It's really weird to watch an episode like this one for the first time, with season three and four knowledge of how certain stories have unfolded. I swear, there were numerous moments in this episode that really laid down almost obvious hints to the future of the series. There's the telling eye-contact between Christina and Scotty when she first appears in the series and Lilly comes in angrily into the office. And then, there's also the scene where Howard mentions how certain emotional disorders can be hereditary. The camera cuts to Scotty first, then Lilly second. Howard obviously attempted suicide. Was the cut to Scotty a hint at Elisa's mental situation? Was the cut to Lilly a hint at her difficulty with relationships (which she 'inherited' from her mother)?? In Elliot's ex-wife's interview with Scotty and Lilly, Mrs. Lang has some very interesting words for Scotty:
Scotty: "How did Elliot handle it?"
Mrs. Lang: "He got quiet. Kept everything inside."
Scotty: "He must have talked about it."
Mrs. Lang: "Not really. A wall went up between us. That was that."
This sounds strangely similar to how Mike reacted to Scotty as revealed in last week's season four episode, "The Key".
In last night's episode 4.08 "Fireflies", I pondered if *drinking coffee* has any significance in the series. This is something I've been wondering for a long time, and it's strange how in this episode--from *exactly two seasons ago*--coffee appears often in many scenes. At about 0:17 minutes into the episode, Stillman and Jeffries walk into the office carrying coffee cups. Okay, that's rather normal to see in an office, right?? Later, Lilly and Scotty meet with Harland at a Center City (downtown Philadelphia) outdoor cafe, and Harlan sips espresso, while Lilly and Scotty have coffee. Immediately after that scene, Scotty and Jeffries walk out of an Italian Market coffee shop with foam cups of coffee in hand. Lilly walks out with her cup a few seconds later too. Finally, in Harland's confession flashback, the neon sign of a coffee shop is prominently displayed in the center of the screen. Why all this coffee references?? What do the symbolize or represent?? Just nothing, perhaps? Because everyone drinks coffee, right? Then consider that in 3.19 "Beautiful Little Fool", that Lilly met her mom, Ellen, at a coffee shop.
In Claire's flashback, Elliot is attending a meeting for social integration. He suggests appealing to the mayor for action, to which Harland replies that all the politicians in the city are corrupt. The
mural in the background of the Italian Market coffee scene is of Philadelphia's Mayor
Frank Rizzo. Very amazing detail to the story! Mayor Rizzo polarized the city along racial lines and was often accused of favoring whites over blacks.
Mantua, the black neighborhood that meeting took place in, is the name of an actual area of West Philly. Originally, it was an upper-class neighborhood in the early 1800s, though by the twentieth century, it did become a neighborhood for poor African-Americans. Yes, like Stillman says, the neighborhood is isolated on one side by railroad tracks.
This episode started with a compelling situation of racial integration and the death of a very compassionate teacher, then for me it got really "thick" and "heavy" with the weight of the issues of McCarthyism, Racism, Adultery, Teenage Breakups, and even Sibling Rivalry in the Lilly/Christina side-story. One thing that really weighed down the story for me is the fact that it seemed that almost *none* of the people who survived Elliot's death ever really cared too much about it. To his wife, he was a cheater. To his sons, an alcoholic and communist. Even Dean went so far to vandalize the family car. And to Reina Kraus, Elliot was the man who rejected her love. There was simply a lot of ambivalence towards his death, and I'm not sure if the story could have been written otherwise. But the ambivalence the family members and Reina felt for Elliot really worked on me towards understanding the abivalence Lilly had towards Christina. In a weird way, Elliot and his family's story worked "well" to my understanding of Lilly and Christina's relationship. At the same time, though, it also held me back from fully connecting with Elliot, in spite of the fact that in every flashback, he displays courage and high moral values.
I think in the end, this episode failed to evoke in me that
Catharsis--an appreciation of life after seeing all the tragedy and loss in Elliot's death. However, I don't find "Red Glare" a bad episode. In fact, I think it's rather brilliant, even with the empty feeling at the end. There is an important theme that runs through this episode, both through the case itself and through Lilly and Christina's story. Everyone in the episode dealt with one form or another of the practice of
Shunning:
--In the opening scene, no one volunteers to be Robert's "study buddy". The kids are quick to accept him when they learn something nice about him, but the school principal quickly expels him from school.
--Lilly quickly and abruptly demands that Christina leave the police headquarters. "You can't be here", Lilly repeats.
--Howard's mom doesn't tell him much about his dad; he doesn't even know where his dad is buried. They haven't talked much to each other, and she doesn't even bother to honor her promise to contact him after her game.
--Stillman describes Mantua as "the other side of the track", a nice allusion to isolation of people.
--Christina is going through a bad break-up, and can't be in NYC. She needs to be away from her boyfriend.
--At the meeting in Mantua, the participants talk about segragation and other forms of shunning.
--Many of the extreme measures taken in
McCarthyism can be viewed as forms of shunning individuals from society.
--Elliot was suspended from school and his paycheck stopped as punishment for his participation in the meetings.
--Harland needed to wait almost twelve years before he could teach again. He was shunned from his profession for his political beliefs.
--Wade threatens Elliot and his son to leave the baseball game because of his political beliefs.
--The barbershop wouldn't take Elliot's youngest son, and his eldest was expelled from the Boy Scouts.
--Reina Kraus' affections for Elliot is rejected; he's dedicated to his marriage.
--Some "mystery event" occurred nine years ago between Lilly and Christina, and Lilly continues to shun her for that event.
--Even Elliot's son, Dean, vandalizes the family car to shun Elliot into making a decision for the family (rather than any other person) in court the next day.
--Elliot's testimony could have deported Reina back to Prague.
--The execution of the Rosenburgs left their children orphaned. According to
Wikipedia, "no relatives dared adopt them for fear of ostracism or worse".
It's interesting to note that
Ostracism is one of the oldest form of shunning individuals. It is a Greek practice, which goes along well with the idea that Cold Case tends to have ideas that are based on Greek philosophy, literature, and culture. With Greek ostracism, the person who is ostracized must leave the city for a minimum of ten years. Kinda like how Lilly barred Christina from Philly? If so, then Christina should've been able to return in a year. But does her involvement with Scotty mean another ten years for her?? Hmmm....
In my opinion Lilly's reaction when she saw Chris was too hard... :/ But these smiles on Ch's and Scotty's faces weren't nice, too.
