“Actually it’s see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil, and it’s Buddhist.” – Detective Kenny “No-Gun”
Nice to see a focus on Lydia Adams this week, played by the marvelous Regina King. Southland and King has done a good job of letting us see Lydia’s layers: a hardnosed veteran female cop who has a well of compassion and an aggressive agenda of social justice. Did I miss something though or what happened to Adams’ new partner Rene Cordero (Amaury Nolasco)? I enjoyed the progress of their relationship over the last few episodes, so it was a bit jarring to her working with another detective this way.
Lydia and her new guy investigate The Runner, an LA college student with a bright future who throws it all away in a spiral of the wrong crowd (which ironically includes a star football player boyfriend), the wrong drugs, and a pregnancy to boot. Long story short: she “rips and runs,” ripping off drug dealers in her old hood, and winds up very dead. The detectives’ investigation sheds a harsh light on the layers of lies and truths that are inherent to institutions (the university), families (parents in denial), and the street.
On a less “all is grim” note, awesome to see the return of C. Thomas Howell, who plays Officer Billy Dewey! I was afraid he was going to be gone for good after Dewey spun out of control and got shipped off to rehab in Season One. Howell brings a tremendous burst of jittery energy into an at times downbeat show. I’ve always enjoyed Howell’s acting, and very strange in that I still think of him as a young ’80s star in films like Soul Man and The Hitcher.
I got unexpectedly choked up when Lydia calls her mom at the end of the episode (who finally made it to France!). Southland has a way of sneaking up on you, kind of like real life in that sense, perhaps.
More thoughts on “The Runner”:
* “Actually it’s see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil… and it’s Buddhist.” – Detective Kenny “No-Gun”
* Good moments between John Cooper (Michael Cudlitz) and Ben Sherman (Ben MacKenzie) in their limited time this week. In a very solid ensemble cast, these two always manage to stand out.
* I must beat the drum on this: Southland needs to ditch the opening theme music / creepy serial killer montage. And losing the initial semi-menacing voiceover wouldn’t hurt either. They are both tonally wrong for this show.
This review originally appeared on TV Geek Army.