Sasha Alexander on Rachael Ray - Thursday 6/28/12

From Rachael Ray Show website:

• View a 3 minute preview video

  Rizzoli & Isles' Sasha Alexander

  The Rizzoli & Isles star has a big idea for her hit series next season, but why does it put Rach at the center of an investigation?
  
  

Screen caps from the preview:

Rizzoli and Isles Episode 305 SPOILERS - TV Guide

More photos from this episode here >>
  





TvGuide.com:

How does Maura track down her birth mom on Rizzoli & Isles? — Jessica
ADAM: With a case, of course! Maura reaches out to her mom, Dr. Hope Martin (guest star Sharon Lawrence), who just so happens to work in the same field. But don't think she tells Hope up front that she's her long-believed-to-be-dead daughter. "It's drawn-out," Lawrence, who will appear in three episodes, tells us. "Hope has a daughter from her marriage. There's a lot to play. Maura's too smart to throw in a bit of information that could blow up in everybody's face, so it'll take a bit."

Sasha Alexander in Moves Magazine PICTURES & ARTICLE

Sasha is in Moves magazine this month. Below is the article along with the full sized pictures.

Sasha Alexander
by Jamie Cuccinelli
photography by Stephen Busken

‘… husband Edoardo Ponti, son of the legendary actress Sophia Loren. “She’s hilarious,” remarks Alexander at the mention of her mother-in-law. “She’s always making dirty jokes.”’

It’s a Bad Girls Club kind of world and we’re just living in it. Cat fight youtube videos no longer appall and no one blinks an eye at girlfriends gossiping about one another. In fact, it’s more commonplace than not to have a woman proclaim that she just can’t seem to get along with other females – that she just doesn’t enjoy their company. In this world of the backstabbing and competitive female stereotype, the portrayal of two brilliantly educated women in a positive, respectful friendship is shockingly refreshing. In TNT’s Rizzoli & Isles, actress Sasha Alexander stars as Maura Isles – one half of the badass, crime-solving female dynamic duo. “I personally don’t know what I would do without my female friends,” insists Alexander, noting how the friendship between the two main characters – medical examiner Maura and police detective Jane – is essential to the success of the show. Not only is the healthy relationship of the women a breath of fresh air in a stagnant TV line-up of distrusting, competitive ones from The Bachelor to Desperate Housewives, seeing strong, competent women in such gritty roles injects some much needed girl power in what society views as a male-driven environment.

This isn’t the first time Alexander has played a self-assertive, modern woman. Alexander played Special Agent Kate Todd on NCIS, before leaving the role in 2005 after two years. She returned to television in 2010, finding herself attracted once again to a compelling character of the epitome of feminine strength. You would be hard pressed to find anyone complaining.

However, that’s hardly all Alexander as been up to. From appearing in box-office successes such as Mission Impossible III with Tom Cruise (2006), Yes Man with Jim Carrey (2008), and 2009’s Love Happens and He’s Just Not That Into You to raising her two children with husband Edoardo Ponti, son of the legendary actress Sophia Loren, Alexander has been busy to say the least. Also a trained dancer, too busy to ever consider doing something like Dancing with the Stars. “Although, Sophia has been trying to convince me to do the Italian version,” Alexander laughs. “She’s hilarious though,” remarks Alexander at the mention of her mother-in-law. “She’s always making dirty jokes.” Not the one to stand still for a moment, Alexander is also up to producing some projects of her own.

