Strangers and Other Partners (S05E22)
Airdate: 16 May 1997
Written by: Paul Attanasio, Tom Fontana & James Yoshimura
Directed by: Kenneth Fink
Running Time: 45 minutes
Homicide: Life on the Street, particularly in its nascent seasons, carved out a reputation for subverting the tropes of 1990s police procedurals, which often adhered rigidly to formulaic storytelling and tidy resolutions. The series distinguished itself by adopting a documentary-style realism, prioritising character-driven narratives over flashy crime-solving, and, notably, refraining from grandiose season finales. Episodes scheduled at the end of a season were rarely “finale-esque” in the conventional sense; they were simply the next instalment in the unrelenting grind of Baltimore’s homicide detectives. By Season 5, however, the show began to align more closely with mainstream television conventions, a shift crystallised in Strangers and Other Partners, the season’s concluding episode. This instalment, while emblematic of the series’ earlier commitment to complexity, also reveals a programme increasingly constrained by network expectations, resulting in a narrative that feels both narratively compromised and emotionally unmoored.
As the second half of a two-part storyline initiated in Partners and Other Strangers, the episode grapples with the aftermath of Detective Beau Felton’s murder—a pivotal moment that destabilises the Homicide Unit. Felton’s death, a shocking rupture given his status as a long-standing character, catalyses a visceral response from his colleagues, who are determined to see his case resolved with urgency. Lieutenant Giardello, however, intervenes to curtail the emotional fervour, assigning the investigation to Detective Pembleton—a calculated choice to prioritise objectivity over personal investment. Sergeant Howard, Felton’s closest friend and a survivor of the traumatic ambush depicted in the landmark episode The City That Bleeds, is sidelined, ostensibly to prevent compromised judgment. Alongside Felton’s ex-lover, Detective Russert, Howard is tasked with arranging the funeral—a grim irony, as Felton’s estranged family disclaims any involvement. This decision, while pragmatically justifiable, underscores the series’ recurring tension between institutional protocol and human vulnerability, though the episode’s handling of these themes feels less incisive than earlier efforts.
Pembleton’s investigation unfolds under the shadow of his fraught collaboration with Internal Investigations Division’s Stuart Gharty, a figure reviled within the department for his role in Felton’s covert activities and his morally ambiguous conduct as a patrolman. Gharty’s infamy stems from his refusal to intervene during a fatal gunfight, a decision he defends by recounting a subsequent act of recklessness—being beaten by addicts while attempting to “do the right thing.” This justification, however, does little to mitigate the audience’s distrust, as Gharty’s self-serving narrative clashes with Pembleton’s fastidious ethics.
The investigation’s momentum hinges on the convergence of two separate threads: Auto Squad’s Detective Falsone and Gharty’s shared informant, Eddie Dugan, a car thief with ties to the Canthwell crime syndicate. Scott Winters’ portrayal of Dugan—a performance tinged with theatrical bravado—lends a fleeting vitality to the interrogation scenes, particularly during the tense confrontation in the iconic “Box.” Dugan’s eventual confession, implicating Canthwell, offers a nominal breakthrough, but the mastermind’s evasion of justice renders the outcome hollow. This bittersweet conclusion, while thematically resonant with the show’s penchant for realism, feels underwhelming given the buildup, as the narrative’s central mystery had already been largely resolved in the preceding episode.
Beyond the primary plot, Strangers and Other Partners interweaves character-driven subplots that highlight the personal toll of the job. Pembleton’s attempts to reconcile with his estranged wife, Mary—now six months pregnant and residing with her parents—add a layer of domestic melancholy, though the storyline is cursorily sketched. More compelling is the portrayal of Detective Kellerman’s downward spiral into alcoholism, manifested through chronic tardiness and alarming memory lapses during investigations. His tentative self-awareness and suggestion that his hard-partying on-off girlfriend, Dr. Cox, might have the same problem hints at the show’s capacity for psychological nuance, yet the thread remains underdeveloped, sacrificed to the demands of the season finale’s contrived structure.
Critically, the episode falters as a finale, suffering from an elongated runtime and a diffuse narrative energy. The central mystery’s premature resolution in the prior instalment leaves Strangers and Other Partners struggling to generate momentum, with the remaining plot beats—Dugan’s interrogation, Canthwell’s escape—lacking the visceral impact of the series’ best work. Scott Winters’ performance, while lively, cannot compensate for the script’s inert pacing. The inclusion of cameos by real-life politicians Maryland Governor Paris Glendening and Baltimore Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke during Felton’s memorial ceremony—a gimmick intended to reinforce the show’s gritty verisimilitude—feels transparently transactional, a superficial nod to authenticity rather than a meaningful enhancement of the story.
Most damningly, the episode concludes with a narrative sleight of hand typical of network-era television, introducing a departmental policy mandating three-month rotations within the Homicide Unit. This contrived plot device serves as a bald excuse for cast shakeups, particularly the departure of Melissa Leo’s Sergeant Howard, whose exit was necessitated by the actress’s personal circumstances. Her replacement by Gharty and Falsone—a character widely derided by fans—signalled a tonal shift toward less compelling dynamics, marking a discernible decline in the show’s quality. The rotation storyline, far from organic, epitomises the creative compromises the series began making in its later seasons, prioritising logistical convenience over narrative integrity.
In the end, Strangers and Other Partners epitomises the growing pains of a series transitioning from audacious experimentation to network conformity. While it retains vestiges of Homicide’s signature realism—particularly in its exploration of grief and institutional dysfunction—the episode’s missteps are symptomatic of a broader creative drift. The anticlimactic resolution, perfunctory subplots, and cynical cliffhanger undermine its potential, rendering it a dispiriting coda to a season that once promised a return to form. For a show that once redefined the police procedural genre, the instalment serves as a poignant reminder of the costs of assimilation into the televisual mainstream.
RATING: 5/10 (++)
Blog in Croatian https://draxblog.com
Blog in English https://draxreview.wordpress.com/
InLeo blog https://inleo.io/@drax.leo
Hiveonboard: https://hiveonboard.com?ref=drax
Rising Star game: https://www.risingstargame.com?referrer=drax
1Inch: https://1inch.exchange/#/r/0x83823d8CCB74F828148258BB4457642124b1328e
BTC donations: 1EWxiMiP6iiG9rger3NuUSd6HByaxQWafG
ETH donations: 0xB305F144323b99e6f8b1d66f5D7DE78B498C32A7
BCH donations: qpvxw0jax79lhmvlgcldkzpqanf03r9cjv8y6gtmk9
