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theresaconeill
Reviews
Cold Case: The Key (2006)
Great suspense...with a caveat...
Before I comment on the show, I'd like to respond to rlion2: CBS posts "playlists" for the most recent episodes on its website's Cold Case section. They haven't posted the tracks for this episode yet, but they should soon. I liked the last track too, but I couldn't say what it was. I was only 5 in 1979, so I was spinning platters like "Mickey Mouse Disco." I think the writers try to get on a good mix of songs that represent the cultural climate in which each "case" is set, as well as illustrate the mood of the story. However, I am sure there have been times where they couldn't use certain songs because they couldn't secure the rights to broadcast or the royalties were too expensive. I'll bet the Bruce Springsteen episode cost a fortune just in music royalties.
Now for my review of the episode: I would caution parents that the crux of this episode involves sexual behavior/lifestyles that some would find deviant or offensive, namely "swinging," sometimes called "open marriages" or "spouse swapping." Swinging first came out of the woodwork in the 1970's on the tails of the Sexual Revolution and the idea of "free love." However, it moved underground with the advent of AIDS and super-STDs. It's still out there, though it doesn't get the press it once did.
"The Key Party" on the surface appears like a friendly neighborhood couples gathering. However, in an adult version of "Spin the Bottle," guests drop their car keys into a crystal bowl and each female blindly draws a key from the bowl and is paired with the male owner of the key for well...you know. And this nice Catholic girl rather dumbly thought at first that the key/bowl collection was to prevent impaired guests from driving home! The plot primarily revolves around Libby, a sheltered, middle class teacher/housewife and a guest at the Key Party with her husband. A few months later, she is inexplicably found stabbed to death in the woods. Each possible suspect--including Libby's husband, daughter, and the Key Party hostess to name a couple--has a vastly different, yet equally plausible motive. And it all goes back to the Key Party that started it all. Over the course of the investigation, we get to see the slow destruction of marriages and families and the emotional fallout experienced by all.
I don't want to give away the ending, but I enjoyed this episode in particular because I was genuinely surprised at who her killer was. I did pick up on a few inconsistencies in dialog and plot holes that needed patches, but nothing that would destroy the integrity of the story. Overall enjoyable and recommended.
As for me though, I think I will stick with "Spin the Bottle." :-)