On the brink of it’s third season, Rizzoli & Isles has found it’s footing, with one fascinating storyline after another. “I don’t think our writers can help being controversial,” she says. But the credit for the crime drama’s continued success isn’t all due to the writers, of course. Alexander also tributes the easy, natural chemistry between her and co-star Angie Harmon. However, Alexander’s dedication to the role – one that, due to the extensive medical terminology used, requires “hours of studying” – is something to be admired. It’s tough, notes Alexander. But, like her character, Alexander’s sharp intelligence is right on point. How’s that for girl power?

hair Marcus Francis @ the wall group

                                                 makeup Antonella @ solo artists

Stella McCartney satin open back top
Vanessa Bruno black cotton pant

Giuseppe Zanotti satin open toe heels

Source: Moves

Rizzoli & Isles Season 3 SPOILERS - Maura & Hope

From Tvline.com:

Rizzoli & Isles | Speaking of complicated mother/daughter issues…. Now that we’re a few weeks into the new season and have dialed down the drama between the ladies, you may be wondering when Maura will delve into finding Hope, the woman who gave birth to her. Well, as Sasha Alexander told me, “It’s not until Episode 5 (airing July 3) that Maura decides that the curiosity is killing her, and she really wants to find her biological mother.” Played in a multi-episode arc by Sharon Lawrence (NYPD Blue), Hope’s introduction promises to be “very interesting,” Alexander says, in part because her adoptive mother Constance “did know her. It was all a bit of a secret to basically protect my life, because Paddy Doyle’s parents were not good people.” All told, she teases, the mother/daughter reunion serves up “a nice mystery.”

The official TNT synopsis of episode 5:

Jane looks for a way for Maura to meet her biological mother, Dr. Hope Davis (guest star Sharon Lawrence). Angela gets involved in a political campaign. And a nun from Jane and Frankie Jr.’s past returns. Matthew Del Negro and Jenny O’Hara also guest-star. 

From Entertainment Weekly:

Meeting Maura’s birth mother: The season premiere sets Maura on a path to find Dr. Hope Davis (recurring guest star Sharon Lawrence), who we’ll meet in the July 3 episode. “Maura, Jane, and Angela [Lorraine Bracco] stop in their tracks when they hear this woman speak. It’s like you’re listening to Maura,” Alexander says. “And Maura physically cannot talk around her. She’s so scared to interact with her because she doesn’t want her to know [she's her daughter], so it’s actually very comedic.” Even once Maura does speak, she’ll still keep her identity a secret. “There are moments when she’ll do something that somehow moves me, and I just burst into tears. She’s like, ‘Why are you crying?’ And Jane will be like, ‘She gets really emotional when we break a case,’” Alexander says. Maura will also learn she has a half-sister (Emilee Wallace). “She’s a pretty angry 18-year-old girl, and that’s gonna be an interesting relationship,” Alexander says.

 

Review: Rizzoli & Isles "Dirty Little Secret" episode 302

This was an episode that I had high expectations for. I knew Jane and Maura were going to make up some how in episode two and I also knew there was going to be a car accident and Maura was going to be injured. So, from that little bit of information I was expecting a very intense, emotional, heartfelt episode. I got that in the last twenty minutes. Because of that, this review is starting at the end.

The last twenty-thirty minutes were wonderful. I have no problem admitting that I've watched from the gals leaving Boston through the end about a half a dozen times. Part of it I know is because that's what I was expecting the episode to be, but also because it was good.

I loved how the accident was done. Completely out of nowhere, just how car crashes happen. When it turned serious at the lake I loved Maura's "Please. Trust me." Jane does, without question. It was good to see that their trust in one another was as strong as ever.

I felt bad for Jane. It's one thing to be used to watching autopsies and quite another to have to cut into your best friend's leg. I liked how Maura remained very steady during that scene. The pain must have been excruciating yet she had to make sure Jane would do it. It's been commented on that if you watch the "I'm not okay" part without sound... well just go watch, you'll see. ;) Seriously though, very well cut together and performed I thought. If I had a wish list it would be that the scene when Maura is lying in Jane's lap delirious from the pain was longer. Now I'll admit that probably has to do with the Xena & Gabrielle flashback I had to a beautiful scene in the sixth season episode The Abyss. (pictured) Injured Gabrielle, delirious, head on Xena's lap... Sound familiar? I think what I missed from Jane and Maura was more from Jane. Her chance to talk to Maura, maybe even apologize, something more then simply the "wake up," and the smile at Maura's delirium. Again, Xena could have influenced my opinions a little but not entirely.

