Episode 214 - Don't Stop Dancing, Girl

Not a bad episode, but not the greatest. They can't all be outstanding, and this one certainly was not.

Episode 213 - Seventeen Ain't So Sweet

Liked it! Funny! More coming soon...

Episode 212 - He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother

I liked this one. I like a little angst every once in a while between the ladies.

Family dinner - we're seeing that more and more at Maura's. I like it.

I was glad Maura pushed Tommy away when he tried to kiss her, but not for reasons you may think. Love rizzles but don't have an issue with them being straight. The reason I was glad she didn't kiss him is because she knows Jane's thoughts on the subject, and respects Jane and their friendship enough not to jeopardize it.

Wasn't thrilled with the Frost/ex storyline. Not exactly sure why, but I think the episode would have been fine without it.

I'm sure everyone has an opinion on Maura not telling Jane. I for one understand both sides. Maura had to keep quiet. They make you sign the paper to ensure you stay quiet. Jane's brother was just arrested and her best friend knew it was coming. Naturally she's pissed.

Love the blood/paint thing. I even made a short video highlighting all the "reddish brown stain" times.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7LLHu3X4Ng

The whole "how long do you think you'll hate me" scene was done well. The looks between Jane and Maura speaks volumes. The best part though is after Jane leaves, the smile on Maura's face. She knows it's not gonna be long before Jane forgives her.

The last scene was quite possibly the best scene in the entire show. Jane willing to put her feelings aside so Maura can be happy with Tommy. Maura putting her feelings for Jane ahead of any possibility with Tommy. True friendship.

"I like Tommy, a lot, but I love you." Yep, she said it. :)

Episode 211 - Can I Get A Witness?

Liked the opening of this episode. Different for R&I - done well.

There were some great parts to this episode, and overall I liked it. Mostly I liked the fun parts.

Bass! He finally made it in an episode this season! It was a cute scene.

"Why is your door unlocked?" Well, Jane why are you just walking in like you live there? ;)

Angela was amusing. Stanley was unnecessary.

Korsak was great. Loved his willingness to protect his source and the interaction between him and Jane. It was great seeing Jane standing up for him and showing her loyalty.

Maura changes a tire... no more needs be said. ;)

"Code 10, that's lunch. I'm off for a personal. That's when you have to do number two." Gotta love the good doctor!!

Maura actually had the best lines this episode.

As I said I liked the episode overall.

Episode 210 - Remember Me

Wow, amazing, awesome, loved it!!

More to come...

Episode 209 - Gone Daddy Gone

One of my favorite episodes. I love Maura and Doyle. When they're together it brings out a side to Maura that we otherwise don't see.

I tweeted Sasha about them: "I love the scenes with you & John Doman! Do you both like the ongoing father/daughter storyline?"
Sasha's response: "I love it when he comes around! I think it's a very interesting side to Maura!"

I agree. :)

I will admit as this series moves along I am less and less interested in the "crime" unless it has a huge effect on Jane or Maura's personal lives. To me the crimes should be used simply to move the characters around, not for some great mystery to be solved. That may be the other thing I like about Doyle. Crime is always around him but it's about how it effects Maura and her relationship with her father.

Interesting to note that with other crime shows I'm the opposite. I'm more interested in the crime and how they solve it. I think that's a testament to these characters. I'm much more invested in them.

Maura - My Opinions

I'm not understanding the negativity out there for the character of Maura. There's a lot of comments on different blogs stating how Maura is a different character, too many changes, don't like her "chasing men"... huh?

Please understand I'm not looking to change anyone's mind, we all have a right to our opinions. After reading the negatives I simply have a need to state my opinion and stand up for a character, actress and show that I love.

First lets talk television shows as a whole:
In television there is always a growth period - that's usually the first and second season. In the first season you learn about the nature of the show, the characters, certain dynamics, etc. In the second season you explore pasts, delve into personal issues and changes in their lives. Second seasons are called Sophomore seasons and can make or break a show mainly cause it's the most growth. You survived Freshman year and now you know what you want to be. Every show has it's Sophomore year. There's not a show out there that if you go back to the first season those characters look the same as the last.

