Shades of Blue – By Virtue Fall

By starrymag | August 26, 2018

By: Maggie Stankiewicz

 

 

In its final hour, “Shades of Blue” sets out to reveal Ramsey (Bruce McGill) for the scoundrel he is, while seeking some sort of redemption for Harlee (Jennifer Lopez) and the rest of Wozniak’s (Ray Liotta) loyal-to-a-fault crew. We open with Cristina (Sarah Jeffery) sleeping soundly in the motel bed while Harlee watches, interrupted by Wozniak gently rapping on the old door. Harlee and Cristina made it through the circle of hell governed by Stahl, but there are still eight more to conquer, many of which are helmed by the ever-powerful Jordan Ramsey. Wozniak, certain of Harlee’s physical safety, uses the opportunity to try and convince her to not take the stand against Ramsey. If she’s sworn under oath, that cornucopia of secrets she’s kept so close to her vest might just spill open. Harlee confesses that she has no intention of testifying as Cole has agreed to do so and she’s counting on him to sell his boss out.

 

Harlee meets up with Cole (Nick Wechsler) next and he’s visibly antsy. Harlee questions him on his readiness, but Cole’s mind has already changed. His increasing trepidation won’t bode well for our heroine if he flees, but even so she’s counting on him. Wasting no time, Harlee makes her way to the courtroom to exchange some encouraging glances with Loman (Dayo Okeniyi). Verco (Dov Davidoff) approaches her, equally nervous about the cards she won’t show, and she assures him that her secret witness will show up to testify. The commission has assembled and Cole is MIA. Harlee’s made a promise to Verco to unveil the interdepartmental corruption and she’ll do what she must. Cole still hasn’t arrived so Harlee allows herself to be sworn in before the council.

 

Across town at the Northeast Correctional Facility, Gail Baker (Leslie Silva) and her colleagues patiently wait to collect the cartel leader’s son, Enrique (Victor Turpin). Gail’s been tipped off about the NYPD corruption and those who wish to see Enrique escape prosecution. If all goes well, Enrique will be dropped right at the feet of the FBI. Speaking of Enrique…he’s cuffed in the back of Tess’ (Drea de Matteo) patrol car while they watch Wozniak plot their next move a few yards away. Enrique questions the motivation behind Tess’ loyalty, but she is unwavering in her stance. She’ll follow Woz into the dark…and that’s exactly where he’s about to lead her. He made a deal regarding Enrique and it will keep them all safe, come tomorrow. Tess takes his word for it and drives away, cartel son in tow.

 

Unable to wait for Cole, Harlee begins testifying before the council, detailing the racketeering, murder, kidnapping and various other infractions made by the NYPD. The council questions Harlee’s involvement in these extracurriculars and she admits to participating. Honesty, even martyrdom, are the only routes to ethically incriminating Ramsey. Her goal is clear. Loman, fearful of being outed in the process, calls Tufo (Hampton Fluker) to update him on Harlee’s statement. She’s yet to incriminate anyone but herself though this doesn’t quell the anxiety for her partners. The council questions the whereabouts of her witness, but he doesn’t show. The courtroom’s next guest is Ramsey, who takes his place on the very council Harlee’s testifying for.

 

Tess notices a truck tailing her through the city and intentionally steers her patrol car into a wall. She tells Enrique to take the cuffs with him while a man breaks the driver’s side window, tosses something to her and then grabs Enrique. He thanks her for releasing him, then she calls for backup – pretending he’d been stolen by the cartel (without her cooperation, of course). Everyone is looking for something or someone. The FBI are looking for Enrique. Tufo is looking for Cole who, much to everyone’s chagrin, has vacated his hotel room without a trace. Cole’s absence is felt everywhere, especially back at the courtroom. The council deliberates and agrees to give Harlee and her mystery witness a few more hours. If he doesn’t show up, the only testimony they’ll have is Harlee’s – and it will have to be enough.

 

The meeting is adjourned. Harlee, Carlos (Vincent Laresca) and Loman try to determine whether or not Cole will show up, but all signs indicate that he won’t. Harlee makes her way to the bay and spots Cole waiting to board the ferry out of town. In what comes as no surprise, he’s decided against testifying; leaving Harlee alone to fight her way out of the mess he helped make. At the end of the day, Cole feels more strongly about his survival than the survival of others. Harlee will take the leap alone and, after all, doesn’t it have to be this way? This was Harlee’s fight from the beginning and she’ll see it through to its conclusion.

 

Tess takes the chip given to her by Enrique’s cartel handler and collects a checked purse from an upscale establishment. When she opens the fine leather pouch she finds that it’s stuffed with cash. Her incentive for releasing Enrique to the cartel, instead of the FBI. Wozniak catches her with her new stash and orders her into the car. Tess is nervous, but their plan worked. In order to successfully sendoff Enrique, they had to make it look like Tess was double-crossing her boss. But they take care of each other. Woz opts to give Tess the entirety of Enrique’s “bail” money – it’s just enough to help her begin to pay off the house.

