Live Wire Ignites

The Closer’s fourth episode, Live Wire, brings the show’s private and professional tensions to an explosive culmination after Deputy Chief Johnson (Kyra Sedgwick) is contacted by reporter Ricardo Ramos (Stephen Martines) who discovered the body of an unidentified man, shot and wearing a wire. As Johnson and her detectives work to track down the victim’s identity and the video source to which the wire was linked in the hopes of finding his killer, they untangle a complicated web of secrets and lies.

The victim, later identified as Benjamin Masters, had been laid off from his job in real estate for months and had mysteriously received $100,000. A key found on Masters later leads to a hideaway apartment in which there is a laptop with a recording of Masters’ murder. Provided only with a small clue of the murderer’s identity from the recording, Johnson is able to close in on a murder suspect and the victim’s association with the local drug kingpin, El Jeffé.

While the excitement of the events leading to Masters’ murder is enough to keep viewers glued to their seats, the questions raised in this week’s episode regarding relationships in the work environment provided true fireworks. As the detectives worked to uncover clues in the Masters case, Detective Daniels (Gina Ravera) and Detective Sgt. David Gabriel (Corey Reynolds) get into a heated argument leading to Daniels’ speedy exit from the work room. Gabriel later reveals to Johnson that he and Daniels have had a breakup and requests that Daniels be transferred to another department in order to maintain a professional work environment. To Gabriel’s surprise, Johnson wisely and haughtily suggests that if Gabriel is so concerned about the work environment that he should be the one to request to be transferred. Later, she tears up the transfer request (after characteristically having unwrapped a chocolate bar stashed in her desk) and barks at the two to not only attempt to maintain their professionalism but to never drag her into their personal affairs again.

Even more controversial is Johnson’s sabotage of Agent Fritz Howard’s (Jon Tenney) FBI investigation of the El Heffé kingpin. In order to convict Masters’ killer for murder, she convinces him to avoid working with the FBI and their efforts against El Heffé and, instead, to confess for the murder to the L.A.P.D. After screaming at Johnson for her interference with his case, Howard walks out of the house at the end of the episode, leaving fans to wonder if even Johnson’s brand of Southern comfort will be able to mend her relationship after such a huge breech of trust. Episode 5, Dial M for Provenza, of The Closer airs Monday, August 11^th at 9/8c on TNT.