Rizzoli (…oh, and Isles)

CRIME WATCHER

A few days after watching the pilot of TNT’s new crime drama, Rizzoli and Isles, starring Angie Harmon as a homicide detective, I started reading my first James Patterson mystery- an installment of The Women’s Murder Club - which was a series briefly on NBC starring Angie Harmon as a homicide detective. (R & I is based on books by Tess Gerritsen). Upon first glance, I have to say I don’t see there’s a lot of difference between the premise of the two- there’s a whole lot of attempt to make it seem like really, what you’re experiencing is some kind of buddy story, women pals working together to solve crime; but really you could tell the same story with just the lead woman and it wouldnt make much of a difference.

A lot of the promotions for Rizzoli and Isles, new on TNT, focus on how Harmon’s Rizzoli and her M.E buddy Isles (Sasha Alexander) are friends (best friends? sort of friends? new friends? it’s unclear) even though they are “like, so totally different.” Rizzoli is tough, Isles is brainy. Rizzoli is working class with an overbearing family (including mom played by Lorraine Bracco), while Isles is girly -even dressing up to clean Rizzoli’s house when it’s ransacked - and an eccentric- friendly but a bit of a loner (like a nice version of Bones.) The contrasts aren’t exactly counterpoints so it’s a weird combination and, really, and Isles doesn’t at all seem like the secondary lead - like Gus on Psych - but like just another member of Rizzoli’s team, just the only other female one.

I think part of the reason for this problem is we’re not really sure how long Isles and Rizzoli have known each other. Sometimes, it seems like they have a long friendship, but sometimes it seems like they’re just getting to know each other. For example, Rizzoli just now met Isles huge-ass tortoise. So which are they - long time friends who know they can count on each other or people thrown together and in the inital stages of bonding? I guess because - thankfully- the show has not relied on “at first, they’re like oil and water” as a tool for us to hang on to - their connection isn’t obvious. But that also makes it weird. Im not sure I get it, and Im not sure the series wouldnt be just as good without Isles being forced on us as the Thelma to Rizzoli’s Louise…or whichever way that metaphor would play out.

The reason for that isn’t just because of the negative fact the partnership is a little off, but also because, on a positive note, Angie Harmon is a strong presence as a tough detective. The more I think of the pilot, the more I dont know why they felt it necessary to make her one of a two-woman team. Alexander is funny and likable, and the rest of the cast including Twilight’s Billie Burke, is good, even if the characters are not necessarily indelible; but Harmon is the lead, and it works that way.

The show’s first mystery was part has a movie-of-the-week feel to it- like we were seeing Jesse Stone or something; despite the “Tell me who Im looking for Dr Lechter” and “Im going to find you Clarice” over-done storyline, it was interesting; there was a little more to it than the average paint-by-numbers CBS-style quirky bantery ensemble crime drama. It’s a good looking series, too, also leaving behind the CBS color pallette- which I guess makes sense given this is a show on a totally different network…

Yes, Rizzoli and Isles are another cop/forensics combo like we’ve seen before (Saving Grace on TNT and Bones both come to mind.) Yes, the tortoises are maybe a little over the top. And yes, the show would be just as good if it werent trying to force the “they only let their guard down with each other” thing. But we’re only one episode in. And tortoises are kind of cool. So, we’ll see.