. He's very funny - I knew he got his start as a stand-up comedian back in the early 1970's. So, I wouldn't have felt that his sarcastic/sardonic sense of humor would be appropriate on a serious crime drama. However, when watching H: LOTS he fits right in with all the other detectives, and his humor is a good counterpoint to the terrible & horrific crimes that they investigate. In fact, you get the strong impression that Belzer is playing himself to a great extent on the show, so he probably doesn't need to "act" too much - LOL. In any case, great casting! Trivia: Belzer is a cousin of actor Henry Winkler (the Fonz).

Though some may find S07 a "lesser" season due to the loss of Frank Pembleton (who left at the end of S06), I don't agree. In fact, I find S07 to be one of the strongest seasons. Unlike other shows which may have suffered after losing 1-2 particularly strong cast members, I felt that H: LOTS was an ensemble series first and foremost, and it's strength lay in the variety of characters, not one single person(s).

In fact, S07 introduced Renee Sheppard, who is one of my favorite characters on the series. She was a very complex/complicated character who experienced trauma after an attack (like most of the other officers on the show) and emerged stronger for the experience.

This season also featured some of the best episodes of the entire series:

Kellerman, P.I. - Parts I-II: These episodes involved the now-P.I. Mike Kellerman working on behalf of a family whose underage daughter appeared to have strangled her just-born son, but claimed that her boyfriend had actually done this. These episodes further illustrated the disparity between how rich & poor are treated by the CJS - for the same crimes. I.e., if you have $ you can hire expensive lawyers & other people who will work on your behalf. However, if you're poor you don't have these options.

Identity Crisis: Falsone & Lewis investigate the death of a man who was killed in his backyard - while in the middle of barbecuing. They investigate some of the neighbors, and come across a couple that Falsone suspects of being in the witness protection program.

Bones of Contention: Munch & Lewis investigate a cold case from the 1980's, after the bones of a woman are found on a construction site. Great investigative work here.

Lines of Fire: Amazing; it involved Mike Giardello (Esposito) trying to negotiate/talk down a desperate man (holed up in an apartment) from offing his kids & himself. One of the best episodes in the series.

Sideshow (Part 2), which actually began with a Law & Order episode (which was also included with this latest Shout! H:LOTS DVD boxed set). Very complex two-parter involving the death of a D.C. Federal worker whose body had been found in NYC. This is definitely one of the most complicated, involved storylines in the series. Well-done.

Side-note: I noticed that the intro. theme in S07 was truncated, re: what was seen in S05-S06. I guess they wanted 1-2 more minutes for commercials - LOL.