Southland 3x05
Damn this show and its whole trend of ripping my guts out in the last five minutes!! That's three in a row.
My whole reaction to this ep sort of boils down to, John Cooper, how are you so awesome? The guy went through hell in his childhood and his father is obviously a horrifying, self-absorbed person. (Dear Cooper senior, here's a tip: the parole board doesn't want to hear how you think you deserve forgiveness, because that implies you are only thinking of yourself. That thing you lack is called REMORSE. Work on that, dude.) But here is Cooper, who made himself into an excellent cop, with a good life, who stands up for the victims who can't speak for themselves. Something his father clearly doesn't understand - the way he reacted, when Cooper said, "I grew up in a household with this man", ick, ick. ALSO: HE WRANGLES SNAKES WITH HIS BARE HANDS. Because, yes. He's just that awesome.
Cooper's breakdown tonight; Sherman's two weeks ago. And yet, neither of them any closer to really dealing, I don't think. But it's so wrenching to see. Both of them alone, in their private hell. Sherman is really just getting back the same stony wall of non-sharing that he gave Cooper, and I'm glad it pisses him off. And I'm glad Cooper chose not to tell Sherman what was going on. I think at this point, it's evolved into a trust issue. If Ben had come clean about the stuff with his mom and the rapist, John probably would have invited Ben into this. But now, there are some unresolved issues between them, and since they both suck at dealing with such things...I suspect there'll have to be a come to Jesus meeting soon.
I found it hilarious that Cooper decided to give Sherman the property receipt to prove a point about his integrity, given that back in season one, Sherman busted him looking for drugs in a private residence. I mean, really, Coop?
There was a whole interesting parallel here I want to dig into pretty desperately. Ben, talking about how you have to draw a limit to what you spend on the beloved family pet; and Cooper, willing to spend his time with the abandoned boy up to that moment where there's attachment. He ripped that band-aid off quick - a little pain now, or a lot of pain later. Cooper firmly understands his limits and boundaries with other people, what he can give, what walls he brings down. Ben...I'm not sure about. There are things here to be mined, in terms of character.
Meanwhile, Lydia and Josie continue to rock my world, with their differences of opinion and their arguing and different approaches to police work. Lydia still has the best instincts, IMO; Josie flies much more by the seat of her pants, and she does not fly well that way. And sometimes Lydia needs to try that more. I think they will be good for each other. I love watching their incredulous looks when people act a fool. *g*
Hilariously, we are having wild, anxiety-producing, hurricane-force Santa Ana winds tonight through tomorrow. Joy.