What I’m Watching: The Closer

The Closer: Season 5, Episode 11 “Maternal Instincts” (B+)

While I absolutely love main title sequences that are accompanied by a musical theme and shots of the cast members and their adventures, the way “The Closer” opens each episode is simply terrific. Instead of placing the names on the bottom of the screen while the scene plays out, the picture is interrupted every few seconds by a black title screen with the name of a cast member. “The Shield” did this also (and I’m sure a number of other shows did/do this), but it just works so well here. It’s a way of easing into the show, coming in at a relaxing, or occasionally stressful, moment in Brenda’s life or one of her team members’ lives. In this episode, where the kid slides across the hood and Brenda goes a-chasing after him, it was particularly effective, also in displaying Charlie’s reaction and then cutting to a black screen with a name on it. I’m glad Charlie’s sticking around, since she’s good for both comedy (not apologizing to Brenda, not staying put) and drama (bonding with the kid in the hospital, staying serious at home with Fritz). It’s incredible how involved she’s getting in all of Brenda’s cases, or rather how involved Brenda is getting her, and while that’s certainly unrealistic, it’s highly entertaining.

Next week is the summer finale. I feel like this season has just flown by, and while Charlie’s been visiting for a bit, we haven’t been treated to in-depth focusing on each of the Major Crimes Unit detectives. Additionally, the loss of Detective Daniels and the lack of a replacement team member stung, even though that one female detective kicked down that door in one episode, never to be seen again. Maybe Mary McDonnell’s Captain Raydor can join the squad. That would be fun.