TV Review: HIGHTOWN: Season 1, Episode 8: #Blessed [Starz]

Hightown #Blessed Review

STARZ‘s Hightown: Season 1, Episode 8: #Blessed was a lackluster finale that functioned as a sort of reboot. Jackie (Monica Raymund) and Ray (James Badge Dale) actually ended up at opposite ends of the range of respect in law enforcement, which for Ray, seemed appropriate. Osito (Atkins Estimond) was caught, but in the most unbelievable way that does the series discredit. The only redeeming factor was that #Blessed foreshadowed the rise of a criminal element that will shock the city and rattle the drug scene status quo.

So, next season may actually bring richer drama for Hightown.

In #Blessed, Jackie and Ray teamed up to take down Osito’s drug source, but ultimately took down Osito. In a laughable sequence of events, Jackie and Osito put bullets in each other, closing the case in a haphazardly way.

On the one hand, it was nice to see Jackie finally be in the right place at the right time. She was focused and motivated to shed her guilt regarding her previous failures, which cost lives. That led her to be a useful asset in the manhunt for Osito, instead of constantly being two steps behind. We got a glimpse of the effective officer that Jackie could be when she focuses on the job rather than her own pain. We still have not delved deeply into why she is a drug addict.

On the other hand, Jackie’s showdown with Osito was too lucky for words. After watching him outmaneuver the police for the entire season, Osito’s sudden lack of awareness and carelessness in the finale was uncharacteristic. It is unbelievable that a stealth killer like Osito would suddenly decide to commence a shootout with the police in broad daylight. Somehow, Jackie on a smoke break is more poised under fire than ever. The whole final scenario felt clumsy, not explosive or satisfying. Besides, Osito was not even the big fish.

Other elements of #Blessed made me wish for better outcomes all around. The one glimpse of Junior (Shane Harper) in a dream was not enough. They really clipped the promise of that character. Then again, that has been the underlying theme of this series: the cutting short of promising lives due to the drug epidemic. Krista (Crystal Lake Evans) and Junior died when they were working toward better. So, we were reminded of the reason Jackie was fighting so hard to be a part of capturing Osito, and should hate him too. Then, you see Frankie getting off easy after that intense confrontation in The White Whale. There is not even a little payoff for that in #Blessed.

A good development was Renee’s (Riley Voelkel) choice to burn Ray and support Frankie (Amaury Nolasco). That was something to see, and make no mistake, it was a choice. Renee had been straddling the line of fidelity the whole season. Truly, she was faithful to her family all along, but it was about what was right for her son. Ray was an alternative to life in a crime syndicate, but both men treated her as a pawn. Frankie, however is the father of her child and powerful. The real difference was when Ray screwed her and wrote it off as an expense. He screwed himself.

Which brings me to Ray’s much deserved downfall. The set-up was perfect. Finally, the brass confronted him with his mishandling of the case and harassment of a witness. Anyone could identify that Ray was a creep from the start. He used his badge to intimidate female witnesses and then coerce their affection. Hightown sprinkled in a few good deeds here and there to keep him legit, but Ray was the quintessential “bad cop”. There could be no redemption for his character. Alan’s (Dohn Norwood) emphatic rejection of his ex-partner “Man, F*$% Ray!” summed it up great, and in that, Hightown got it right. He fell from grace in the department, and honestly, it seems he was not much esteemed in the first place.

So, Jackie is redeemed!  She saved the day and carved herself a spot on the inter-agency task force that sports a name too cumbersome to say or initial. Yay! Jackie’s Forrest-Gump-like connection to major breaks in this case may not follow her into this major next step of her career. So, now what?

Osito is bedridden but not innocuous. Alan has a window to create an asset in him through legal means. Or, more likely, Osito will leverage what he knows to gain his own ends. The new player in P-Town is going to be the young, erudite Charmaine (Imani Lewis). She comes with a harder form of addiction to flood the streets. Since Jackie will likely be obsessed with finding the supplier for the drug that killed Junior, there may be a girl-fight brewing between the two. On a different scale, Charmaine may be grappling with Frankie for turf. If so, Osito will once again be the key player in that scenario. I am excited to see the Hightown that is forming for next season. It will be like a series reboot, which is great, because this season fell flat.

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