Jumping to them restrained in the car. I liked that entire scene. I thought Sasha played out-of-it Maura very well. Jane was actually going to fake a conversation with her mother for Maura. Very sweet, especially under the circumstances. Then, she took the time to tell Maura "good job" on the Morse code. When your thrust into a situation like that, the petty fighting and anger disappears. Underneath, the foundation of their friendship is obviously very strong.

[Possible SPOILER for future episodes. Skip the next paragraph to not be spoiled]



I've heard the bickering will continue in the next episode. If that's true I find it interesting since their apology and especially the "I missed you" at the end of this episode was so heart felt. I've always said that an "I'm sorry" helps start the process of forgiving but doesn't necessarily instantly make everything okay, so maybe that's what's happening in future episodes.


[SPOILER FREE BELOW ]

The ending was fantastic. Who didn't get choked up when Jane told her mom that she had a doctor too? Both Jane and Maura did and you could tell that by "I missed you" they were both ready to break down. Emotional, heartfelt, very well acted. We all needed that hug. :)

The crime wasn't anything special. I thought the resolution was a bit weak mainly because the focus was on Jane and Maura, and honestly what reason could the bad guy have for putting them back in the car to drown. To make it look like an accident? They were restrained! Kill them right away, bury them, get rid of the car. There's also the fact of bad guys leaving victims alone to get out of the restraints instead of watching and making sure they die. However, I'm not complaining. I don't watch for the crime. It was all a way to get Jane and Maura in that car accident and to put them into even more jeopardy to strip away the hurt and anger. I get that and I'm completely okay with it.

It was nice seeing Frankie continuing to work towards detective. I don't know how it really works. I honestly thought when he passed his detective exam he was a detective. Maybe someone in the know would be willing to comment below and let me know. :)

Love Mama Rizzoli. Only a few scenes but so memorable. I simply love her. Making sandwiches for her girls and using that great mom guilt was so funny. Then the phone call in the car and Maura's re-wording of the book title. Priceless.

The bickering was funny. Maura's commanding "you stay" to Korsak and then chastising Frankie was total transference of anger. The TP was hysterical. Loved Maura's smirk after Jane walked out. Jane and Korsak a couple? Too funny. Basically the first 30-40 minutes were a completely different feel. Obviously done to give even more impact to the second half. I think there were missing scenes from what was in several of the promos. What happened to "How were we ever friends?" Unless Jane wasn't talking to Maura. Hmmm... could be.

After watching this episode a number of times (in it's entirety not just the last 20 minutes) I can honestly say I like it. It wasn't perfect but I can forgive the not-so-good things since we have Jane and Maura's bickering, angst, emotional making up, and more rizzles.

Sasha Alexander guest DJ on 100.3 The Sound

Sasha was the guest DJ on 100.3 The Sound, Sunday night, June 17th. The Sound posted her play list. In my opinion it's an awesome set!

My Turn Set by Sasha Alexander

Song #1 - ZZ Top - Legs
Song #2 - Foghat - Slowride
Song #3 - Foreigner - Hot Blooded
Song #4 - Journey - Anyway You Want It
Song #5 - AC/DC - Back in Black
Song #6 - Aerosmith - Walk This Way
Song #7 - Van Halen - Dancing in the Street
Song #8 - Police - Every Breath You Take
Song #9 - Stevie Wonder - Superstition
Song #10 - John Mellencamp - Jack & Diane
Song #11 - Pat Benatar - Hit Me With Your Best Shot
Song #12 - Blondie - One Way or Another
Song #13 - Guns ‘N Roses - Paradise City
Song #14 - Bob Marley - Could You Be Loved

From 100.3 The Sound.

