The Last of the Watermen
Directed by Richard Pearce
Written by Henry Bromell and Tom Fontana
Howard decides she needs a change and goes back home to her family's home near the Chesapeake Bay, but when a state conservation officer is murdered there, Howard is asked to help in the investigation. Meanwhile, Felton and Pembleton reluctantly team up to solve an elderly woman's murder.
This episode contains examples of:
- Bittersweet Ending: Howard manages to solve the murder of the conservation officer and recharge her batteries, but it puts a wedge between her and her brother, since the murderer was a friend and co-worker of his.
- Busman's Holiday: Howard's trip home turns out to be this, as the police officer in charge ropes her into helping solve the murder, since it's a lot more complicated than he's used to.
- Continuity Nod: Lewis and Munch are still talking about what they need to do to get their bar open.
- A Day in the Limelight: For Howard, as she manages to solve a case on her own.
- Freudian Excuse Is No Excuse: When Howard's brother gets angry at her for arresting an oyster fisherman for the murder of the state conservation officer, since the conservation officer was preventing the fisherman from earning a living (because they said oysters were going extinct), Howard points out the man still committed murder.
- Internal Deconstruction: Pembleton irritates Felton by researching the anatomy, function and symbolism of the tongue, as part of his usual approach of trying to get into the killer's head before an intellectual duel in the Box. The murder of Audrey Resnick turns out to have been committed by their first and only named suspect, who confesses to them as soon as they find him on the street. And Artie cut his grandmother's tongue out not because of some elaborate symbolic system, but because he thought she talked too much.
- New Old Flame: Chick (John Dossett), who works as an oyster fisherman, turns out to be this for Howard. They still have feelings for each other, but at the end of the episode, he admits she was right to leave, and Howard admits Chick was right to stay.
- Not So Above It All: When Pembleton and Felton are looking for Audrey Resnick's grandson, as they suspect him of being the one who killed her, they come across a group of teens playing basketball who might know where he is, and Pembleton gets involved in the game to try and create rapport. Felton joins him as well, and they get so competitive that they end up tussling with each other while the boys walk away unquestioned.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: When Howard and Felton are at the crime scene of Audrey Resnick's murder, she becomes so disgusted by what happened (Resnick's tongue was cut out) that she decides she's had enough of Baltimore Homicide for a while and decides to use some vacation time to go home.
- So Proud of You: As Howard is preparing to go back home to Baltimore, her father (Michael Currie) says while he didn't say this enough, he loves her and he's proud of her.
- Stay in the Kitchen: This is the murderer's viewpoint about his wife when Howard finds the victim's shirt in his house (even though she had to work to help support their family together):Murderer: Why didn't you wash the damn shirt?! You had one job! Wash the shirt! It's all you do!
