'The Killing,' Conflict and Controversy on AMC

Was Darren Richmond the Killer? Only Time will Tell

AMC’s The Killing is an extraordinary police procedural that had me riveted from beginning to end. The question of who killed Rosie Larsen became little more than a footnote to me in many ways as I found myself more intrigued by the characters investigating her murder, grieving over her loss as well as those suspected (wrongly or rightly) of being responsible. The A-list talent that AMC secured for the show’s cast was definitely the difference maker in its novel approach to the rather shopworn conventions of the TV police procedural that provided a much needed breath of fresh air for the genre and a little outrage too, especially in the much-discussed season finale.

The Investigators
Mireille Enos and Joel Kinnamon as Detectives Sarah Linden and Steven Holder were positively brilliant in their respective roles. Enos, with her shock of red hair pulled back in a ponytail and those thick fall sweaters that her character was prone to wearing in the bleak, damp Seattle weather, was a revelation in the show’s central role. Her lack of makeup allowed her natural beauty to show through in a way that I’ve rarely seen on network television. Moreover, as Linden she possesses a reserved manner that is rare in homicide detectives I’ve seen portrayed on television that makes her unique. The way she quietly discerns the fact that the Stanley Larsen who’s ATM card was found in Discover Park was not a suspect in a disappearance but rather the father of a victim was breathtaking. It was all done in a single glance at the pink bicycle in the Larsen garage and then of course that with that single, devastating question “Mrs. Larsen, do you have a daughter?” I couldn’t help but feel a lump in my throat as she asked it, even while knowing the answer.

Joel Kinnamon as the Wigger-esque, former junkie/narcotics Detective Steven Holder was just as good in his own way. At first he was a grating presence on the show for me, with his street patois and constant niggling of Linden’s decision to call it quits with Seattle Homicide in favor of a new life with her son and boyfriend in Sonoma, CA. Gradually however, Kinnamon was able to imbue his character with enough humanity that I began to see past the street smart exterior to a cop who seemed like a genuinely good guy underneath. It was great the way he deployed his ‘street persona’ honed during his work in buy bust operations to go places at Fort Washington High where Rosie was a student that the more reserved Detective Linden simply could not. He constantly surprised me with his every move which at first glance seemed to be in service to himself, but would invariably turn out to be in service to the investigation.

The Family
Michelle Forbes and Brent Sexton as Mitch and Stanley Larsen blow the doors of the place in conveying the grief that descends upon a family that loses a child to an act of violence. A lot of it was hard to watch, though not due to any lack of dramatic skill, if anything, it was because there was a surfeit of it. The way Forbes can speak in a voice cracking with fear for Rosie and then crackling in fury as she calls around looking for her (“I swear that girl is gonna get the ass-kicking of her life”) had a lot of depth to it and brought back memories of the same righteous anger that she could demonstrate in her roles as Ensign Ro in Star Trek: TNG and as Admiral Helena Cain in Battlestar Galatica (Re-imagined).

Brent Sexton was also amazing to watch. As the gruff but lovable Stan, he really made you feel the differing stages of grief he was undergoing, from the emotional support he provided to his wife in the aftermath of Rosie’s death, to the emotional breakdown he experienced after viewing Rosie in the dress they provided to the funeral director. The Jekyll and Hyde aspects of his character was fascinating to watch.

Jamie Ann Allman as Terri Marek, Rosie’s aunt and Mitch’s sister also turns in a great performance. She becomes the rock of the family in becoming more involved in raising the boys as Mitch and Stan go through this crisis. 

The Suspects
I found this aspect of the show to be the weakest since you knew that Rosie’s killer couldn’t have been the red herrings we viewed early on, like Jasper and his buddy Kris Echols. The teacher Bennett Ahmed (Brandon Jay McLaren in a brilliant role) was a more interesting suspect because of the racial angle and his connection to possible Islamic extremists. Billy Campbell as Darren Richmond was excellent as ever, even better than his role as Jordan Collier in the acclaimed sci-fi show 4400.

Thoughts on the Season Finale
I know that the finale was very controversial because of the doubt cast on the guilt of Darren Richmond in the final minutes of the episode. I was glad to see that he wasn’t really the killer. I thought it was too easy since the fact that Rosie’s body had been found in the campaign car clearly indicated that it was a setup from the start. One thing that I haven’t seen mentioned often is Terri’s obvious recognition of Jasper’s father, Michael Ames as a client in her guise as a Beau Soleil girl during the gathering after Rosie’s funeral. It was awkward and purposely pointed out to viewers in an obvious way.

The fact that Ames was a client of Beau Soleil does not necessarily make him the murderer but he is a real estate developer whose interests coincide with the Mayor’s in developing the Seattle waterfront, and what better way to eliminate Richmond than to frame him for murder? I don’t know, doesn’t really sound plausible to me, seems that all they would have to do is expose Richmond’s use of Beau Soleil to do that, though perhaps Jasper’s dad and the Mayor were loath to risk exposing their own involvement in the escort service as well. If I were wagering, I’d put my money on Senator Eaton, Gwen’s father. A murder like Rosie’s would have to have two motives in my opinion, that combine the personal with the political. It is only in Senator Eaton that we have both. He is already on record as having expressed his disapproval of Richmond both as a candidate and as his daughter’s lover from the start. His social position already marks him as an obvious candidate for using Beau Soleil’s services, thus he would have likely been acquainted with Rosie if he were indeed a client. Only in Senator Eaton does a personal interest and a political interest in Richmond’s destruction collide.

At any rate, The Killing was amazing, and I urge you to see it if you haven’t already done so. It is first-rate, and even if there was no definitive resolution at the end, what of it? Are we Americans so obsessed with closure that this show’s lack of it is enough to drive us mad with anger just because it chose to raise more questions than it answered? I think Veena Sud’s desire to defeat the conventions of this particular genre is to be commended; the acting, moody soundtrack and atmospheric cinematography all combined to provide one of the best viewing experiences of the year IMHO, as well as inspiration in accomplishing the same in my own work. I look forward to seeing more next season.