Season 1 . . .
1. Pilot – Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 06/13/2005
When an unidentified woman is found brutally murdered in the Hollywood home of a successful, hi-tech millionaire, LAPD's newly appointed head of the Priority Murder Squad, Deputy Chief Brenda Johnson, finds herself challenged not only by the strangeness of the case, but by those who resent her appointment. With her Southern drawl and less than genteel ways, Brenda proceeds to show her skeptical team the skills she learned as a CIA trained interrogator and begins to unravel the mystery behind the high-profile murder. But when she discovers that the accused killer and the victim have a lot more in common than anyone guessed, the cast takes an unexpected twist that surprises even the most senior member of the squad.
2. About Face – Screen Caps – Clip
Original Airdate 06/20/2005
Glamorous former model Heather McCarty seemed to have it all: a movie-star husband, a fabulous Hollywood mansion, every luxury that money could buy and she left behind a beautiful corpse. It soon becomes apparent to Chief Deputy Brenda Johnson that foul play is involved — and the victim's philandering actor-husband is the chief suspect. While getting her own Hollywood makeover as she retraces Heather's last days on Earth, Brenda discovers some unglamorous secrets about the former model's marriage. But as the Priority Murder Squad chips away at the perfect veneer of Heather McCarthy's life, the killer's motive hits a little too close to home for Brenda.
3. The Big Picture – Screen Caps – Clip
Original Airdate 06/27/2005
The murder of a Russian call girl becomes a case for the Priority Homicide Division when it's discovered that her clients include some of Los Angeles' most high-profile VIPs. But as Brenda investigates the involvement of Russian mobsters and a crooked customs agent, she meets with opposition from Assistant Police Chief Pope, whose motives are not totally by the book. With the FBI breathing down her neck and her own team doubting her, Brenda finds herself out on a limb trying to bring the killer to justice.
4. Show Yourself – Screen Caps – Clip
Original Airdate 07/14/2005
When three members of a notorious Latino gang are gunned down in MacArthur Park, LA's Priority Homicide Division is brought in to investigate. There's little political interest in gang-on-gang violence, but Brenda discovers that the homicides may have been caused by a highly skilled military sniper bent on revenge. As the body count rises and eye-for-an-eye gang violence escalates, Brenda finds herself placing her trust in the father of the alleged killer, who claims he wants to stop his son's lethal mission. But as she zeroes in on the sniper, is Brenda leading her team on a wild-goose chase that will further undermine her credibility?
5. Flashpoint – Screen Caps – Clip
Original Airdate 07/11/2005
While administering an important drug test on a new anti-depressant to help addictive teenagers stay clean, a prominent doctor is murdered in his office. With the billion-dollar drug company refusing to cooperate and a growing list of suspects, Brenda and the Priority Homicide Division have their hands full. When Brenda disagrees with a member of her team over how to run the investigation, she finds her past coming back to haunt her, but as the allegations of her prior misconduct surface in the local press, Brenda discovers a suspect who has a dirty little secret of his own.
6. Fantasy Date – Screen Caps – Clip
Original Airdate 07/18/2005
When the daughter of a prominent Congresswoman is raped and murdered in her home, shocking evidence points to the victim's sexual predilections. Brenda and the Priority Murder squad delve into a seedy underworld of S&M and the case takes a surprising turn. As Chief Pope pushes Brenda for a conviction in the high-profile case, she discovers a secret that could make her the next victim.
7. You Are Here – Screen Caps – Clip
Original Airdate 07/25/2005
Brenda's love life is put on hold (again) when she is called to investigate an execution-style murder and carjacking of a California State Judge with more than a few enemies. The good new is there is an eyewitness to the crime. The bad news: The witness is the Judge's autistic teenage son. Now to solve the case, Brenda must get inside the boy's head and unlock the secrets that will reveal the identity of the real killer.
8. Batter Up – Screen Caps – Clip
Original Airdate 08/01/2005
Chief Pope is under fire when a spree of hate crimes targeting the gay community escalates from robbery to murder. Determined to catch the killer before he strikes again, Pope reassigns the case to Brenda and the Priority Murder Division, much to the displeasure of Captain Taylor. But when a member of Brenda's team secretly provides Taylor with a lead that could close the case, Brenda hands Pope an ultimatum that will shake up the squad.
9. Good Housekeeping – Screen Caps –Deleted Scenes Clip (small); Clip (large)
Original Airdate 08/08/2005
When the daughter of a maid in an affluent L.A. household is raped and murdered, the Priority Homicide Division is enlisted to find the girl's killer. Leads point to a registered sex offender, and the case seems open and shut until a cruel twist sends the investigation back to square one. But when Brenda uncovers shocking new evidence, she finds herself compromising a conviction to bring the real murderer to justice.
