October 13, 2015

  • Outstanding Achievement in Drama

     
    Yeah, I watch a lot of TV.  I'm retired, you know.  It turns out Youtube offers most episodes of Homicide: Life on the Street, a police drama that ran from 1993 to 1999.  Wikipedia says:

      Homicide's purpose was to provide its viewers with a no-nonsense, police procedural-type glimpse into the lives of a squad of inner-city detectives. As opposed to many television shows and movies involving cops, Homicide initially opted for a bleak sort of realism in its depiction of "The Job", portraying it as repetitive, spiritually draining, an existential threat to one's psyche.

    Though it struggled with ratings most of its lifespan, Homicide won a pile of dramatic awards such as the Television Critics Association for Outstanding Achievement in Drama, and Peabodys.  Andre Braugher emerged the series breakout star as Detective Frank Pembleton.  Here Alfre Woodard reprises her role as Dr. Roxanne Turner from the series St. Elsewhere 1985 - 1988.

    The theme of "Mercy" (45 min) is euthanasia, and not surprisingly, the issue is not resolved.  But the dramatic depth of the dialog is riveting.  The 1998 episode is entirely brilliant -- the writing, direction, plot, and acting are nearly perfect.  Alfre Woodard and Braugher together are as vivid as a Shakespeare colloquy, particularly in the last fifteen minutes of the video.  I could watch it twenty more times.