S07.E03: Cops vs. Zombies

[tessaray]

The team investigates a murder at a zombie convention; after revealing that she never graduated from high school, Angela decides to pursue her GED.

 

Note: I've only been posting these since there doesn't seem to be a mod around for R&I.  

[Scamp]

Did Angela dump Ron because she didn't have a high school diploma, while he is an M.D.?   No fortune cookie advice this time.

[l star]

Angela dumped Ron because stupid is stupid. This is something else. 

[Bastet]

The people whose stolen wallets were recovered from the victim all said they were at the convention at the time of the murder.  BPD could not have possibly had time to verify this for all seven - especially as they'd just set up the notion that ZombieCon attendees won't recognize regular photos of people, just pictures of them in costume - but moves on.  Only when the additional theft victim they find via the posted cell phone video says she was there do they start asking for proof.

I do not begin to understand the zombie craze, but I found Frankie's enthusiasm charming. 

I like that he and Nina were normal together at work (other than kissing in the elevator [if they hadn't been interrupted]), and that her "why don't you want people to know?" wasn't some neurotic, insecure thing.

I see zero romantic spark between Maura and Kent - plus the fact that, despite whatever "he's on loan to the ME's office" storyline I think started this all off, I believe he reports to her - so I really hope the writers don't go down the road proposed at the end of last week's episode, but I love that he's the one to whom she speaks in the most depth about her fears of losing cognitive function.  And that Jane is still the one she asks to hold onto her resignation letter (make that a notification of medical leave, Maura!) and determine whether it should ever be handed in.  If this is a congenital issue (exacerbated by the head trauma), might we see Hope again?  Talk about someone to bond with over this.

I didn't watch this series from the beginning, so I'm missing some of the Angela and Frank backstory, and thus based on this "he didn't want to me to graduate high school" storyline have to ask:  Did they get married when she was in high school?  Was she pregnant?

Edited June 14, 2016 by Bastet

[Ina123]

Since I've never jumped on the zombie bandwagon, this episode was mostly a bore to me.

The highlight:

Maura is looking over the victim's injuries and Jane is anxiously awaiting important information. Instead, scientific, technical Maura gives kudos for the zombie makeup!

Not knowing just how to respond, Jane shrugs with a questionable, "Yay?".

Made me laugh.

[stuckin60s]

I have enjoyed this show most of the time. 

I DO like Maura and Kent, it is time she has someone nice

I DO NOT like Frankie and Nina.

this show reminds me of the old "Third Watch" show.  I expect everything to be tied up with ribbons and Jane is still chasing perps when the show ends  :0(

[MerBearHou]

I totally concur with stuckin60s.  Not a fan whatsoever of Frankie and Nina.  Definitely buy into Maura and Kent.  

Unfortunately shows about zombies don't catch my attention so I was pretty unengaged in last night's plot.  A shame since there are so few left.  Maybe if it had been close to Halloween?!?

[juliet73]

I think now I'm only watching this show for Kent and Maura. They both are quirky. I don't want them to be romantic, I like that they are just friends and coworkers.

Angela never graduated because her husband ? said it wasn't important ? Huh? She was married at 17 ? Why didn't they make the storyline about her needing a couple of more credits to get her degree?  That would have made more sense. Is it just me,  or is Lorraine Bracco a terrible actress? Or is she just terrible in this show? 

[Scamp]

I like Kent and Maura as colleagues and caring friends.  Frankie and Nina kissed at the Dirty Robber in front of Angela in 7x02; why are they hiding their relationship now?  Jane was grumpy all through this episode, but since she has a shooting review board hearing (about killing Alice Sands), that's understandable.  Angela's GED prep was given an outrageous amount of time.  She's not the Rizzoli in "Rizzoli & Isles."

[Ina123]

11 hours ago, juliet73 said:

 Is it just me,  or is Lorraine Bracco a terrible actress? Or is she just terrible in this show? 

If you had seen her in "the Sopranos" you would have seen tremendous acting talent.

[Latverian Diplomat]

Maybe it's the performance, or something in the writing, but I find Kent a bit creepy, and his amateur diagnosis sleuthing is intrusive. Why not leave Maura's treatment to experts (surely she can get the best of care) and just be quietly supportive?

[Maelstrom]

Despite the overabundance of zombies and the blood/gore they always seem to bring, I actually liked this one. More than most R&I eps I've watched lately.

Agree that Frankie's enthusiasm for zombies was charming (though I'm an unabashed fan of JB, so I find most things about Frankie adorable). Also charming was Maura's admiration for the accuracy of the zombie makeup. If she was a real person, I'd totally love for her to guest judge a realistic wound challenge on Face Off, but I digress. Also loved that the child witness from the opening immediately recognized Frankie in the zombie lineup as "the cop who came to my house." Nice touch, Continuity Fairy.

Yeah, Maura giving her letter of resignation to Jane to keep for "when the time comes" seemed an odd move to me too, but whatever, the scene was actually focused on Maura, not Jane, for more than five seconds so I'm happy. I have very low standards anymore when it comes to this show.

[Bastet]

I was glad they at least threw in a mention of how any identification that came from that line-up would be inadmissible.

That kid was obnoxious.  I liked when his mom responded to his protestation that he doesn't make up stories with, "Like the spider bite that left you unable to do homework?"  Now that there really was a zombie fight outside his window, the poor woman is never going to hear the end of it.

[craziness]

I liked that Frankie was into the zombie "culture". It was a nice throwback to the doomsday prepper episode,  where Frankie was the only one who knew about that culture. Frankie is into fads. 