10. The Butler Did It – Screen Caps – Clip
Original Airdate 08/15/2005
The unexpected death of the young widow of one of L.A.'s wealthiest men and the subsequent suicide of their butler spells double trouble for Brenda and her team. With all the members of the dearly departed's dysfunctional family under suspicion, the Priority Homicide Division must separate the fact from fiction in a complicated who-dunnit. But as Brenda focuses on obtaining a conviction, is she being frozen out by Captain Pope and LAPD brass?
11. LA Woman – Screen Caps – Clip
Original Airdate 08/22/2005
When a prominent Iranian businessman is gunned down in Hollywood, Brenda locks horns with the FBI over who will run the investigation. Reluctantly agreeing to work together, the FBI assigns Brenda's boyfriend, Agent Fritz Howard, to the case. But when it becomes apparent that the FBI has its own agenda, can Brenda's relationship with Fritz handle the pressure?
12. Fatal Retraction – Screen Caps – Clip
Original Airdate 08/29/2005
A case of mistaken identity results in the release of a convicted psycho-killer. Now Brenda and the Priority Homicide Division not only have to find the killer, but also the real identity of victim. As Brenda sorts through the complicated details surrounding the bizarre case, she discovers that a member of her team may have tampered with the evidence. But she may have bigger problems when the recently released killer fixates on her.
13. Standards and Practices – Screen Caps – Clip
Original Airdate 09/05/2005
While the Priority Homicide Division is busy investigating the murder of a Hollywood producer, an anonymous complaint is filed against Brenda that threatens to jeopardize her career. When Captain Pope offers assistance, Brenda is dubious. Is he trying to help, or edge her out? After she refuses to compromise, or temper her attitude, Brenda's team conspires behind her back and seals her fate, surprising everyone - especially Brenda.
Season 2 . . .
1. Blue Blood - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 06/12/2006
A gruesome murder scene is nothing new to the Priority Homicide Division, but when one of the vics is a police detective, the pressure is on to close the case. Brenda and her team take heat from top police brass as their investigation turns away from a known drug dealer and toward one of their own. Likewise, tempers flare when Sergeant Gabriel asks that Detective Daniels be excused from the case due to her previous romantic liaison with the victim. With members of the L.A.P.D. ready to take justice into their own hands, the team has to work fast to bring in the real killer. While struggling to match DNA samples that could provide hard evidence, Brenda discovers that Gabriel and Daniels’ relationship to the victim is the key to unraveling the case. Meanwhile, Fritz pushes Brenda to take the next step in their relationship. But when her former lover and boss, Chief Pope, finds himself suddenly single, Brenda must question her own feelings to find a different type of closure.
2. Mom Duty - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 06/19/2006
When a juror drops dead during the deliberation of an important murder trial that promises to put away a vicious Armenian mobster, the Priority Homicide Division is brought in to investigate. Once again Brenda must abandon her visiting mother, this time to the care of Lt. Provenza who seems all too happy to show Willie Ray a side of her daughter she has never seen. As Brenda uncovers evidence that causes a mistrial, members of the L.A.P.D., including one of her own team, question her motives. When Brenda focuses on the victim's personal life, the identity of the true killer is revealed in an interrogation that leaves even Brenda's mom speechless. But Brenda has another surprise for Willie Ray as she finally comes clean about her relationship with Fritz.
3. Slippin' - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 06/26/2006
When a college student and his girlfriend are found shot to death in known gang territory, is it a case of gang retaliation, or were they simply in the wrong place at the wrong time? Under pressure from Brenda's rival, Commander Taylor, the Priority Homicide Division is brought in to investigate the murders. At first it looks like an open-and-shut case, but when Brenda and Sgt. Gabriel interview the parents of the young man who was killed, they discover that things might not be as they seem. Suspecting that the parents are covering for their son, Brenda digs deeper and reveals some shocking evidence related to their alibis. Meanwhile, Brenda's mother, Willie Ray, comes to L.A. for an unexpected visit and Fritz finds himself entertaining her while Brenda works. With their impending move-in on hold, Fritz uses his charm - and his FBI training - to keep their secret from Brenda's suspicious mom.
