Television Review: Just an Old Fashioned Love Song (Homicide: Life on the Street, S7X03, 1998)

Just an Old Fashioned Love Song (S07E03)

Airdate: 23 October 1998

Written by: Eric Overmyer
Directed by: Leslie Liebman & Larry Williams

Running Time: 44 minutes

Season 7 of Homicide: Life on the Street stumbled out of the gate, its once razor-sharp edge dulled by repetitive storytelling and diminishing stakes, and the third episode, Just an Old Fashioned Love Song, does little to arrest this downward spiral. Eric Overmyer’s script, while competently executed, perpetuates the show’s descent into formulaic, character-driven melodrama, further distancing the series from its earlier reputation as a gritty, socially conscious police procedural. The episode’s limp central plot and indulgent subplots underscore the creative stagnation that would eventually render the show irrelevant, its potential squandered on soap opera tropes rather than the unflinching realism that once defined it.

The main narrative revolves around a seemingly routine, though slightly unusual, homicide: Dr. Alvin Taylor (O. L. Luke), a respected sports medicine physician, is shot during an apparent botched robbery at his garage. Taylor, who fires back and kills the assailant, is left critically injured. Detectives Laura Ballard and Mike Giardello, the latter’s presence as an FBI liaison increasingly redundant, are tasked with investigating. Their shock soon turns to confusion when they discover the shooter is Mary, Taylor’s sister-in-law, and that his wife, Susan (Maria Broom), claims the incident was a tragic misunderstanding. Yet the investigation unravels a darker truth: Mary’s gambling debts, exacerbated by her reliance on her brother-in-law’s financial support, pushed her to desperation. A life insurance policy naming Susan as beneficiary and evidence linking Susan to the purchase of the murder weapon further complicate matters. Though Susan is arrested, Taylor, now recovered, defiantly stands by her, paying her bail—a choice that underscores the episode’s central theme of misplaced loyalty and moral ambiguity.

While the plot’s premise has potential, its execution is muddled by Overmyer’s reluctance to commit to either procedural rigor or emotional depth.The resolution—Taylor’s baffling decision to shield Susan—lacks the narrative weight needed to justify its inclusion. The focus instead drifts toward the Homicide Unit’s romantic entanglements, which dominate the episode’s runtime. Detective James Bayliss’s ongoing rivalry with Detectives Falsone and Lewis over Detective Renee Shepard’s affections descends into cringe-worthy banter, culminating in Shepard’s question about Bayliss’s sexuality. His “bi-curious” quip, met with a similarly coy response from Shepard, reads as a cheap attempt to modernise the show’s dynamics, rather than an organic character development. Meanwhile, Detective Gharty, divorcing his wife, clumsily pursues Billie Lou, the Waterfront Bar waitress already dating Detective Munch, while Ballard’s lingering glances at a shirtless Falsone during a boxing match devolve into gratuitous fan service. These subplots, which dominate the episode, are less about exploring relationships and more about milking cheap laughs or titillation, betraying the show’s earlier focus on human complexity.

The lone subplot that hints at the series’ former ambition involves Munch’s IRS audit, a thread that briefly nods to the show’s trademark social realism. Desperate to avoid financial ruin, Munch enlists Giardello’s federal connections to dig up dirt on his auditor—a request Giardello, now inexplicably embedded in the Homicide Unit, dismisses. This exchange, while fleeting, recalls the show’s earlier willingness to tackle systemic issues, yet it is underdeveloped, reduced to a throwaway gag. The episode’s most glaring misstep, however, is Giardello’s continued presence as an active participant in the homicide investigation. As the son of the unit’s commander, his role has always been problematic, but here it stretches credulity, undermining the show’s procedural credibility for the sake of contrived character dynamics.

At its core, Just an Old Fashioned Love Song is a hollow, uninspired instalment. Its romantic subplots are predictable and exploitative, particularly Ballard’s unsubtle infatuation with Falsone, which leans into voyeurism rather than genuine character exploration. The Bayliss-Shepard “bi-curious” dynamic, meanwhile, feels opportunistic, capitalising on perceived edginess without offering meaningful insight into their identities. Even the central mystery lacks urgency; the insurance angle is resolved too quickly, and the characters’ motivations remain shallow. The episode’s only saving graces are minor: the flamboyant arms dealer Lemonhead Boggs (Lester Speight), a welcome injection of levity, and a throwaway conversation between Billie Lou and Munch debating VHS versus DVD technology, which, while trivial, offers a quaint snapshot of late-’90s consumer culture. These fleeting moments of charm, however, cannot compensate for the episode’s overarching mediocrity.

At the end of the day, Just an Old Fashioned Love Song epitomises the pitfalls of Season 7: a reliance on tired tropes, underdeveloped plots, and a loss of focus that stripped the show of its once-brilliant edge. While it occasionally stumbles into historical curiosity, its lack of cohesion and diminished ambition render it a chore to endure. Save this episode for die-hard completists—those willing to sift through the dross to salvage the occasional glimmer of the show’s former brilliance. For everyone else, it’s a reminder of what happens when a series loses its way, trading substance for superficiality in its final gasps.

RATING: 4/10 (+)

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