I was sure that kent was involved in Maura's kidnapping,  I still wonder ... 

[l star]

Who would have thought that Rizzoli & Isles would have the hardest episode for me in a while? A bit of background: I was always the smartest kid in school. By graduation, it was as written in high school stone as the Popular Girl, the Pretty Girl, the Funny Girl, etc. I hit every academic goal I reached for. A couple of years into college I had a medical issue that damaged my brain, in particular my short term memory and ability to express and connect my thoughts. It took more than two years to get mostly back to myself. So watching Maura cry in her office hit me hard. Knowing that what you are most secure in is failing (or as anger makes it feel- turning against you) is terrifying. I wanted Kent to give her a hug for me. So even if this story line goes down in flames in the next ep, they got it here.

I do like zombies okay but what really sold them to me here was Frankie and Maura's enthusiasm. Frankie was clearing having a blast with it all and that's hard for me to hate on. Maura's admiration for the talent and care in the makeup was awesome. Of course Kent decided he could make better makeup so she let him experiment on her. Maura couldn't have kept her nose out.

On 6/13/2016 at 9:37 PM, Bastet said:

I see zero romantic spark between Maura and Kent - plus the fact that, despite whatever "he's on loan to the ME's office" storyline I think started this all off, I believe he reports to her - so I really hope the writers don't go down the road proposed at the end of last week's episode, but I love that he's the one to whom she speaks in the most depth about her fears of losing cognitive function.  And that Jane is still the one she asks to hold onto her resignation letter (make that a notification of medical leave, Maura!) and determine whether it should ever be handed in.  If this is a congenital issue (exacerbated by the head trauma), might we see Hope again?  Talk about someone to bond with over this.

I didn't watch this series from the beginning, so I'm missing some of the Angela and Frank backstory, and thus based on this "he didn't want to me to graduate high school" storyline have to ask:  Did they get married when she was in high school?  Was she pregnant?

I am all in at this point for Maura and Kent but I also liked that she talked the medical with him but gave Jane her resignation letter. That took an incredible amount of trust for Maura so even if she was romantically involved with someone, I can't imagine her giving it to anyone but Jane. By the same token, I like that she lets Kent see how scared and upset she is while she tries to be stronger with Jane. That shows an intimacy between her and Kent that I think they've earned. This is clearly killing him too, and he can understand the medical side in a way that Jane can't. I'm not sure how much longer he can keep from hugging her. While with Jane, Maura lets her know she's scared but from another direction. The medical jargon won't mean much to Jane but her concern over her career does. And until Maura has new facts to give, she'd just be worrying Jane with something she can't change.

I'd be willing to bet we see Hope again and I don't want it. I'm not sure why, but I've never warmed to Hope. Bring back Maura's real family please.

I don't know if Angela was already pregnant or not, but they definitely got married in high school. The idea seemed to be that since she was married and having babies, there was no need for a career so no need for a degree.

On 6/14/2016 at 10:15 PM, MerBearHou said:

I totally concur with stuckin60s.  Not a fan whatsoever of Frankie and Nina.  Definitely buy into Maura and Kent.

I really wasn't feeling Frankie and Nina this ep either. Which is surprising because I was into them, or at least okay with them, before. Maybe because while they talked about everyone and their relationship, they didn't have any of the moments between the two of them that were always so cute. Besides, as someone else pointed out, Angela and everyone else in the full bar watched them make-out in the last ep. The idea that no one knows but Angela is just ridiculous.

[maraleia]

11 hours ago, l star said:

I'd be willing to bet we see Hope again and I don't want it. I'm not sure why, but I've never warmed to Hope. Bring back Maura's real family please.
 

Why they don't acknowledge Maura's adoptive parents anymore is offensive. They are her parents not Hope.

[Black Knight]

I feel like this show has course-corrected nicely from last season. Jane is not dominating the episodes while Maura gets less screentime than the supporting characters, and they've given Maura an affecting, multi-episode storyline of her own.

Jane's continual exasperation with all things zombies was actually funny instead of unpleasantly annoying - I see a course-correction there, too. Her being easily exasperated is a character trait, but it was over the top last season. And Maura, despite her current issue, fired off a few of her classic geeky observations/comments - something else that was in short supply last season.

Yeah, I largely disliked last season, can you tell? I wasn't even sure I'd bother watching this season because I felt like the writers had largely lost their way, but I'm glad I stuck with it and that R&I will be going out back in form.

I don't want Maura with Kent, though, so I really hope the show's not going there. If they absolutely muuuuuuust have her end the show paired up with someone (which I really don't feel is necessary - she's never been someone who needs to be in a relationship to be happy), then bring back the professor she previously dated at series' end. He makes a lot more sense to me as a partner for her than Kent. I felt the scene where Kent walked away from her when she started crying showed why those two wouldn't work as a couple. It's not that I think it meant he didn't care, I get that he's just awkward and didn't know how to deal. But Maura's awkward herself, as she noted in a previous episode. For both of them, they have the kind of awkwardness that's best paired with an opposite who can balance it out rather than reinforce it. Maura and Kent are better as friends.

[tessaray]

My one thought during this episode (other than Frankie was a lot more cute crushing on Nina than the way they are written now) was that I was so relieved the guy didn't jump.  Jane didn't need another dead suspect on her hands.   

[Bastet]

Quote

My one thought during this episode (other than Frankie was a lot more cute crushing on Nina than the way they are written now) was that I was so relieved the guy didn't jump.  Jane didn't need another dead suspect on her hands.

No worry, Jane would have just jumped after him and saved him.