Rizzoli & Isles

Jane Rizzoli (Angie Harmon) is a Boston police detective. Chief medical examiner Maura Isles (Sasha Alexander) is her best friend. Her brother Frankie (Jordan Bridges) is a junior cop. Her sassy mother Angela Rizzoli (Lorraine Bracco) keeps butting in. There are fellow detectives Vince Korsak (Bruce McGill) and Barry Frost (Lee Thompson Young). Maura has an unknown criminal biological father. Through it all, there is the unbreakable friendship.

The centerpiece of this show is the sisterhood. Some have claimed sensing lesbian undertones. It's just friendship but I can't hate on the shippers. This works as a police procedural. There are good serial runs. The show runs into a road block when Lee Thompson Young committed suicide. It puts a cloud over the show but it is able to maintain for three more seasons. The ladies are able to steer it over any rough waters but eventually, the show just gets old.

Overall I enjoyed the show. I loved the friendship between Jane and Maura. I loved the female leads. I was able to identify with their emotions. That's rare for a woman watching a crime procedural!

As the show progressed, I found that the side characters took away from the show. Angela Rizzoli is one of the most irritating characters I have ever watched on TV.

TNT has done it again they have once again produced another hit series as they have good luck with crime dramas. This one set in Boston "Rizzoli and Isles" involves the cases of crime and murder in Boston and you have daylight and dark working together on the cases. First enter the tough and by the book seasoned detective Jane Rizzoli(played wonderful by the sexy and exotic beauty Angie Harmon)as Jane always questions the clues and evidence found at the scene, and to make matters more interesting is the educated and witty crime scene medical examiner Dr. Maura Isles(Sasha Alexander)who looks inside the dead bodies for more answers. And both differ on opinions and ways of solving cases still the work ethic and chemistry blends well to form a good crime fighting solving team. Typically the cases they crack are gruesome and cold blooded murders the kind of cases you've seen on TV involving lust killers and serial murders. Usually always in the end the hard work leads to twist and turns with the bad guy being caught.

Good supporting turns are given from Bruce McGill as a supervising detective Vince Korsak and veteran Lorraine Bracco as Jane's overprotected and loving mom Angela. Overall this is a good crime drama series that entertains and it makes you think as most of the gruesome cases take twist then they are solved. And plus it's a nice treat to see the beautiful Angie Harmon at work again especially in a lead role. So check out "Rizzoli and Isles" if you haven't.

I found myself watching Rizzoli and Isles because I had the time when it was on. I realized I liked it when the season ended and I was left with a void that no other show really could fill leading me to realize that while not great, the show is good and unique. It is different than most cop buddy shows and while the case of the episode is significant to the show, it is not the primary draw of the show. This show is definitely about relationships and one that I don't ever see getting me pumped up to watch, I enjoy it and miss it when out of season. I don't expect my opinion to change a great deal as I watch more of the show, it is a middle of the road quality show that is good in its uniqueness from other cop buddy shows.

Being a fan of NCIS I was disappointed at the departure of Sasha Alexander and I hoped that she would appear in another television series doing something she really enjoys. But I was never a fan of Angie Harmon and she was my least favorite Assistant D.A. on Law and Order. It was hard for me to imagine Angie Harmon playing a tough, tomboyish Boston detective. Actually, I was thinking before the show aired that the roles should have been reversed. I could buy Sasha Alexander being the tough cop more than I could Angie Harmon.

However, I am happy to admit I am wrong. Angie Harmon shines in Rizzoli and Isles and it is apparent from their chemistry that they are both having a great time doing a project they are completely committed to. The dialog between the two of them is so funny and entertaining especially when Maura goes on a tangent and provides useless facts with such sincerity and genuine intent to educate.

The dynamic between them was cemented in the episode, Money for Nothing, when the working class girl and the débutante had to decide if they were going to have each other's backs.

I hope the murders become more interesting and the cases more complex. The show has a wonderful supporting cast-- the cop that gets queasy at the sight of blood, and the hard nosed cop that has a soft spot for furry creatures. Very funny stuff.

Rizzoli and Isles is becoming my favorite show.