4. Aftertaste - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 07/03/2006
The L.A. restaurant scene is a competitive world where one bad review can make or break a business. When the wife and business partner of a top chef is found murdered in their swanky bistro's kitchen, Brenda and the Priority Homicide Division lean on her hot-head husband as a chief suspect. But when it's discovered that the victim was having an affair with a sleazy investor with a checkered past, the list of potential killers grows. It takes a closer look at the victim's own motives and character to determine the identity of the real killer. Meanwhile, Brenda struggles to conceal an important major milestone and tries not to let her personal life get in the way of solving the case. As well, Chief Pope's newly divorced status makes Brenda think twice about his intentions.
5. To Protect & To Serve - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 07/10/2006
On a day off, Provenza and Flynn have skybox tickets for the big Dodgers Giants game, but when they discover a dead woman in Provenza's garage they ignore official duty and decide to wait until after the game to call in the crime. However, when they return to the crime scene, they get the shock of their lives: the body has disappeared! After learning Robbery/Homicide has found this mystery dead woman in a vacant lot, they take over the crime scene pretending they have orders from Chief Johnson. Their actions land Brenda in hot water and she chooses to go to bat for her team. While Brenda conducts a covert investigation to find the killer and delicately side steps Captain Taylor's efforts, she seeks favors from Fritz to help cover the detectives' lapse in judgment.
6. Out of Focus - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 07/17/2006
An ambitious photographer stakes out an A-list actor for the photo-op of a lifetime. But when the photographer is found dead, Brenda and the Priority Homicide Division must sort out the sordid details surrounding the photographer's life and death to determine if he committed suicide or was he killed. When Brenda discovers that the subject of the latest photographs was an A-list actor's secret love life more questions are raised. Was the photographer murdered by the enraged celebrity trying to keep his private life a secret? Or was he killed for the valuable photos inside his camera? As Brenda and her team sift through the evidence to determine the identity of the killer, Brenda finds herself trying to I.D. a mysterious woman who is looking for Fritz. But when she and Fritz argue, will Brenda find solace in the arms of Pope, her boss and former lover?
7. Head Over Heels - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 07/24/2006
Putting together the pieces of a crime is all in a days work for the Priority Homicide Division, but when the head and feet of a murdered porn star are found in a dumpster, the facts surrounding his murder leave Brenda puzzled. When test results reveal that the actor had AIDS, Brenda's team must sift through a growing list of suspects - all of whom had motive to kill. As the case draws the team into L.A.'s seedy porn industry, Brenda seems unusually uncomfortable with the details surrounding the murder. But soon it becomes apparent that there's more at stake here than her old-fashioned Southern upbringing. Could Brenda be ready for yet another life change?
8. Critical Missing - Screen Caps - Clips
Original Airdate 07/31/2006
After fisherman discover the badly decomposed bodies of a mother and daughter in the L.A. harbor, evidence points to ritualistic suicide. But Brenda's instincts tell her there's more to these untimely deaths. As the case takes one bizarre turn after another, Brenda realizes a shocking truth about the killer.
9. Heroic Measures - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 08/08/2006
A bereaved mother draws Brenda and the Priority Homicide Division into the investigation of her son's death, accusing his doctors of murder. Brenda sympathizes with the woman and opens an investigation despite her initial misgivings. With both Taylor and Pope questioning her rationale for pursuing the case, Brenda finds herself facing the one case she might not be able to close.
10.The Other Woman - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 08/14/2006
When Brenda is asked to speak on behalf of her ex-lover/boss Chief Will Pope, their past affair threatens to jeopardize her credibility and her career. Meanwhile, a case of mistaken identity produces deadly results and the Priority Homicide Division must sort through the bizarre evidence to find the killer.
11. Borderline - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 08/21/2006
While on her way to investigate a crime scene, Brenda has a run-in that could cost her her badge. Although there is plenty of evidence of the murders, there is just one thing missing: the bodies. Now Brenda and the Priority Homicide Division must first find the victims in order to bring the killer to justice.
12.No Good Deed - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 08/28/2006
When the star witness in a death-row inmate's appeal case is gunned down, Brenda and her team discover that there is more than one suspect with a motive. Meanwhile, Brenda's secrets are aired in front of her team by Chief Pope's vengeful ex-wife and Fritz begins to question Brenda's feelings for Pope.
13.Overkill - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 09/04/2006
When an FBI agent and the wife of a mob informant are murdered, Brenda and Fritz find themselves at odds over who should handle the case. With the chief witness in the murders slated to testify against a major mob boss, Brenda and her team are under the gun to solve the murder. But when the identity of the killer is revealed, Brenda's team comes under fire -- and someone is going down.