Inconsistencies: Always. Everywhere. Continuity is an issue with television shows mainly because something comes up you want to explore (as a writer) but now you need to change/rearrange character history a little. It's everywhere and in every show I've ever watched. It's better now then it used to be. 70's shows had no consistency from episode to episode. Sometimes it was like the previous episode didn't exist! But then a lot of you aren't old enough to remember that, so let's move on. ;)

Okay on to the character of Maura:

The first season was predominately about Jane and the crimes. We learned about Maura through her interaction with Jane and through her ME job. We were only ever in her home once! So, we didn't really see the full well-rounded character of Maura. IMO Jane was fleshed out much better then Maura in season one.

Let's talk men - Lots of negative comments about Maura sleeping around. Again I say, huh? Who was it trying to get Jane to sleep with Jorge? There were hints of Maura liking to date men throughout. Is it more blatant in season two? Yes, cause we're actually seeing Maura's private life. And come on, it's not like she's had a dozen men! The doctor in episode 201 she had been dating for months we just didn't see it. She wanted to sleep with Giovanni, big deal, women do that! And Ian, who I actually liked, was the love she couldn't have. They go way back to her Doctor's Without Borders days - which, btw, is consistent with season one. He wasn't some new "stud" showing up on her doorstep.

I read in a couple of places that Maura would never "harbor a criminal", "that's not Maura", "She wouldn't do that." Really? Did fans create this character? I'm not trying to be mean here, honestly, but who are we to say what they would or wouldn't do? I went through that in another fandom, going off that "she would never behave that way!" Until I realized it's a television show that others create, not me. I don't own them, I watch them. Do we agree/like everything the characters say or do? Maybe not. I won't watch a show if I don't care about the characters, even when they do/say things I want to slap them upside the head for. Which has happened in this show, but I still care about them, I still love the show.

Back to Maura and Ian: My personal opinion is that Maura would do exactly what she's done. She agrees with what Ian is doing. He's helping people, and risking his life and freedom to do it.

That leads me to "How could Maura have these relationships when she doesn't like live people?" Yes, that's basically what I read several different places. In the first season, episode two, Maura tells Frost about how she overcame her fear. She says, "It worked for me." When she was talking about how the dead, helping the dead, helped her it was already past tense.

The whole can't lie thing:
Personally I think the writers backed themselves into a corner. Everyone can lie, some are just better at it then others. The quirks that Maura had/has were threatening to turn her into a caricature instead of a complete well rounded person. The not lying in her work is still there. Jane's learned to trick her into "stating the obvious" but Maura still won't do it on her own. She needs the complete facts. It's the personal life where the lying line has completely blurred. I even commented on it in another review. It was odd at first cause they did set her up to never lie at all, but personally, I think it was necessary to change that. It would be very difficult to write that character for 10 years (here's hoping ;) with her never able to keep a secret or tell a white lie.

On to the actress:

I didn't read this everywhere, but it was enough that I needed to comment. If you don't like a character that's cool, but why would someone then say that they don't like the actress because the actress has input and could change it? Actors are worker bees. Anyone in the industry will tell you that. Unless you're an A-lister demanding millions of dollars and story rights, you come to work, learn your lines and do your job. The only thing an actor has a say about is how they play the scene. And even then it has to jive with what the director wants.

Sasha Alexander is one of the most generous actors out there. She spends hours answering fans tweets and makes sure all fan mail gets looked at and answered. It upsets me to think anyone would blame her personally because they don't like a character she's playing. All the other stuff above, seriously, it's a tv show, in the end not a big deal. But I will stand up for the actors' portraying those characters because they don't deserve to be attacked. They're doing their job - portraying characters as written by the writers and directed by the director. And for these characters to be as popular as they are, I'd say they do their job very well.

Okay, I'm done. I'm sure you're all glad... all of you that made it this far. ;)

Thanks for reading and again, if you don't agree, cool. No hard feelings at all. We're all different, makes for a better world. I think one of my Twisters told me that recently. ;)

Everyone is welcome to comment.