La Famiglia
Directed By: Nick Gomez
Written By: Tom Fontana
Ballard, Gharty and Bayliss return to the Homicide unit after recovering from being shot, and Bayliss, Munch, Falsone, and Stivers are called on to investigate a series of murders involving Giardello's family. Those murders also bring Giardello's estranged son, Mike Giardello (Giancarlo Esposito), an FBI agent, to Baltimore. In addition, the squad room has a new paint job and look, as well as a new detective, Rene Sheppard (Michael Michele).
This episode contains examples of:
- Bait-and-Switch: After Mike tells Falsone he saw Roletta's son disposing of the murder weapons, Falsone and Bayliss believe the son is responsible for the murders. That's when Stivers breaks it to them the son's fingerprints were not on the murder weapon - it was the daughter's fingerprints.
- Bait-and-Switch Comment: When Falsone tells Stivers he's nervous about asking someone to the police lodge party, Stivers thinks he's talking about Ballard. Instead, he's talking about Sheppard.
- Bittersweet Ending: Because there isn't enough evidence to convict the ones who killed Giardello's cousin Mario, the name will forever remain red on the board. However, Giardello and Mike do manage to reach a tentative understanding by the end, and Mike says he may put in for a transfer to Baltimore.
- Call-Back:
- As Bayliss talks about the squad room getting shot up, and his shooting, we see flashbacks to those shootings.
- Bayliss talks about how he adjusted fine when Pembleton suffered a stroke.
- Dismembering the Body: Each of the murder victims of Giardello's family members and friends was cut up and put in an overflowing bathtub.
- Fair Cop: Sheppard, which is why both Falsone and Lewis want to take her to the police lodge party.
- Faux Yay: After Ballard and Sheppard get irritated at Lewis, Falsone and Bayliss competing over who will take them to the lodge party, and treating them as interchangeable trophies, they eventually come to the party as each others' dates, wearing very sexy party dresses. They don't go so far as to do anything homoerotic, but they're clearly teasing the guys with this.
- Foreshadowing: Gharty and Munch being romantic rivals for Billie Lou becomes important over the entire season.
- Gory Discretion Shot: We don't ever see the murder victims, but given the blood, the overflowing water, and the reactions of people who see the bodies, it's safe to say it's not pretty.
- Ice-Cream Koan: Bayliss speaks like this when he comes back to duty ("Life's an illusion. Reality is an illusion."), which irritates Lewis and Munch.
- Ironic Echo Cut: After Sheppard agrees to be Lewis' date to the police lodge party (at first), Lewis asks Ballard and Gharty, "You see how easy it is?" Cut to Falsone and Stivers driving to the crime scene, and Falsone tells Stivers, "It's not that easy."
- It's All My Fault: Giardello arranged for his cousin Mario to testify against Carlo Roletta, a mob boss involved in the longshoreman's union, which he thinks is what got Mario, and his associates, killed, and Giardello blames himself for that.
- The Jinx: Munch claims he's like this to anyone he partners with, which is why he warns Bayliss they shouldn't work together.
- Leaning on the Fourth Wall: Sheppard talks about how tough it was for detectives in the Fugitive Squad to take her seriously because she was a beauty pageant winner, which is the show acknowledging how viewers and critics initially had a tough time taking Michael Michele seriously in the role.
- Once Done, Never Forgotten: Sheppard was once a contestant in a beauty pageant, which Falsone and Lewis bring up at every opportunity.
- Promotion to Opening Titles: Toni Lewis as Terri Stivers.
- Reality Has No Subtitles: None of the Sicilian that Giardello, or Mike, speaks with Nona is subtitled.
- Shipper on Deck: Gharty is like this towards Ballard and Falsone, saying Ballard should have asked Falsone to the police lodge party.
- Shout-Out: When Falsone says there is no mob in Baltimore, Munch imitates Don Corleone.
- Title Drop: When Mike explains to Falsone why it's important for him to be involved in the case, he tells Falsone, "La Famiglia - it's all about the family."
- What the Hell, Hero?: Giardello chews out Falsone for giving Mike police files, even though Mike is an FBI agent and knows things about the murder victims.
- When You Coming Home, Dad?: Mike tells Giardello off for not being at home when he was growing up, as well as not being there for his mother when she was dying, because he was Married to the Job.
