The Ladies of Summer

I love a very select list of action/drama television shows (yes, gasp, groan, cable television shows) and especially when they feature some very strong, confident women in lead roles. This summer, I'm having fun in the air conditioning and watching these ladies tear up the crime scenes with outstanding joie de vivre and super entertainment. 
 

The Closer (TNT)

Brenda and Fritzi are back for season 5 with Brenda Lee Johnson-Howard in charge of a Major Murder Crimes unit in Los Angeles with a team of 8 men to answer to her directions. Assistant Chief Will Pope likes to think he's in charge, but Brenda is the real Closer which is why he hired her and created the unit just for her. Brenda solves murders faster than he can make margaritas. Fritzi Howard, her new husband and FBI agent, provides backup information, sniper coverage as needed, and convenient backrubs. 

The Closer

 

 
Rizzoli and Isles (TNT)

This new show features Jane Rizzoli as a Boston murder detective and her associate, Maura Isles--a medical examiner. This series sprang from Tess Gerritson's novels about crime and medicine. I've become a recent fan of Tess Gerritson and I'm plowing through her books as quickly as possible. Rizzoli is polishing her tomboy image and trying to fit in with the guys on the detective squad, while Isles is the total antithesis--a brainiac in high heels with red soles. They have a lot of fun trying to solve murders and I have fun watching. 

Rizzoli & Isles

 

 
Covert Affairs (USA)
  
Another new show, this series features a new CIA agent, Annie Walker, an over-achiever, who has to overcome her trainee status fairly quickly because she gets thrown in the deep end of the pool of domestic terrorism and she often finds herself in hot water with the brass.

She's gorgeous, funny, vulnerable, and frighteningly competent. When I often think, "Why couldn't I think of a quick quip?" she suffers no such deficit. The girl knows how to think on her feet and always lands on her feet, which is necessary to stay alive considering the scum bags that she encounters. She's learning to handle a double life and keeps us guessing about the mystery man in her background.

Covert Affairs

I Love "The Closer"

In 1961, Newton Minow said "television is a vast wasteland." It seems that little has changed since that time. I don't watch much on television, because even with Verizon's FIOS and hundreds of stations broadcasting, it is hard to find anything interesting to watch, especially in the middle of July. It isn't with desperation, but with admiration that I look forward to one show on television in July. The Closer begins its new season July 14 on TNT. All previous seasons are available on Netflix as well as other sites. It is an excellent, well-written program that isn't part of the vast wasteland. The focus is not on the crimes, but on solving the crimes. No nightmares in those murders. The plots are never boring but you don't have to watch serial murderers torturing people before killing them. The suspense holds the viewer, start to finish. It's about cops doing their jobs well. The cast of characters is a likeable group that amuses and entertains. They relate well to each other in the fictional work place. The long-suffering Fritz must have major feelings to put up with the mercurial Brenda and her dedication to her job. No one but Brenda can go from the syrupy "Thank you, so much" to "Put your hands over your head" at the speed of light. She is really, really good at her job and had to be to earn the grudging respect of her squad of men. Nevertheless, in the end, her addiction to chocolate is endearing. Pop the corn, gather the Hershey bars, Brenda is baaack!