(S01E08) So you get out of prison for a murder you didn't commit. You get a hefty settlement from the police department that falsely arrested you, you buy a dung-load of stuff, and you return to the force as a detective. Things seem to be going you way. Then, the head detective of your criminal case gets shot twice -- once in the head and once in the heart. And, it's seemingly done on police property. So, where does that leave you?
Pretty much back in the same boat you were in 12 years ago.
Man, I knew Charlie was starting to make connections between all of the people on his Conspiracy Wall, but I didn't realize that he was getting that close. That's the only reason I can think of that Ames was shot. He had evidence, delivered by Crews himself, saying that Rachel Seybolt was in the house when her family was murdered. Perhaps Ames' murder was to prevent further investigation into this.
I don't think that's going to stop Charlie, as he seems to be a pretty persistent boy. In fact, I'm starting to feel that Crews knows who one of the big players in the Conspiracy is: Dani's dad. In one of Charlies' Conspiracy photos Ames is seen talking to Jack(?) Reese about something. On top of that he led the S.W.A.T. team during the Los Angeles Bank robbery. It seems to me that the missing money and Mr. Reese are connected in some way to the Seybolts. We'll just have to wait and see. Unfortunately we may have to wait a while if the Writer's Strike isn't resolved soon.
Anyway, I had a sense of deja vu this week when Lt. Davis and Reese were talking about getting Charlie hauled off of the force. It was pretty much the same conversation they had back in the first episode. Yet, there was something a little different. The Lieutenant wasn't as harsh about Crews as she was earlier. She admitted that he had done some very good police work since he returned to the force. Add to that the fact that she seemed to be defending Charlie in an argument with the IAD officer and it looks like she may be having second thoughts about her initial feelings.
It was a weird episode of Life because two of the secondary characters, Ted and Constance, finally had something to do. Ted got to save Charlie from certain interrogation at the hands of the IAD by tearing down all of the information on the Conspiracy Wall. This is probably the first time where we got to see Ted as someone other than a schlub and it made me respect him a bit more than I have previously.
Constance got to help Charlie by calling Ted and telling him that IAD was on the way to the house. A few weeks in New York seems to have hardened Constance and made her come to the realization that she can't have Charlie. By taking a position with the District Attorney's office she is pretty much solidifying the fact that she wants nothing but a professional relationship with Crews.
Believe it or not there was actually a crime to investigate this week and the producers of the show managed to keep it an 'A' story on par with the murder investigation of Detective Ames. We've probably all seen other criminal procedurals where the one man has two wives. But, they usually weren't trying to stop a serial bomber from striking again. I really enjoyed the cross cuts between Charlie, Dani, and the two wives of Rudolph Farthingale. While other criminal procedurals like to draw out big evidence when it comes to solving a crime Life likes to take the smallest things as a connection to a murder, as was seen with the five baseball caps and five bottles of wine.
Next week -- well, nothing. It's the eve of the Hallthanksmas holiday and the show is taking a break after two months of uninterrupted episodes. So, relax, mull over the Conspiracy, and I'll see you here in two weeks.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
11-15-2007 @ 8:57AM
tommy2lines said...
No comments?
What was the message, was there some subliminal message and or purpose in that Zen like saying about the breath we inhale.....?
Any guesses?
This is my first full episode. A friend of mine thinks i must see the other episodes that have come before this one.
Tell me if there are things that i need to find out on my own by seeing those episodes or if there are things that someone can tell me that will at least give me enough information that might be needed to "get it"?
i was interested in the show when NBC was hyping it for it's fall debut. i think i have a premise or two. Do i need more? i saw the show, i didn't feel lost, i liked it and the story itself was a pretty good one.
Signing off,
T2L
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11-15-2007 @ 9:20AM
Adam said...
Wow.
This was probably the best episode outside of the pilot. Zen moments from Charlie, Check. Crazy murder investigation, Check. Ted bringing the humor, Check. Charlie making a discovery to move the conspiracy along, Double Check.
The show has clearly found its own niche, like a mix between Prison Break and SVU. The look one Reese's face when Charlie was trying to get the two wives to figure out they were married to the same guy was ridiculously good acting. And the subtle ways Crews responded once he realized he was investigating, Priceless. I've pretty much watched the show for the weird investigations and the overarching conspiracy, but outside of Damian Lewis, I've never been impressed with the acting, particularly the guy who played Ames. But this week the acting was excellent, and to me, Life has clearly become the best show on TV at the moment.
Was it just me or did the guy who played Reese's father look like he was in bad makeup w/ a hairpiece and a fake 'stasche? That may be his natural look, but that just cracked me up.
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11-15-2007 @ 9:48AM
Carrespondence said...
Do my eyes and ears deceive me, or it that a new actress playing Constance? Disappointing.
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11-15-2007 @ 11:10AM
VP said...
Adam i was thinking the same thing. I am pretty sure that wasn't the same person playing Constance. Love this show, i just hope NBC is patient with it. The back & forth with the two wives is very hilarious. This is a thinking man's show. Unlike shows like CSI, where all the necessary evidence just shows up magically.
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11-15-2007 @ 11:16AM
kevjohn said...