Review: Rizzoli & Isles "What Doesn't Kill You" episode 301

It's been a while so let me start with reminding everyone that I don't recap the episodes, I simply talk about them. I assume if you're reading this you've already seen it. Most likely more than once. :)

I loved this episode! It was everything a season premiere should be. Picking up where season two left off was definitely the way to go. Lots of fans thought that's how the beginning of season two should have gone after Jane was shot at the end of season one. That didn't happen but "What Doesn't Kill You" had too in order for the rift between Jane and Maura to make sense.

What I really loved about how the arguments between Jane and Maura were written in this episode was that we see that they're both sorry. From Jane's emotional "I shot my best friend's father," to Maura's "The way I reacted, I just bit Jane's head off" show how sorry they truly are, yet when together they get defensive. I really loved Maura's apology when Jane rushed up to her in the hospital. Alas like in real life, hindsight is 20/20. Had Jane simply said, "I'm sorry too," before rushing into the internal affairs investigation it would have nipped the rift in the bud and been over. Three simple words and Jane could have saved everyone a lot of heartache, but where's the drama in that? ;)

Another lost opportunity to make-up was when Jane stood in Maura's office doorway and said "You're back." Twice. This time it's Maura who ignores the chance to mend fences and as we saw lands the gals in a "cat fight." Notice though when Cavanaugh sends Jane to inventory Maura's reaction is also a loud "what?" That leads me to the fact that Jane took the time to get the truth from Constance about Maura's adoption and took Maura to see her grave. They may be fighting but they still love each other.

Speaking of the grave, I have a side-note, does anyone else find that when Maura's crying they start crying? She kills me every time. 

The relationships between parents and children have become one of my favorite parts of the series. They're all complex, brilliantly acted, and have heart and depth to them. The first scene with Maura and Constance was touching. Maura's "Would you have taken me if you'd known I was Paddy Doyle's daughter?" broke my heart. In one sentence we see the insecure adopted little girl. Constance response was spot on. Maura is her daughter.

Angela... I mean who doesn't love Mama Rizzoli! I love that Maura truly has become a part of the Rizzoli family. For Angela to say Maura was her daughter too just confirmed what we already knew. Touching, heartbreaking scene. My personal opinion was Angela should have stayed at Maura's. My Italian mother would have given me a piece of her mind for even daring to tell her to leave her home. Then would have gone on and on about how we shouldn't be fighting, blah, blah, blah... But that was my mom. ;)

I loved the flashbacks. A friend told me she felt the "putting on the wire" one, although funny and enjoyable on it's own, didn't seem to fit the reality of the situation when looking back at the season two finale. I disagree in that we all have times when we're in emotional, tense, stressful situations and it gets lightened with humor, adrenaline, and even some excitement. It's Maura who's very light-hearted in that scene, and it's Maura who's been put through the ringer emotionally before the undercover operation. Although her mother was still in the hospital, at that point Constance had woken up and Maura knew she'd be okay. Also it was going undercover, helping solve the case, there's excitement, nerves and adrenaline that get all mixed together when put in that situation. I noticed Jane stayed fairly serious throughout and I think that was very well played by Angie. That's what kept the scene in reality. I believed Jane understood Maura's behavior having been in that position so many times in her career, and was probably reminded of her own first time.

I'm one of those viewers who watches this show for the relationships not the crimes. The crimes move the story forward, but there are other crime shows that I watch for the crime of the week and how they solve it, along with character relationships (CSI, Criminal Minds) but personally on Rizzoli & Isles I'd be fine if the crimes were the B storyline. There are, however times where I really enjoy the crime solving and this was one of them. I got the feeling early on that it was connected to Paddy and the shooting, so it wasn't just a "crime of the week" it was integral to the personal stories.

I'm looking forward to the rest of this season. If the episodes are like this one it's gonna be a great season!

On a technical note, I have to say that the look and feel of this episode was fantastic. I've since heard that there was a new director. I noticed the difference. Great camera work, angles, pulling focus, lots of movement... Kudos to the Director and DP. It looked really good.

This weeks episode, "Dirty Little Secret," should be intense if the spoilers are any indication.


