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RIZZOLI & ISLES Season Two Premiere Advance Episode Review

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TNT Press Release:  RIZZOLI & ISLES follows Boston detective Jane Rizzoli (Harmon) and medical examiner Maura Isles (Sasha Alexander), complete opposites and good friends who solve crimes and bust some of Boston’s most notorious criminals. Growing up at opposite ends of the economic spectrum, the two remain strikingly different from one another in many ways. Jane, the only female detective in Boston’s homicide division, is a tough and gutsy cop who doesn’t let her guard down (except with Maura), dodges her overprotective mother and is better at basketball than her brother. Maura, meanwhile, is usually more comfortable among the dead than the living. She is always impeccably dressed in designer duds with a steady, sometimes icy temperament. And she is working on curbing her tendency to diagnose the people she meets – including her first dates. Jane and Maura often find themselves working together as both use their brilliant minds and expertise to figure out the “who done it” as well as the “how done it” of Boston’s most complex cases.   Despite their many differences, Jane and Maura are best friends, with a quirky and supportive relationship. As Tamaro explains, “That Jane and Maura are so different and yet so effective as a team makes them unusual.… There’s something rare about their relationship that I see in the world but not enough on television: two smart, strong, competent women who instinctively drop the protective shield when they’re with each other.”   RIZZOLI & ISLES also stars Lorraine Bracco (The Sopranos) as Angela, Jane’s demanding and intrusive mother; Lee Thompson Young (FlashForward) as Det. Barry Frost, Jane’s somewhat green partner; Bruce McGill (Law Abiding Citizen) as Det. Vince Korsak, Jane’s seasoned former partner; and Jordan Bridges (Dawson’s Creek) as Jane’s brother, Frankie, a patrol cop who hopes one day to become a detective.

RIZZOLI & ISLES “We Don’t Need Another Hero” Season 2 Premiere Advance Review, Airing 7/11/2011

RIZZOLI & ISLES left us hanging with that incredible first season finale.  If you enjoyed that then you are really going to love the explosive season two premiere with special guest star Chris Vance.  I don’t really need to write a review after I mention Chris Vance, right?  I know those are the two magic words that will get me to tune in to anything and if you pair them with the gorgeous duo of Sasha Alexander and Angie Harmon, then there is nothing in the world that could stop me from watching.  RIZZOLI & ISLES accomplished more in one season then most shows do in three.  They kept their viewers interested and compelled to come back week after week and so a second season was born.  I was one of those viewers and I am so happy to report that this season is even stronger.

I don’t think I’m giving too much away by saying that Detective Jane Rizzoli (Angie Harmon) returns.  The show is called RIZZOLI & ISLES and not Isles & Bass, so I think it is safe to assume that she recovers.  Jane isn’t her typical self but Maura (Sasha Alexander) is always by her side with comforting remarks like, “You look terrible.”  How could that not warm up your heart?  If you know Maura, then you know that is her way of saying I love you and want you to succeed.  She means well but she just isn’t skilled in the art of filtering her feelings to make them appropriately pleasant.  Maura cares so much that she wants to know the detailed inner workings of Jane and Jane is having none of that.

A ceremony to celebrate heroes is thrown to honor Jane and Private Abby Sherman (Anna Osceola).  Abby was being honored for saving three men from her platoon.  Jane was not comfortable accepting her award and deflected her acknowledgment onto Maura for saving Frankie’s (Jordan Bridges) life.  That is exactly how you would expect Jane to handle the situation.  She’s a beautiful person and doesn’t give herself enough credit.  If she didn’t do what she did the outcome would have been far worse.  Jane reacted like we all would like to think we would but I am certain that most of us would not have been so courageous.

Sgt. Major Casey Jones (Chris Vance) is an old friend of Jane’s and he stopped by the ceremony to see how she “turned out”.  They have not seen each other in ages and Jane isn’t one to keep up with all of their high school reunions.  Jane does her best to keep it mysterious with her “sexy” drink order and she certainly could be my drinking companion.  It’s a good thing she knows how to pace herself.

Jane has a conversation with Abby about resentment and ugly scars.  The most beautiful and tragic statement comes out of that conversation, “You can’t pretend it didn’t happen.”  That sums up things for me on a personal level and I can relate to the permanent pain and frustration that goes along with those feelings.  The writing in this show is so real and heart-felt.  Some shows just go through the motions but the writers behind this show really commit and dig deeper to get the most out of their characters.  The actors, as brilliant as they are, are only half of what makes this show so compelling. RIZZOLI & ISLES features the best of both worlds, dynamic storylines with a solid and fantastic cast to set them in motion.

This premiere focuses on Jane getting in touch with her feelings and being comfortable in her own skin.  Several issues have popped up in her life and one that is quite upsetting to her involves her family.  Jane is taken by surprise and doesn’t know what to do.  They did such a fantastic job casting Jane’s mom. Lorraine Bracco was the perfect choice and I was so happy to see her last season.  I loved her in “The Sopranos” and she possesses that sexy smoky voice that Angie Harmon is also known for.

Maura has a new love interest that leads Jane to give honorable mention to Maura’s turtle, I mean tortoise, Bass.  Her love interest has a thing for the third person.  You pretty much know he’s not going to make it out alive.

When Abby’s heroic story is looked into, certain aspects of it don’t quite fit into place.  Things are not always what they appear to be and the truth is revealed.  Matthew Alan, McKinley Belcher III, Charlie Hofheimer, Gilbert Joseph and Karl T. Wright also guest star in this military mystery.

What a great way to start season number two of RIZZOLI & ISLES.  I really enjoyed the premiere and I am certain that you will, too.  Don’t miss it Monday night at 10 EST right after the premiere of THE CLOSER only on TNT.

RIZZOLI & ISLES
Season Two Premiere Advance Episode Review
“We Don’t Need Another Hero”
RIZZOLI & ISLES Monday Nights at 10 EST, Season 2 Premieres July 11 on TNT
July 10, 2011
By Lena Lamoray

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