Very Enjoyable Work & Appreciated by Adults

adrossan

Sorry to those who found much fault with this instalment of Jesse Stone, however I found it a vast improvement over the preceding episode. Selleck's portrayal of troubled thinking and composure resonates strongly with me, having done investigative work for 26 years I can see & feel that sense of "something isn't right", and the doggedness that is required to uncover the truth behind a shifty event.

Self-medication with alcohol is a job hazard, so is withdrawal and reluctance to commit emotionally - investigative work takes you to very dark places & also tends to take over your life.

Stone is left with almost nothing to work with, the only local ally being the doctor who doubles as his ME. The Paradise PD is under resourced & always was, but this reflects real life situations where other people (such as support staff, witnesses etc) have to be exhorted to give their best where they very often don't want to be involved.

Yes there were plot holes & unrealistic areas (I hope my hair is still naturally that dark when I hit Selleck's age!), but on the whole I was very pleased with the reduction of Stone's tendency to immediately identify the bad guy, follow him & shoot him - PLEASE DIAL THIS DOWN TOM !!! I've enjoyed all episodes for this character because of Selleck's ability & watchability, but the prior 2 efforts tended to be somewhat repetitive in shoot-outs and ending with the bad guys not just caught, but shot by Stone. The intellectual stimulation for adults is the drama and the entire character of Stone; I don't follow these for bang-bang action and frankly it doesn't belong too much, and this film was all the better for less of it. Being an avenging killer is still being a killer and morally bankrupt in someone who upholds the law - I don't feel the constant shooting of the crim to be in keeping with Stone or that it deepens or expands the character. Shooting in the line of duty is far different (and less prevalent) and Stone's ability to cope (or not) with "what has to be done" and "what happens on the job", would be even more compelling viewing.

In my work I found watching the twists and efforts of the guilty to avoid detection & "get away with it" to be incredible to see - the ability of human beings to act, lie, steal, cheat and do anything for money, and the application of justice and jail is far more interesting than play-acting with guns. The strain of uncovering devious doings and defeating them, and dealing with the fact that they often do get away, is intense, draining and hugely real.

It must be difficult to follow in Robert Parker's footsteps, but intelligent adult viewing is becoming very rare these days & in my opinion the writing team are trying very hard to stay faithful to the character and carry on his work. However, there is a tendency in this script to pitch to the lowest common denominator, or in other words "you tell 'em what you're going to say, say it, then tell 'em what you just said". We don't need constant repetition of phrases such as "I don't believe I said that" and other obvious pretensions, such as Suitcase's "my sense is that..." and so on.They're OK once or twice to get the point across but over-use is dumbing down the product and detracting from the overall "likeability" of brand Jesse Stone.

I found the secret affair out of character too, but presumably we'll see more of this later. Sorry Saul Rubinek, but I think Hasty's time has come and the character should depart - especially that dopey bow-tie, ditto for Stone's reliance on Gino Fish for all underworld information. I don't understand Gino's motivation for assisting Stone(other than trying to foster favour with a police chief), it's never been explained and has worn thin; some new characters wouldn't go amiss. I'm pleased Chief Stone also decided to break his co-dependency with his unlikable ex-wife Jen, and I can feel the growing friendship with Captain Healy - it's already there with Dr Dix. William Devane & Stephen McHattie are perfect in their roles.

I do enjoy these shows immensely, can't wait for the next & look forward to further character & plot development - keep up the good work for many more episodes to come.

score 8/10

adrossan 26 July 2012

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw2649489/