The Second Season

The Closer is currently one of cable channel TNT's most popular series. It is a crime drama about female Deputy Police Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson (Kyra Sedgwick) of LAPD's priority homicide division and the cases she and her elite team of detectives take on. Sedgwick brings to her character a special charm that has won her awards. Notably, she was the 2007 Golden Globe Winner for Best Actress, TV Drama. And seeing her in action explains why she won and why the show has been so successful. The Closer's sophomore season is a great watch and continues to have a great cast-ensemble, well-written stories, and a touch of humor. For more details about the series, please refer to DVD Talk's review of season one.

In The Closer's second season, there is a fantastic lineup of episodes and strong supporting plotlines. While the series does not have any major story arcs that traverse the season episodes, there are still key character developments from episode to episode. These aspects are small but fun, like Brenda kicking her sugar habit and imposing strict eating conditions on the rest of the squad. Then there's her relationship with Fritz, which becomes more serious. And at the same time, there is a little chemistry with Pope, all the while he goes through a divorce. In the earlier part of the season, there is a fun dynamic set with Brenda, her mother, and Fritz. These small but vital developments and some of the examples of what gives The Closer's characters an edge.

In addition to the character development related aspects, season two continues with a multitude of great episodes. I had the liberty of watching the majority of them during its original cable television airing and I thoroughly enjoyed getting to sit through them again. While some television shows are good for a single viewing, The Closer has turned out (for me) to have high replay value. And the primary reason why I believe it has high replay is that the episodes are easy to get into, even if you have a good idea of what is going to happen in the episode.

My favorite episode this season is "To Protect & to Serve". In this very strong episode, Provenza and Flynn, while getting ready to go to a Dodger's game, find the body of a dead woman in Provenza's garage. The initial opening of the episode with how Provenza and Flynn handle the situation and later how it gets dumped on Brenda's plate is very well played out. The situation forces her to call favors with the rest of the squad and Fritz. The episode ties in a strong case with the cast at the top of their game.

Other episodes this season that were strong include the season premiere "Blue Blood", an off duty detective is found dead next to the body of a drug dealer; Brenda gets flak from her fellow officers when she goes against the grain and treats the dead cop as a potential bad guy, "Critical Missing", Brenda and team get a horrible case when they find a Japanese mother and daughter drowned in what appears to be a ritual suicide; the case is especially unnerving when they get to know their prime suspect, and the two-part season finale "Serving the King", Brenda is in midst of a suspension after a blowout in "Overkill" and she accepts a temporary assignment from her old buddies at the Central Intelligence Agency.

Overall, The Closer's second season is a very strong collection of episodes. If anything, it is better than the show's first season. The cast's dynamic is even better than before. Sedgwick's wonderful and fun Southern Belle charm continues to shine at the front of this elite LAPD homicide unit. The unique charm works well with the rest of the cast, especially with key cast members like Jon Tenney and J.K. Simmons. In the end, The Closer's second season is must own. It is a great addition to this strong crime drama.

Episode Guide

1. Blue Blood: When a cop is murdered, you'd expect L.A.'s finest to close ranks to solve the case. But not this time.
2. Mom Duty: What's a bigger challenge for Johnson: solving the case of the dead juror or handling a surprise visit from Mom?
3. Slippin': Three college kids are accidentally caught in gang crossfire. A sad story...and not necessarily the true one.
4. Aftertaste: Murder's on the menu when the managing partner of a hip L.A. eatery is viciously stabbed to death.
5. To Protect & to Serve: Johnson, in charge of high-priority homicides, takes on a low-priority case. Why? The body was found in Provenza's garage.
6. Out of Focus: Celebrities are in the picture when the team investigates the death of a paparazzo whose camera has disappeared.
7. Head Over Heels: A major porn star is now appearing in small parts: Pieces of his anatomy turn up in a dumpster.
8. Critical Missing: Lt. Tao thinks the deaths of a Japanese mother and daughter may be a ritual suicide. But the truth is even more bizarre.
9. Heroic Measures: "They murdered my son!" A grief-stricken mother blames surgeons when her child dies on the operating table.
10. The Other Woman: Johnson juggles two cases: the shooting of a meth-addicted heiress...and testifying in Pope v. Pope.
11. Borderline: They have bullet fragments, brain matter and blood. TO prove homicide, all the team needs now are some bodies.
12. No Good Deed: An investigation into the murder of a witness in a death-row appeal is complicated by Pope's vengeful estranged wife.
13. Overkill: A double-homicide case starts with a squabble between Johnson and Fritz and ends with a shocker in the murder room.
14. Serving the King, Part 1: Miserable during her four-month suspension, Johnson accepts a covert job with her old employer: the CIA.
15. Serving the King, Part 2: As Johnson gets closer to a terrorist cell, it seems everyone is lying to her - even people who have every reason to tell the truth.

The DVD

Video:
The video in this release is given in an enhanced anamorphic 1.78:1 ratio widescreen color format. The picture quality is quite good. It suffers from a slight grain, but detail remains to be sharp and clear. However, there are some occasional moments when the picture suffers compression artifacts. This is a rare occurrence, but it does happen.

Audio:
The audio in this release is given in English 5.1 Dolby digital surround sound. Overall, the sound quality is very good, providing an audible and clean audio track. The majority of activity is in the forward channels, but there is decent use of the surround sound capability. Music and sound effects sound very rich and vibrant.

The release has subtitles in French and Spanish, as well as support for closed captioning.

Extras:
For extras, there are a few things to keep you busy when you are finished watching season two. There is a featurette, gag reel, and thirteen deleted scenes.

• Breaking Down The Closer (24:16) is your run-of-the-mill with cast and crew talking about different aspects of the show, characters, storylines, etc. It stars Det. Mike Berchem, Gil Garcetti, Michael M. Robin, Andrew Sacks, Greer Shephard, Michael Weiss, G.W. Bailey, Michael Paul Chan, Raymond Cruz, Tony Denison, Robert Gossett, Gina Ravera, Corey Reynolds, Kyra Sedgwick, J.K. Simmons, Frances Sternhagen, and Jon Tenney.
• Gag Reel (2:07) is a montage of goofs caught on tape during filming. There are a few funny moments, but nothing that will leave you laughing so hard you will cry.
• Police Files, which are deleted scenes, are included for episodes "Mom Duty" (2 deleted scenes), "Slippin'" (1 deleted scene), "To Protect & to Serve" (1 deleted scene), "Out of Focus" (2 deleted scenes), "Critical Missing" (2 deleted scenes), "No Good Deed" (1 deleted scene), "Overkill" (2 deleted scenes), and "Serving the King Parts 1 & 2" (2 deleted scenes).

Final Thoughts:
The Closer is a highly acclaimed cable television show and its leading actress Kyra Sedgwick has won numerous awards for her performance. The awards are a true mark of her performance, as Sedgwick makes a great character and works with the rest of the cast very well. In the show's second season, the dynamic is even better with bigger developments for the cast and more intriguing cases. It is something that should not be missed. If you enjoy crime dramas with strong characters (leading, supporting, and guest), then The Closer will make for an excellent watch. It also has high replay value and will be worth having to re-watch over the years.