Major Crimes Season 3

DVD Wholesale Quick Overview:

I loved “The Closer,” although toward the end I was annoyed by Brenda’s relentless and obsessive need to close her cases, no matter who she used and how she manipulated, and even became, good and evil. I didn’t like that she would bend or trample on the law to get her guy. (I dislike the same quality in the son of Tom Selleck in “Blue Bloods.”) I did find her funny at times, but admired her less and less as the seasons went on. That does show good writing – that I came back to see a highly flawed character, and was able to both love and hate her in the same episode.

The supporting cast was always hilarious!! Provenza and Flynn make me laugh, even when I have seen the episode three or four times, which I do because I enjoyed them so much. When Raydor came along, we were supposed to dislike her, but I found myself liking her as time went on.

Onto Major Crimes. I love it. My favorite show, the only “must see” television for me. Just like in “The Closer,” MC has some very, very intense fight and action scenes – literally heart-stopping, such as the one this season where Fritz killed the bad guy as the neighbors cowered in their bathtub. Great ,great writing. The “gang” is still hilarious and touching, and Raydor is a wonderful, complex, moral character. I love that she is much more moral than Brenda, yet still gets her bad guy. She works within the boundaries, pushing here and there, but not crashing through them, not harming others or threatening their professional lives to obtain her goal. Raydor and Flynn and cute together, and the rest of the squad has their usual charm and humor.

Watching this show is like watching old friends who do interesting and funny new things all of the time. It will be a very sad day when it ends.

-N. Dunn

Major Crimes is a “spinoff” of the TNT drama “The Closer”. Much of the cast is the same. Whereas Deputy Chief Brenda Johnson (The Closer) worked hard to get a confession, Captain Sharon Raydor (Major Crimes) takes a different approach. Not only does she want the confession, but enough evidence to get the suspect into signing off on a plea deal, saving the courts time, money and the risk of an appeal. In Season 1 Captain Raydor (who had a role in The Closer) had a very cold reception. Chief Pope (played by J.K. Simmons) is frequently mentioned by name but never seen. Commander Taylor (played by Robert Gossett) is now Deputy Chief of Special Operations. A new undercover officer, Amy Sykes (played by Kearran Giovanni) joined the cast in Season 1. FBI special Agent Fritz Howard (wife of Deputy Chief Brenda Johnson) makes appearances on the show. And last but not least, Rusty Beck (played by Graham Patrick Martin) is cared for Captain Raydor. Things warmed up a bit for Captain Raydor in Season 2 as the detectives got used to her way of doing things. What I like about the show is the development of the characters and what they are going through.

In Season 3, we learn that Rusty’s mom is in jail again and to make bail asks her son Rusty to do the things he once did & of course Rusty is outraged. What kind of mother would ask this of their child? Of course it’s the drug addiction talking here and Rusty always finds to not give up on his birth mom. Also in Season 3, Rusty is adopted by Captain Sharon Raydor. And Captain Raydor gives Rusty’s mom a piece of her mind. Lt. Provenza meets Patrice Parry in Season 3 and they start dating later. Phillip Stroh (played by Billy Burke) escapes at the end of Season 3. Also in this season we see FBI Agent Fritz Howard shoot a suspect in the head that is using his daughter as a shield. It all happened so fast. Later Fritz is offered the job of Deputy Chief of the LAPD Special Operations Bureau. The season really moves more into the development of the characters which balances the show out as we learn more about them.

– Dan J

When it comes to serving up TV comfort food it’s hard to beat TNT’s “Major Crimes”. James Duff & Co. keep the successful formula of “The Closer” on the same path. With the exception of Brenda, Sgt. Gabriel, and Chief Pope all the rest of the cast is still going strong 12 years and counting.

I know I am not alone in my exhaustion with the Rusty story line. His presence continues to be a drag on the series and now with his adoption by Capt Sharon Raydor clearly he’s not going anywhere anytime soon. My 4.5 star review could be 5 stars if we could just wrap up the Rusty Beck saga and move on.

Happily we’ve gotten to see more of FBI Special Agent Fritz Howard (and husband of the departed Deputy Chief Brenda Johnson) this season as he retires from the FBI and takes an LAPD Deputy Chief role. We are also spared the presence of the annoying ADA Rios until the very end. Some terrific guest appearances this season included the return of Malcolm Jamal Warner as an undercover cop, plus we get Annie Potts giving a comedic turn as an astrologist consultant.

One thing that was out of place this time around was the somewhat discrete relationship between Sharon and Lt. Andy Flynn. They’re supposedly sort of dating; dinners, movies, etc. but nothing more serious. Regardless, she’s his supervisor and most likely she also writes his performance evaluations making this incredibly unprofessional. Given that Raydor used to be in internal affairs and her character is defined by her adherence to the rules it’s hard to believe she’d commit such a breach. Mary McDonnell is a fine actress but I just can’t warm up to her character- she’s just too robotic and when she has to play the compassionate mom scenes with Rusty she seems like she’s insincere.

Also, as others have commented the story line with Julio’s anger management issues didn’t really develop realistically. It’s been a long time coming that he’s been confronted by his leadership for his “hands on” approach to policing. In our current anti-law enforcement environment his behavior would have been the source of numerous law suits and it’s hard to imagine he would not be fired from the LAPD.

The season wraps with the return of the sinister Phillip Stroh and while I won’t reveal what happens things don’t end with a nice and tidy conclusion. My complaints aside “Major Crimes” is still must see TV for me, looking forward to watching Season 4 next, and Season 5 DVD release can’t come soon enough. Hope they get renewed for Season 6!

– Colonel D

DVD Wholesale Main Features:

Actors: Mary McDonnell, G.W. Bailey, Tony Denison, Michael Paul Chan, Raymond Cruz
Producers: James Duff, Greer Shephard, Michael M. Robin, Rick Wallace, Adam Belanoff
Format: Multiple Formats, Box set, NTSC
Language: English
Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
Number of discs: 4
Studio: Warner Home Video
DVD Release Date: May 26, 2015
Run Time: 828 minutes

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