14. Serve the King - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 12/04/2006
On administrative leave after the shoot-out in her murder room, Brenda is called upon by an old friend to help solve the murder of an Arab teenager with ties to a terrorist cell. Working covertly, can Brenda find the killer before her team is completely dismantled by Commander Taylor?
After reuniting with her team, Brenda must make good her promise to find a member of the Army of Allah who the CIA desperately wants to interrogate regarding a shipment of missing plutonium. But when it becomes apparent that the CIA has given her misleading information, has Brenda been set up? With the future of the Priority Homicide Division hanging in the balance, Brenda must figure out who she can trust before she becomes the next victim.
Season 3 . . .
1. Homewrecker - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 06/18/2007
In the third-season opener, Brenda and the team investigate the grisly slaying of a family, and the only survivor is the drug-addled teen son. Meanwhile, a financial crisis rocks the LAPD, bringing about budget cuts, numerous changes --- and possibly Provenza’s early retirement. And Fritz hopes to move into a new house with Brenda.
2. Grave Doubts - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 06/25/2007
The body of a long-dead murder victim is uncovered along with Lt. Provenza’s business card, setting off the squad’s search for his identity and killer. When the bullet is traced to a gang weapon that had been turned into the LAPD 15 years prior, Deputy Chief Johnson is forced to contend with political activist Father Jack.
3.Saving Face - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 07/02/2007
At a retired cop’s funeral, Lt Provenza and Lt. Flynn discover something quite unexpected along with the corpse.
4. Ruby - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 07/09/2007
A recently released sex offender is accused of kidnapping a child, and with time running out, Det. Gabriel beats a confession out of him. Deputy Chief Johnson must deal with Gabriel and also get the pedophile to re-confess.
5. The Round File - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 07/16/2007
An old man’s confession to seven murders leads Deputy Chief Johnson to investigate the sudden and unnatural deaths at his nursing home.
6. Dumb Luck - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 07/23/2007
Brenda and the PHD investigate the murder of a personal trainer who was involved with the wife of a possessive husband with a temper. Complicating the investigation: their only witness is the man's frightened valet, who also has OCD. Brenda must also solve the murder while sharing her squad with Homeland Security.
7. Four to Eight - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 07/30/2007
When two Catorce gang members are shot to death, Brenda and her squad must solve the murders before a gang war erupts. Meanwhile, Brenda has her own personal health scare when she finally visits the doctor.
8. Manhunt - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 08/06/2007
It looks to be the return of a serial killer when two bodies turn up dead. With the knowledge that he kills in sets of three, Chief Pope charges Brenda and her squad to hunt down the killer before the third victim is taken.
9. Blindsided - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 08/13/2007 - Directed by Kevin Bacon
In an effort to get good PR for the department, Deputy Chief Johnson takes a journalist on a ride-along, but when the Crown Vic is targeted and shot at, Brenda is forced to live under 24-hour police protection, while being the key witness in the case she must solve.
10.Culture Shock - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 08/20/2007
When a Chinese business woman is found dead on the tour bus she and her husband operate, Brenda and the squad must dig deep to investigate her past life. Meanwhile, Brenda’s parents reveal to the squad that Brenda and Fritz are engaged.
11.Lovers Leap - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 08/27/2007
A car belonging to a Department of Homeland Security employee is found wrecked at the bottom of Mulholland Drive. Priority Homicide is brought in to uncover the details surrounding the driver’s death, but the investigation leads Brenda a lot closer to home then she expected.
12. & 13. Til Death Do Us Part - Part 1 & Part 2 - Screen Caps - Clip
Original Airdate 09/03/2007 & 09/10/2007
Deputy Chief Johnson’s investigation into a famous Hollywood divorce attorney found floating in his swimming pool is under heavy scrutiny. Meanwhile, Fritz and Brenda are trying to consolidate their bills, but when Brenda discovers a secret Fritz has been keeping will she keep to the plan?
Under intense pressure, Brenda has forty-eight hours to break a new witness’ alibi and get her case back on track. Meanwhile, Brenda’s relationship with Fritz is in danger as secrets loom.
14.Next of Kin - Part 1 & Part 2 - Screen Caps
Original Airdate 12/03/2007
Brenda finds an opportunity to visit home when she attempts to track down a witness who disappears to Atlanta. Unfortunately, once she finds the witness, her holidays with family take on a whole new meaning.
Returning to L.A. proves to be a challenge when Brenda's witness remains hesitant, causing her to be creative. The fallout leaves Brenda's parents picking up the pieces while Fritz becomes buried underneath all the stress.
Season 4 . . .
