Last week The Closer returned with what I called a very heavy episode. And this week? They completely turn the tables and bring back a little of the zany. At least, in my little corner of the TV world, Beau Bridges as a detective that used to be a man… but is now a woman… and a lesbian… with a little thing for Brenda… makes for some zany. It was great casting, and a lot of fun, but the real treat didn’t come from Georgette so much as it came from Provenza’s reaction to Georgette. It all just goes to show that even when things get a little crazy, The Closer has the stuff to pull it off.
I have to say, I was totally taken by surprise when Georgette was revealed. I had a sneaking suspicion that George wasn’t going to live up to the idealized memory that Provenza had. The way he was going on and on to Flynn really hinted at another shoe that was about to drop. Who would have thought that show would be a pump? Crazy! That is, crazy, but good.
Kyra Sedgwick gets most of the accolades for acting on the show, and she certainly deserves those. But the rest of the cast is very good as well. So I’m always happy to see a story where someone else gets to shine. G.W. Bailey took full advantage and Provenza’s part of this story was great from start to finish. Much like last week, with Brenda and Joel, it was pretty obvious from the start that Provenza was going to come around eventually. That didn’t take anything away from watching him work through it. And the payoff, “ladies first,” was totally worth the wait. Good stuff.
The case of the week was also solid. A case getting tossed on a technicality, even if it wasn’t one of her own, is just the kind of thing to eat at Brenda. Of course there was no way she was making the ski trip. Going back to previous crimes was a clever way to save the case, but I really didn’t see the son’s involvement coming. I was more expecting him to be shocked when he saw what Brenda and her team were able to dig up, not be an active participant in his mother’s crimes. Once we knew that, the writing really was on the wall.
It all made for a good episode, and one that I think would have been a little better as the premiere. It would have eased us back into the Closer world just a little better than “The Life” did. Either way, they are both good episodes, and it’s great to have Brenda and her team back.
Clacked by Brett Love 
on Dec 15, 2009 @ 12:00 EST5EDT
Did I hear correctly and next week is the last one until summer?