For over 130 screen caps of this episode check out the Picture Gallery. They're broken up into four parts.

rizzles.xenite.net
sasha.xenite.net

Angie Harmon TV Guide interview - Tension between Rizzoli and Isles

Angie Harmon was interviewed for TV Guide and talked about the tension between Jane and Maura in season three. She's happy, like a lot of people, that the tension between the friends doesn't just miraculously go away. Both Harmon and co-star Sasha Alexander have expressed their support for the friendship to grow back organically.

"If you have a fight with someone you love and care about, [you] don't just reconcile immediately," Angie Harmon tells TVGuide.com. "Things don't just fall back into place. Words are spoken, feelings are hurt and things happen. Fathers that are the head of the Irish mob get shot! That happens all the time! I like the fact that they didn't just make up immediately."

"It's very snarky and bitchy and childish and very funny," Harmon says. "How could you not be? ... There's still a lot of tension in there. I think the initial incident has calmed down, but now there's just that sort of leftover crap that they have to get through."

"I think one of the things that's so admirable about Jane is that she's loyal," Harmon says. "She's on the good side of the line. She's not a mean girl, she's not a backstabber. She's always gonna say what's on her mind right then and there. Even if Maura's going through a hard time in understanding everything, Jane's still gonna help her, even if it's on the sidelines of what Maura wants. What Maura wants is what Jane wants to get for her. I love that about her. I'd like to think that I would do the same thing for my friends, and they would for me."

Read more >>

Sasha Alexander She Mag interview - Season 3 Rizzoli & Isles

Sasha was interviewed by She Magazine for the June issue.

Click to read

Angie Harmon talks turning 40, fighting and romance

In an interview with City Times Angie Harmon talks about turning 40...

“I think my 39^th year has probably been my biggest learning year,” the actress says, “but in the end I’ve become more comfortable with myself. I realise my faults and all those things that most people are uncomfortable with in life. I’ve learned to listen to what other people are saying.

“Don’t get me wrong,” she hastens to add. “I always liked myself. I’m a huge Angie Harmon fan. But deep down I’m really starting to like who I am.”

Having to do fight scenes with Sasha Alexander...

“We left off last season with a horrible situation,” Harmon says. “We don’t do the cute little button-it-up-in-one-episode trick. Rizzoli and Isles had a horrible fight. When you love someone and fight, there are horrible things that are usually said or done. It takes a while to get over it.”

Harmon admits that it was difficult for her to fight with Alexander, her friend onscreen and off.

“The second week of filming these scenes, I couldn’t do it anymore,” she says. “I was like, ‘Let them be friends again!’

And the most romantic night of her life...

When she’s not working, Harmon keeps a low profile with her husband, former New York Giants All-Pro cornerback Jason Sehorn. He famously proposed to her on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno in 2000, interrupting a show on which Harmon was a guest to get down on one knee and pop the question.

“It was one of the most romantic moments in my life,” Harmon says. “I was truly surprised.”

Read more on City Times.

Rizzoli and Isles Season 3 Articles, Interviews, SPOILERS Before Premiere

It's the big push before the Rizzoli & Isles season three premiere. Articles and interviews are popping up all over the net. Here's links and excerpts:

Sasha Alexander becomes more than just Angie Harmon’s partner in ‘Rizzoli & Isles’  

It's not easy to be the other woman in a cop show with Angie Harmon.
But Sasha Alexander has parlayed that spot into something impressive, playing medical examiner Maura Isles opposite Harmon’s Detective Jane Rizzoli on TNT’s “Rizzoli & Isles.”
The third season launches Tuesday night at 9, and it’s a critical juncture for the gals.
They’ve been friends for years and now they also work together. Or at least they did until the last episode of season two, when Jane shot Maura’s father.

