For those who are regular readers of my site, you’ll know that I’m a huge fan of horror dramas. The Walking Dead, The Strain, Z Nation, you get the idea. These shows have a common thread in that they depict people in some kind of apocalypse where they have lost close to everything including hope and perhaps a good part of their humanity. It is in these situations that people do the unthinkable, desperate acts that make you wonder if they’re even still human. Truth be told here, even with what I’ve seen humans reduce themselves to in these series, all of it pales in comparison to Matt Wozniak’s despicable acts of self-preservation and selfishness last week and that which continues on in tonight’s episode.

Before even screening the episode, I already had a pretty good idea of where it would go. Wozniak (Ray Liotta) had already demonstrated that he would do just about anything to save himself, and I really didn’t hold much hope he would suddenly be enlightened and grow a conscience. He’s clearly a sociopath, and sociopaths don’t do that. However, any smidgen of hope I had was completely shattered after just the opening scene. The episode begins exactly where it left off last week. Poor Sapenstein (Santino Fontana) has just fallen 4 stories, but Tufo (Hampton Fluker) swears that he took a breath. So, Harlee (Jennifer Lopez)   and Tufo being that they care about Saperstein and want to help their fallen comrade, immediately begin CPR. It’s a fantastic but gut-wrenching scene filled with desperation with both of them sobbing and trying to remember the details from the last CPR class they took. Then, you have Wozniak. Care to take a guess what he does? Well, I can guarantee you he doesn’t try to help. Instead, he just stands there and coldly tells the paramedics when they arrive, “He suffered a 4-story fall, CPR has been started.” Then, he just walks off. No remorse. In fact, no emotion at all. Harlee looks at Woz and immediately she knows. At this point, I knew Saperstein was dead. It was just a matter now of watching to see how Wozniak pulls it off and how much of a monster he truly has become.

At the hospital, things don’t get much better. After Saperstein is taken into surgery, Harlee confronts Woz, who emphatically denies any involvement. But, Harlee knows the man and pushes even more — still Wozniak won’t budge. In fact, he says he’s “sickened by it” (bullsh*t alert!), but also adds that “perhaps it’s for the better.”  What?! Then, Sap’s mother arrives at the hospital, and again, with Woz being the self-serving asshole that he is, he actually has the nerve to talk to her, to comfort her and to feign concern. How can someone do that? This is in contrast to someone like Loman who is still torn up about shooting that black kid and who barely can even look at his family (and that one WAS an accident!).

By the time Saperstein gets out of surgery, Wozniak learns that not only is he alive but there’s a good chance he will wake up soon and remember every detail of what happened. All of a sudden what was once just concern has now changed into full-blown panic. We then have the scene that everyone remembers from the promo of Wozniak talking to the comatose Saperstein and basically threatening to finish the job.

I need you to do something for me, Saperstein. Let go. Just let go. Don’t make me kill you twice – Wozniak to Saperstein

Apparently, Sap hears every word, and it causes him to go into a Code Blue, very nearly killing him. I can’t even begin to imagine being in Saperstein’s shoes. This is a man that Saperstein trusted, looked up to. Yet, he had just pushed him off a building, and now, was threatening his life again while he is completely vulnerable, lying motionless in a hospital bed and can’t even move or speak. Wow. Again, Wozniak’s cold attitude towards someone he claims to be his friend, his “brother,” his “son” just reinforces the belief that by the end of the hour, Woz will find a way to kill his “rat” for good.

In the meantime, Agents Baker and Stahl (Warren Kole)  continue their ruse of painting Saperstein as the real informant. This includes a briefing back at the precinct as well as planting the back-dated immunity papers in Saperstein’s house (which Tufo finds). Now, everyone else on the team knows about the federal arrest warrant and the immunity and at least suspects that Saperstein had ratted them all out. Even so, Wozniak continues his charade and tells them all to not jump to any conclusions and that “Saperstein will speak for himself” when he finally wakes up. Smart move by Wozniak because it gives everyone the illusion that he’s on Saperstein’s side, and he still believes in him. Well, except for Harlee.

Harlee has a heart-to-heart with Woz, going as far as getting down on her knees and literally begging him not to hurt Saperstein again. It’s obviously a Hail Mary to try and connect to the part of Woz that’s still human. However, the thing that Harlee doesn’t realize is that sociopaths like Wozniak have virtually no “human” part of them. They are very good at emulating concern and making people believe they care and have a conscience when in reality it’s all just an act. And, this is so true with Wozniak. He promises Harlee that he won’t hurt Saperstein, but I think most of us know better. Allowing Saperstein to wake up would likely mean the end to Woz’s life as he knows it, not to mention some pretty steep prison time given he just attempted to murder a man.

Well, our instincts turn out to be right on spot, because just a few hours after making the promise to Harlee, he sets in motion his plan that I’m sure he thought up the moment he learned Saperstein was still alive. Harlee is called away to meet Stahl, and Woz uses that opportunity to call in a bomb threat to the hospital, plant a suspicious package, and within minutes, he’s gotten access to Saperstein’s room in the ICU. Then, using the very information provided by Saperstein’s doctors that clots and even air bubbles could be lethal due to his internal injuries, the SOB injects air into Sap’s IV, and by the time Harlee rushes in, he’s flat-lined. This is while Woz casually and calmly gets in his car and drives away as if nothing had happened. Out of sight, out of mind.

If you’re like me, you’re probably screaming and throwing things at the TV by now. Or, if you loved Saperstein because he was so sweet and had such a good heart, you may be shedding a few tears (again, like me!). How a person can do something like that to a friend — to family — and without any reaction is beyond my comprehension. In my opinion, Woz is now too far gone, with no hope of redemption. He needs to be punished, taken out, blotted out. But, whether that will happen, only time will tell.

All in all, this was a top-notch episode and one epic hour of television. And, perhaps the best part and why the writing team and cast deserve a gold star is the stellar acting and character development. After last week’s episode, I actually went back and re-watched all of the previous episodes, going all the way back to the Pilot so that I could see in real-time how the characters developed and changed (or in Wozniak’s case, how his character spiraled).  The writers did an impeccable job making Woz’s descent gradual enough to where it would be believable, and of course, Ray Liotta hit it out of the park with his performance. As you can tell from what I said in the previous paragraph, I wanted to jump through the television screen and strangle him for what he did. And, if a character can illicit emotion and a reaction like that, that means he’s doing a pretty good job. Kudos and plaudits, Mr. Liotta!

Now, the only question is where do we go from here? I know if I were Harlee, I would go directly to Stahl’s place and offer my help in every way possible to nail Wozniak, and given that Stahl has been twisting Harlee’s arm since day 1 to make her cooperate, he should be thrilled. However, there is one problem, and that problem can be summed up in 2 words: Miguel Zepeta. Harlee may have been able to talk the sweet talk and convince Miguel she’s truly trying to help him, but there’s still Stahl and Wozniak. Stahl isn’t going to give up until he knows how Zepeta fits into all of this, but honestly, I’m more worried about Wozniak. He’s the one that covered everything up for Harlee, and he’s the one who has the evidence that could lead the frame job back to Harlee. So, if Woz gets backed into a corner and figures out that Harlee is the snitch, he may decide to use the information against her. If you think about it, there’s a nasty co-dependence going on between these 2, and I have a feeling it’s going to get really ugly really fast really soon.

Shades of Blue  airs on Thursdays at 10/9c on NBC.

Critic Grade — A

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