I'm sure most of us hate it as much as I do when people engage in needless hyperbole to voice their thoughts and opinions. That's why I'm hoping you will all forgive me for the following statement. This episode may have been the single best hour of network television of this young century, excluding any episode of Firefly. This was a nearly flawless ep., and I can only hope there will be more to come once the strike is over.
I wasn't too thrilled to see the lawyer return (and yes, it did look like a new actress in the part), but Charlie's interactions with her may get more interesting given her new position with the D.A.'s office. And it prompted Charlie to use a line that gives us the greatest insight yet into his mindset: "the week before Ames dies the D.A. takes my lawyer away from me." Charlie would be clearly suffering from paranoid delusions, except for the fact that everyone actually IS out to get him. I am beginning to think he may be able to cover every wall in his house with photos and diagrams before this is all over.
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11-15-2007 @ 2:27PM
rtms said...
Another great ep, and I'm thinking Dani's father killed Ames.I think it's kinda obvious.
I have to ask, how old is Dani? If the robbery happened 12 yrs ago, and Dani has mentioned she was "12 or something" that means she is only 24 yrs old. Did she skip university and go straight to the force? She seems kinda young to have made detective so fast even with her father's connections.
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11-15-2007 @ 11:36AM
Kaj said...
Same actress (Brooke Langton, formerly of Melrose Place fame), different hairstyle.
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11-15-2007 @ 12:12PM
Bas said...
When Crews was running up the stairs during the search, I think that's the first time I've ever seen him really sweat or be rattled.
It was great to see Ted do something to really protect Crews. I wonder, given his background, if there will come a time that he has to use his financial acumen to help Crews trace where the money from the bank heist went.
Excellent episode, as always.
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11-15-2007 @ 12:27PM
Aberdeen said...
I think Constance maybe walked into a weedwhacker or something, cuz baby's got some bad, bad hair.
And finally Ted got something to do! I find him much more interesting now, with what he said to Charlie at the end.
Can't believe we have to wait two more weeks...how many new episodes are there, anyway, 3?
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11-15-2007 @ 12:49PM
C C said...
Boy, Life is really picking up steam. They followed last week's terrific episode with another strong outing. I'm pleased that gotten slightly better ratings than lead-in Bionic Woman the last two weeks.
The parallel scenes where Crews and Reese were each interviewing "Farthingale's" wives at their respective residences were genius. It reminded me of the "For Love or the Game" test they run between a sports star, his/her spouse and his/her buddy to see who knows him better in each issue of ESPN magazine. Except this was far more artsy. When Crews and Reese each sat down in one of "Farthingale's" chairs while relaying what they were seeing from their perspectives, wow, what was just cool.
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11-15-2007 @ 12:54PM
lglymph said...
This show just draws me in. I love the fact that they actually investigate crimes, find evidence and use their brains to figure things out. Evidence doesn't just appear magically like others shows (as stated above) or get told to them by witnesses - that does happen, but it's not the only thing they use to solve crimes. I absolutely love this show.
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11-15-2007 @ 1:40PM
jensenmr said...
The ONLY thing missing out of this episode was fruit, unless I just missed it (though wine was important, and wine is made from fruit). I unlike many others, am a lover of the fruit.
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11-15-2007 @ 2:02PM
Bas said...
jensenmr - Crews was eating an apple in his car when he was taking pictures of Ames & Dani's father in the park. Didn't want you to miss your fruit!
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11-15-2007 @ 2:13PM
Jennifer said...
I'm pretty sure he was eating fruit, at least in the car at the start.
Great episode.
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11-15-2007 @ 2:31PM
CeCe said...
on the fruit question .. when Crews and Dani were leaning against the car talking, she had a cup of coffee and it looked like he had a cup with pineapple in it.
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11-15-2007 @ 2:35PM
CeCe said...
I thought it was great that Lt. Davis was staring at the hats and bottles with Crews and Reese.
I haven't watched a cop show in years but Life is not your father's cop show.
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11-15-2007 @ 3:02PM
RichK said...
'when Crews and Dani were leaning against the car talking, she had a cup of coffee and it looked like he had a cup with pineapple in it'
I don't think it was coffee, she was sipping at soda I believe. While she was drinking that Crews was eating a container of pineapple and melon.
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11-15-2007 @ 3:07PM
AJ MacReady said...
I agree with pretty much everything previously said (Brooke Langton, still hot, but what's up with the hair?), this and Journeyman are easily the best new shows this season - and they're both on NBC, go Peacock! The acting and characterizations are stellar (and it IS weird to see Charlie rattled, even slightly, as when his union rep left and he called Constance with that unsettled look on his face), and the writing just pushes things along with momentum and really keeps you interested. I'm really loving this show and am hoping that NBC gives it a chance, post-strike, to get where it's going. Plus, Charlie and Dani are the best partners on TV right now for my money.
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11-15-2007 @ 3:12PM
AJ MacReady said...
Oh, and huge props for the use of Radiohead's "All I Need" at the close of the ep; that's simply kickass.
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11-15-2007 @ 3:10PM
Brent McKee said...
Damn I love this show! Course I knew I would from the time NBC released those promo clips on YouTube back in August but still it's nice to be right. Those people who said this show looked "boring" or that it "sucked" when they saw the clips and were convinced that "Bionic Woman" would be the greatest thing ever were wrong. What I worry about is that the comparatively low ratings, combined with the writers' strike may kill this show too young.
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