Television Review: La Famiglia (Homicide: Life on the Street, S7X01, 1998)

La Famiglia (S07E01)

Airdate: 25 September 1998

Written by: Tom Fontana
Directed by: Nick Gomez

Running Time: 45 minutes

Many devotees of Homicide: Life on the Street argue vehemently that the show’s sixth season should have marked its definitive conclusion. The series had long been a gritty, unflinching portrayal of police work in Baltimore, anchored by its ensemble cast and procedural realism. Yet NBC, despite its best efforts to revitalise the declining ratings, failed to sustain its relevance. By 1998, the network faced a scheduling crisis after Seinfeld—its flagship comedy—concluded its legendary run. Desperate to fill the void, NBC greenlit a seventh season of Homicide, a show already struggling to retain its soul. The decision proved disastrous. The seventh season, particularly its premiere episode, La Famiglia, foreshadowed the series’ creative collapse, as plot contrivances, ill-conceived character additions, and a desperate shift toward melodrama overshadowed its strengths.

Written by executive producer Tom Fontana, La Famiglia opens with a blunt reminder of the seismic changes to the cast. The departure of Detective Mike Kellerman (Reed Diamond) and Detective Frank Pembleton (Andre Braugher), the latter central to the show’s identity, left a void. Pembleton, in particular, had been a cornerstone of the ensemble’s chemistry, his wit and moral ambiguity contrasting sharply with the more rigid personalities of Bayliss or Falsone. His absence is felt immediately, as the remaining characters grapple with new dynamics.

Replacing these characters proved challenging. Detective Stivers (Toni Lewis) had been a recurring face, but her promotion to series regular felt underwhelming. The most glaring additions were newcomers: Detective Renee Shepard, played by Michael Michelle, and Lt. Giardello’s estranged son, FBI Agent Mike Giardello (Giancarlo Esposito). Shepard’s character, a transfer from the Fugitive Squad, was clearly cast for her attractive appearance, a decision that prioritised ratings over narrative cohesion. Meanwhile, Esposito’s Giardello brought gravitas but arrived without foreshadowing, destabilising the show’s established lore.

The episode’s central narrative revolves around the gruesome discovery of three Italian American men—Angelo Faltisco, Leo Grimaldi, and Mario Giardello—murdered in their bathtubs. Lt. Giardello (Yaphet Kotto) discovers the body of his cousin, Mario, thrusting him into a deeply personal investigation. The arrival of his estranged son, Mike, who volunteers to assist, sets up a fraught father-son reconciliation subplot. The investigation traces the killings to Carlo Rolletta, a former Chicago mobster jailed decades prior for attempting to infiltrate Baltimore’s longshoremen union. Though Rolletta’s vengeful plans are thwarted, his brain-damaged condition after release means the actual perpetrators are his son and daughter, who are only linked to two of the three murders. The unresolved nature of Mario’s murder leaves Giardello and Mike in a tentative truce, with Mike suggesting a permanent move to Baltimore to mend their relationship.

While the plot attempts to blend personal drama with procedural elements, it falters under its own ambition. The Rolletta storyline lacks tension, its resolution feeling rushed and contrived. The focus on family reconciliation overshadows the investigative rigor that had defined earlier seasons. W

Mike Giardello’s introduction is a case study in missed opportunities. Giancarlo Esposito’s performance is undeniably strong; his portrayal of a conflicted FBI agent grappling with familial ties to crime later informed his iconic role as Gustavo Fring in Breaking Bad. However, the character’s abrupt arrival is jarring. For six seasons, Giardello had been a stoic, enigmatic figure with no mention of a son. His sudden reintroduction, coupled with the forced father-son dynamic, smacks of soap opera theatrics. The writers’ decision to make Mike an FBI agent working alongside his father further strains credibility, reducing the squad’s interactions to melodrama rather than procedural realism.

Detective Renee Shepard, played by Michael Michelle, epitomises the seventh season’s missteps. Fontana attempts to justify her presence by having her lament her beauty-pageant past, yet this nuance is swiftly discarded. Instead of exploring her as a capable detective, the episode reduces her to an object of romantic rivalry between Detectives Lewis (Clark Johnson) and Falsone (Jon Seda). The subplot is juvenile and distracting, prioritising gossip over police work. Michelle’s casting was clearly a ratings play, her attractiveness overshadowing her character’s potential. This objectification of female characters would become a recurring issue in the season, diminishing the show’s credibility.

The seventh season’s flirtation with melodrama extends to existing characters, most notably Laura Ballard (Callie Thorne). Previously a no-nonsense detective, Thorne is now tasked with parading around in impractical tank tops, a stark departure from her earlier grounded portrayal. Her romantic subplot with Falsone—culminating in a party where Munch (Richard Belzer) begins dating Billie Lou (Ellen McEdluff)—further muddies the show’s focus. The party sequence, with its awkward high-school-style dynamics, feels out of place in a series that once thrived on its unvarnished realism. These elements transform Homicide into a clichéd teen soap, stripping away the procedural depth that made it unique.

Frank Pembleton’s absence leaves Bayliss (Kyle Secor) as the moral centre of the squad, but his character undergoes an ill-advised reinvention. Having survived a near-fatal shooting in the sixth season, Bayliss returns with a newfound interest in Eastern philosophy, quoting the Bhagavad Gita as he navigates his responsibilities. This contrived spiritual awakening—meant to signify growth—instead feels tone-deaf. Bayliss’s earnestness clashes with the episode’s tonal whiplash, as if the writers were desperate to inject “depth” without understanding the character’s core.

The murder plot itself is underwhelming, its resolution anticlimactic. Yet amid the chaos, Delaney Williams shines as Joey Grimaldi, the devastated son of one of the victims. His quiet grief and restrained anger elevate a otherwise forgettable case. Williams’ performance, brief as it was, hinted at the talent that would later anchor The Wire as Sergeant Ellis Carver. His scenes with Lt. Giardello are the episode’s emotional core, a fleeting reminder of what Homicide could achieve when focused on human stories.

La Famiglia is a microcosm of Homicide: Life on the Street’s seventh season: a well-intentioned but misguided attempt to reinvent itself, sacrificing its identity for melodrama and superficial character additions. The episode’s flaws—from its soap opera subplots to its romantic clichés—reflect a series out of touch with its strengths. For fans, it serves as a reminder that sometimes, the best sequels are the ones left unmade.

RATING: 4/10 (+)

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