What I’m Watching: The Closer

The Closer: Season 5, Episode 9 “Identity Theft” (B+)

After this episode, I feel a lot like how I imagine Brenda’s family feels. I’d like to see more of her interactions with her family, especially her troublemaking niece, and it seems that her obsessive need to work really gets in the way of that a lot. The episode’s runtime is devoted mainly to Brenda while she’s at work, and therefore we’re robbed of all the terrific conversations that might occur between the likes of Fritz and Charlie, which I’m sure would prove fantastically entertaining. I’m hopeful that while Charlie is staying with Brenda and Fritz, we’ll be treated to many more meetings and conversations between the three of them, since I think that could be a fantastic road for the show to go down. In other news, it wasn’t that much of a shock that Libby was the killer since Cynthia WatI'ros’ role seemed far too minimal (a lesser version of last week’s famous-guest-star case). Bruce Davison was a bit dramatic for my tastes as the protective father, though Michael Arden did a good job as the schizophrenic son. The bit with the lawyer and the multiple confessions wasn’t as resounding as perhaps it could have been, but overall it was a fun installment and it’s great to see my favorite cast member, Michael Paul Chan, steal more of the spotlight as Lieutenant Tau.