Okay, that may not be the dealbreaker it might seem to be. Maura’s father is a psychotic mobster who has killed dozens of people and is wanted throughout the civilized world.
Still, he’s her recently revealed dad, so she would have preferred Jane didn’t shoot him.
“It’s a huge ride for Maura this season,” says Alexander. “The whole mystery of her father and his past is changing her. She’s always lived in this world where she’s in control of everything, and now it’s another world she’s uncomfortable in.”
Maura’s also mad at Jane.
“She’s in total shock as the season starts,” says Alexander. “She’s very angry at Jane. It’s going to take a while for them to find their way back.”
Yet the fact there could be a way back reflects the strength of “Rizzoli & Isles,” which has clicked into place as a show that’s part cop stuff, part smart comedy and part character drama.
Taking nothing away from Harmon, whose TV legal credibility goes back to “Law & Order” and “Women’s Murder Club,” Alexander has slowly developed an intriguing presence of her own.
“In the beginning, the show was far more centered on Jane,” says Alexander. “She clearly had the advantage.
“But then as we learned more about Maura, we found it wasn’t what we expected. She has a lot of family and personal issues.”
She’s also a brainiac.
“She’s smart,” says Alexander. “She’s collected a lot of facts. But at the same time she has almost no sense of the effect she has on other people. She will say something funny and not know it’s funny. She’ll hear people laughing and not realize the joke is on her.
“It’s a challenge to play a character with no sense of irony. But at the same time, people like her.”
That part isn’t hard to understand. In one scene this season, Alexander says, Maura and Jane have to hide in a closet when they’re almost caught during an undercover operation.
“Out of nowhere, while they’re waiting,” says Alexander, “Maura starts talking about the history of leather, and its historical significance in sexuality.
“We had to stop the scene every few lines because Angie kept laughing.”
Let’s assume in this case that Harmon speaks for all viewers.
“The thing about Maura,” says Alexander, “is you never really quite know where she’s going.”

Source

For Rizzoli & Isles, 'The Anger Is Still Fresh' - Can a Deadly Crisis Bring Them Back Together?

“We start Season 3 maybe 20 minutes later, so the anger is still fresh, the resentment of [what Jane did],” Sasha Alexander tells TVLine of tonight’s premiere (airing at 9/8c). “For both Jane and Maura it’s very unclear – like, What just happened?”

So, things are a little complicated between the ladies? “I would say a lot,” Angie Harmon corrects us with a laugh. “But if you’ve ever had a fight with someone that you love or care about, this is the show for you. It’s very high stakes that these two are fighting for.”

As such, don’t expect tensions between the two to smooth out in a jiffy – a wrinkle that delighted the series’ leads. ”I like the way [series creator] Janet [Tamaro] wrote it, because it’s not tied up in a bow after the first episode,” Alexander shares. Adds Harmon: “It takes a little bit to bring them back together.” 

Read more >>>

 'Rizzoli & Isles': Sasha Alexander teases the new season

Meeting Maura’s birth mother: The season premiere sets Maura on a path to find Dr. Hope Davis (recurring guest star Sharon Lawrence), who we’ll meet in the July 3 episode. “Maura, Jane, and Angela [Lorraine Bracco] stop in their tracks when they hear this woman speak. It’s like you’re listening to Maura,” Alexander says. “And Maura physically cannot talk around her. She’s so scared to interact with her because she doesn’t want her to know [she's her daughter], so it’s actually very comedic.” Even once Maura does speak, she’ll still keep her identity a secret. “There are moments when she’ll do something that somehow moves me, and I just burst into tears. She’s like, ‘Why are you crying?’ And Jane will be like, ‘She gets really emotional when we break a case,’” Alexander says. Maura will also learn she has a half-sister (Emilee Wallace). “She’s a pretty angry 18-year-old girl, and that’s gonna be an interesting relationship,” Alexander says.

 A possible love interest for Maura: Eddie Cibrian will guest star in the June 19 episode. “Maura meets him on her autopsy table,” Alexander says. “Let’s just say his ‘special part’ gives him away.” Wait, we need her to explain that. “We think his character just had a stroke and died, so he’s still in his clothes on the table, and the girls are commenting on how hot he is when he’s on the autopsy table. It’s so inappropriate,” Alexander says. Look for Cibrian to return later in the season.