1. Controlled Burn - Screen Caps
Original Airdate 07/14/2008
Griffith Park is a blazing inferno, threatening sections of Los Angeles, Glendale, Burbank and San Mateo. With four people dead and firefighters desperately trying to keep the flames at bay, the Priority Homicide Division is called in to begin an investigation. Things turn ugly when a nemesis of Brenda’s – pyromaniac Bill Croelick (from the Season 1 episode “Fatal Retraction”) – enters the scene. To make matters worse, a reporter has been attached to the squad as part of a PR campaign for the LAPD. On the home front, Fritz and Brenda have moved into a duplex, but the owner doesn’t allow pets. That doesn’t stop Brenda, however, from doing everything she can to keep Kitty under wraps, even if it means fighting with Fritz over the situation.
2. Speed Bumps - Screen Caps
Original Airdate 07/21/2008
A recently paroled murderer is found dead in an alley near a halfway house, the victim of a hit and run. Brenda must tread carefully, because the crime for which the victim was convicted was a major press event in Los Angeles. Flynn was the primary on the original case, and the wounds he feels from it are still painful, even eight years later. At home, Fritz spends the day lying on the floor after throwing his back out.
3. Cherry Bomb - Screen Caps
Original Airdate 07/28/2008
After reporting to the police that she had been raped by one of her classmates, a high-school girl apparently hangs herself in her bedroom. But Brenda is not so sure it’s a suicide, especially given the fact that the boy who allegedly raped her is the son of Mark Yates (Daniel Baldwin), a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Dept. commander. Despite some major head-butting between Brenda’s squad and the overheated and over-protective Yates, Brenda’s intense investigation eventually uncovers a ruthless sexual game being played at a local private school.
4. Live Wire - Screen Caps
Original Airdate 08/04/2008
A man wearing a surveillance wire in downtown Los Angeles is shot to death at point blank range and the first person on the scene is none other than Ricardo Ramos, who covers Priority Homicide for the Los Angeles Times. The victim’s connections to a drug investigation intersect with Fritz’s FBI work, and the ongoing duel between Brenda and her fiancé for control of the case leads to confrontation.
5. Dial M. for Provenza - Screen Caps
Original Airdate 08/11/2008
Posing as a hit man, Provenza and Flynn successfully bring an attempted murder sting operation to a close only to find all their evidence, along with Provenza's car, has been stolen while they stopped for lunch. Brenda, forced to free her suspect, must face a coolly furious Pope, who insists that Priority Homicide must get the car, the evidence and the suspect back in forty-eight hours.
6. Problem Child - Screen Caps
Original Airdate 08/18/2008
When a rebellious, adopted 12-year-old boy disappears, Brenda must decide whether he should be treated as a runaway or a critical missing. The further into the case she goes, the more toxic the child seems to be, and Brenda begins to question if the missing boy is a victim or a potential killer.
7. Sudden Death - Screen Caps
Original Airdate 08/25/2008
After Det. Julio Sanchez’s brother is shot, the entire squad will not rest until they find the culprit. The investigation is jeopardized by an overzealous detective and a leak within the department. Kevin Bacon, who has directed episodes for the past two seasons of THE CLOSER, returns to helm this gripping episode.
8. Split Ends - Screen Caps
Original Airdate - 09/01/2008
After a hair stylist for a television show is murdered, Brenda and the squad must wade through a history of domestic violence and secret addresses to find the murderer. Brenda also has to deal with her parents (guest stars Frances Sternhagen and Barry Corbin), who have decided to pay a surprise visit in the RV on the way to Alaska. And Brenda’s father, Clay, is determined to drop less-than-subtle hints about when they can expect Brenda and Fritz to finally tie the knot.
9. Tijuana Brass - Screen Caps
Original Airdate - 09/08/2008
The bodies of two Tijuana police officers are found in the back of a stolen pickup truck, and all the evidence points towards an FBI informant as the prime suspect. Complicating matters, a newspaper story by Ricardo Ramos paints an extremely unflattering picture of Priority Homicide, a public relations nightmare that’s going to require some fancy footwork by Pope, Taylor and Brenda to set right.
10. Time Bomb - Screen Caps
Original Airdate - 09/15/2008
In the heart-pounding summer finale, Brenda’s newly renamed Major Crimes Division investigates the death of a teenager that might be related to a highly organized plan to massacre hundreds of innocent people. As the squad races against the clock to track down a bomb before it can explode, they are given a stark and sudden reminder that the LAPD can be a very dangerous place to work.
Promotional Videos . . .