‘The Closer’: Brenda Wins Case, Gets It On

We’ll admit it: The gang really did a bang-up job on Part Two of the hotly anticipated (!), shocking (!), season finale of The Closer. The episode cheekily kicked off with commentary by Dominick Dunne (“The Kennedy assassination had less holes in it!”), Larry King, and even California representative Loretta Sanchez, all debating the ins and outs of the last episode’s harrowing investigation into the murder of L.A. divorce lawyer Oliver Henry. Cute.

Back at the ranch, tempers are flaring, both at home (over Fritz’s undisclosed drinking problem) and at work (over the high-stress case). And just when things look totally hopeless, Brenda & Co., operating on a new tip, check out a hidden second residence to find … weed! Copious, copious quantities of weed! $12 million worth, to be exact. After that, the case becomes a slam dunk, with a trickle-down series of interrogations that culminate in Brenda’s giving the real murderer (the prime suspect’s wife) a nervous breakdown (read confession) by showing her footage of her cute daughter sitting nervously in an interrogation room and her husband’s trashy girlfriend frolicking on a boat.

Which means all is now well in Closer-land: Dominick Dunne can relax, Brenda keeps her job, and everyone is getting along again. After a weird Champagne toast at a dingy Mexican restaurant, Brenda heads home to make up with Fritz, and they have a gross, hard-to-watch mutual sex fantasy involving vending machines and Ho Hos. Thus, Brenda’s lust for chocolate becomes (creepily, off-puttingly) explicit, and everything comes full circle. In other words, the perfect neat little ending to a decidedly untidy season. Till next year! —Sara Cardace