 Read more >>>

 'Rizzoli & Isles' starts season on tense note, but there should be fun to come

Maura Isles is not in a good mood as the third season of “Rizzoli & Isles” launches Tuesday.
That will happen when your father just got shot and your best friend was the shooter.
Isles (Sasha Alexander) is ordinarily the most rational and linear of people. Like a good medical examiner should be.
And her friend Jane Rizzoli (Angie Harmon) is ordinarily the most compassionate and considerate of buddies. Like a good Boston detective should be.
In this case, however, Rizzoli didn’t have much choice, since Maura’s father is a Mob killer who was holding a gun himself.
It sounds complicated, but it’s explained well, even to someone who’s a newcomer to the show. That’s one of the reasons “Rizzoli & Isles” has become one of the best cop shows on TV.
It works as light summer drama, with lots of great banter between the women, and it works as cop drama, since it has put both of them in very dangerous situations at regular intervals.
Best of all, though, it keeps peeling away layers on both characters. Neither, it turns out, is quite as immune to men as it might seem, and both are struggling with mother issues, for entirely different reasons.
That could get trite. Here, instead, it’s fast-moving and fun. Lorraine Bracco has loads of fun as Jane’s mom and Sharon Lawrence will come in this season as Maura’s.
In fact, the whole cast gets in the spirit — and let’s bet even Maura won’t stay mad all season.

Source 

 Rizzoli & Isles Season 3: Sasha Alexander Previews What's Next, Big Guest Stars And More

I caught up with star Sasha Alexander to hear more about how the best friends begin to repair their relationship, and she also dished about some new guest stars, including Sharon Lawrence, who'll be playing Maura's birth mother, and Eddie Cibrian, who's Maura's new love interest. Alexander also talked about her character's darker side, the show's efforts to keep the strong female characters from becoming sex objects and whether or not she would do a musical episode.
Our conversation took place on the phone during a quick break from a particularly insane day of shooting -- there was a big party scene, and things sounded like they were getting a bit out of hand.

"It's actually a very funny episode where Maura is hosting the medical examiner symposium, so all of these very nerdy doctor types come ... so it's basically all these funny guys with Maura," Alexander teased of the upcoming episode. "Let's just say a lot of different chaos ensues with Dr. Pike, played by Ed Begley Jr., which is hysterical. He's so hysterical -- he has some very funny storylines this season."
She also gave us more of a glimpse into Begley's on-set/on-screen antics: "And then Ed Begley tried to stick his tongue in my ear, but hey! No, it wasn't him, it was his 'character.' [Laughs.] Just another day at work!"
Keep reading for more on what makes "Rizzoli & Isles" tick ...

Rough start for the ladies this season -- it's obviously not an easy situation for them to deal with, since Jane shot Maura's mobster father. What can you tell us about the state of their relationship when we return?
I think it's a pretty raw moment for both of them right when we return because it just happened, so there's a lot of confusion and a lot of raw emotion for both of them. And that gets even more complicated -- for Maura, she's now got her father in the hospital and her mother, and she's dealing with the fact that Jane just shot her father. For Jane, she ends up in a bit of hot water because they're doing an investigation on this, and because she knew that Maura's father was Paddy Doyle, she's sort of implicated in it as a possible suspect.
But the show is called "Rizzoli & Isles" -- these two can't stay mad at each other for too long, can they?
No, but I love it because I think that when you see the second episode and when they do come back together, they've really earned it in a way that I think is just going to deepen their relationship. I like it -- I think conflict is good. I've loved this storyline with Paddy Doyle ... I think it's really an interesting mystery that has been sort of unraveling about Maura's life, and it's provided us with some really cool stories. So it's interesting how it's now come around to it being Jane that stops him. I think it's really paid off in an interesting way.
And now we'll also get to meet Maura's biological mom as well -- I cannot wait to see Sharon Lawrence on the show.
I know! I haven't seen the episodes, but she was really great to work with. The first time she arrives, Jane and Maura and Angela are there and this woman appears, and the way she speaks is so Maura-like -- she has this hilarious monologue talking about birchwood, which is so random. They don't know that this is her, but just by the way she speaks and her mannerisms, they're like, "There's no way this woman is not related to Maura." It's a really wonderful moment, and Sharon and I had kind of an uncanny resemblance.