 

It’s time to go in with guns blazing. Harlee calls Cristina to the courthouse to warn her about the sacrifices she’s about to make. She comes clean to Cristina about what she’s done in the past and how she plans to make up for her shortcomings as a detective and as a mother. Cristina grants her mother forgiveness, for everything. The truth is more valuable than the comfort of any lie. Harlee tells Cristina that she wasn’t caught doing anything, but that she’s choosing to illuminate her wrongs in order to catch someone much, much worse. There is an understanding between the two women. Cristina is the embodiment of everything in Harlee that is good and pure. No matter what happens next, they’ll still have their bond.

 

Harlee isn’t the only one playing hardball against Ramsey. Wozniak attends a meeting with the cartel’s representative. Having orchestrated Enrique’s release, Wozniak is perfectly poised to take Ramsey’s position as the cartel’s LEO-contact. They phone Woz in just before the council gathers for the second time and it’s enough to stir the pot. Ramsey is tense, but he doesn’t crack…yet. There’s one more thing Wozniak needs – something incriminating. He gets it; a recording of Ramsey’s negotiations with the cartel – something of a smoking gun. He calls Harlee to tell her the news and to get her to cease all efforts with the council, as the recording relates to the Sunrise Café where she accidentally killed a man (and covered it up) – but her mind is made up. She tells Wozniak to send her the recording and he does, despite his aversion to her testifying.

 

Harlee makes a promise to Wozniak that she won’t implicate anyone but herself and Ramsey, no matter the cost…and they’re off to the races. The council addresses Harlee and she announces her readiness to testify directly. She wastes no time in naming the Intelligence Unit and Captain Ramsey and the room erupts in murmurs and camera flashes. Ramsey shifts in his seat but doesn’t show any other signs of concern. Harlee immediately presents the recording of Ramsey speaking with the cartel’s New York representative, which details the transport of a shipment and suggests the murder of Detective Parker at the café. The council questions the validity of Parker’s murder as it contradicts Harlee’s report of the shooting she was involved in. Harlee comes clean about the cover up but is careful not to implicate Loman in the process. Harlee then begins listing the bodies buried at Ramsey’s order: longshoremen, Nava…the list goes on.

 

In doing so, Harlee admits that she lied to Internal Affairs about her Sunrise shooting, confesses to planting evidence and forging reports. Though she mistook the man for Robert Stahl at the time of the shooting, the focus of her testimony is Ramsey’s laundry list of crimes, including his blackmailing of Harlee over the shooting. This is where Harlee’s testimony becomes more compelling. It’s clear that she’s done a lot of introspection and has finally come to terms with her own crimes. Her behavior, at one time, had been a disgrace to the badge as well. Admitting her guilt was the only way she could set herself free. Stahl had called her untouchable and she was, until she allowed the truth to leave her vulnerable. Ramsey hadn’t prepared for this bold move, nor was the council.

 

Time marches on and Harlee meets up with Wozniak, who is no longer being pursued by the authorities. Ramsey’s been arrested and his assets frozen. Harlee, undoubtedly facing some prosecution of her own, is stunned when Wozniak tells her that the entire precinct submitted character witness statements on her behalf. The Blue Wall she’d thrown herself on the sword to fight was finally backing her. An apology – too little, too late. Harlee’s accepted her fate. She committed murder in the line of duty and she chose to cover it up. Harlee tells Wozniak that she’s intending on taking a plea. She will serve time and lose her badge, but she’s paying her dues. She’s doing what needs to be done. Cristina will be entrusted to Wozniak, giving him another chance to save someone else’s daughter when he couldn’t save his own. There’s no one better for the job. Harlee says goodbye to her best friend, her father figure and her rock. They’ll meet again soon, but it doesn’t dull the pain.

 

In a whirlwind of events, we watch Ramsey board a prison transport bus. He is alone on it, until Wozniak enters wearing a matching orange jumpsuit, escorted by a guard. Both men are shackled, but only one of them leaves the bus alive. It’s not Ramsey. Another tiny leap ahead and Wozniak drives Harlee to find her justice. The bullet’s been removed from his back and the thorn from his side. Linda (Margaret Colin) introduces Cristina to her new bedroom in the Wozniak household. As she unpacks, she finds a letter from her mother inside. It’s an apology, a mission statement and a declaration of love all in one. Harlee reiterates why she needs atonement in the form of incarceration, and while it hurts…Cristina understands. Her mother may not have always been a hero, but her testimony, as incriminating as it may have been, was the most heroic thing she’s ever done.

 

Life goes on while Harlee is in jail. Tess and Tufo’s Detective Shields have been returned and Cristina is still with family – the kind who will protect her with their very lives. Wozniak is healthy and happy with Linda, the phantom of his daughter proud of the man he’s become. Yes, life goes on for Harlee’s friends and family while she’s behind bars, but their lives are only able to progress because of her. Harlee could have brought her entire crew down with her, but she chose to save herself. She chose to save them. By allowing her family to be free, she herself can fly – for the first time in her career, truly untouchable.