 Read more >>>

Maura Could Consider a Lesbian Tryst - Sasha Alexander - Advocate.com

Great interview with Sasha on Advocate.com.

Excerpts:

The Advocate: All the girls in the office here love Rizzoli & Isles. Let's talk about your character, Maura.
Sasha Alexander: Thank you. Absolutely.

I love that she’s oddly awkward around nearly everybody except Jane [Rizzoli, the police officer played by Harmon]. What part of the character do you identify with?
[Laughs] Well, it’s funny because I so enjoy playing her, and I think as you get down the road of playing a character you start to realize what are the parts that excite you. And for her, it’s, What is she thinking about? She’s got so much going on, and I like the fact that there’s this kind of innocence, this kind of almost naïveté or sort of enthusiasm for all subjects and all things. And I’m kind of like that. I’m really interested in all things of the world, people, and cultures. I like information. I like people who have information. I enjoy talking to people like that, and my parents are like that.

And socially?
I think that we all have a little bit of that, that part of us. I am now, in this stage in my life, a much more outgoing person than I was as a child or in my teens. You know, my parents were both immigrants in this country and they spoke another language, and I remember feeling like a little bit of an outcast, like, Don’t speak any languages in front of my friends.

There’s a belief among some critics, especially lesbian critics, that Rizzoli & Isles is a lesbian buddy cop show that just doesn’t know it yet.
[Laughs] I love it.

It’s really not afraid of the lesbian label, that both these fictional characters and the real-life people behind them just don’t fear the interest or speculation about their relationship.
No. I mean, you know, it’s such a strange thing because people are always going to get from any film or TV or book or anything they want, what they want to see. And that is all of our right to do so. I mean, it’s completely subjective and that is, that is art. So that’s one part of it, but I feel like we have a unique situation on our show, which is that the books were written by a woman. The show was created and is executive-produced by a woman, and it’s starring these two women who are very different people, they’re very different characters, and so we have a lot more estrogen on our show than most shows. [Laughs] And I think that it’s a great thing because we have a woman spearheading it and she is writing these characters in a way that is just much deeper. They are, they’re deeper. Their relationship; it could be sexual one day, I mean, they’re not gay in the books. But who knows?

Well, how effortless is the chemistry between you and Angie Harmon?
It’s pretty effortless, I must say. It’s kind of one of those things that clicked from the moment we read together. And it was, it was kind of great, you know? We read together, and then when I — she was cast first — when I left the room they said, “Hang out for a second.” And within a second she came in. She said, “You know what? They want us to do it again. Could you come back in?” I thought, Really? I thought that was pretty good. And we came back in and they stood up and clapped and said congratulations, you guys are it. Like, this was it. So they, even the people in the room, understood it immediately. And I think it, you know, Angie and I are very different people. We’re raised different. In real life we’re very different, but the chemistry just works.

There is some boob-grabbing?
There is boob-grabbing. Yes.

I need to know about that immediately.
I’m going to admit to the boob-grabbing. [Laughs] Um. Yes, there’s a lot of female love. It makes the men very uncomfortable. It’s like a female locker room.

There seem to be subtle winks to the show’s lesbian fans, like Jane goes undercover at a lesbian bar, the episode where you’re in bed and Jane asks Maura, “Are we having a sleepover, or is this your way of telling me you’re attracted to me?” All those little insidery winks that lesbian fans always pick up on.
Well, I think that if Jane were open to it, I think Maura would absolutely experiment because she’s just a little bit more open-minded in that way. But Jane would never. She’s so straight.

Read the full interview