It looks like the final two episodes of Prime Suspect have now aired. Production on the show was shut down last November and the final two episodes they shot were aired last Sunday. Two of my favourite TV websites have posted articles about the show’s ending, which you can read below:
(We will have screencaps from all aired episodes of the show in time!)
The final ‘Prime Suspect’ episodes: A farewell to a good show
NBC burned off the final two episodes of Prime Suspect on Sunday night. The football game was on Fox, CBS aired a rerun, you aren’t watching Desperate Housewives anymore, are you, especially when you could watch Downton Abbey? Anyway, much in the manner a criminal on an episode of Prime Suspect might dispose of two dead bodies, NBC dumped Prime Suspect with a pair of new, good episodes.
The series developed into something of its own, free of the Helen Mirren, British-made Prime Suspect that the producers didn’t really need trade on to create the show they eventually got on the air. Don’t misunderstand me: I don’t think Maria Bello’s Prime Suspect failed to attract an audience because millions of people were disappointed it didn’t match up to their memories of the Mirren Suspect — the percentage of people who tuned in and out for that reason was doubtless miniscule.
No, I think this Suspect didn’t last for other reasons. The pilot, the crucial episode with which lots of people decide whether they’ll ever watch again, was well-acted, well-made, but easy to dislike for viewers who want their protagonists to be sympathetic (Bello’s Jane Timoney was aggressively gruff, to her fellow police detectives and, by extension, the audience). And it didn’t help that this show was on NBC, which hasn’t been doing well in this genre lately; for broadcast, it might have been better on CBS, which knows how to launch crime shows ranging from Person of Interest to Blue Bloods. Or it might have gone to cable, where Suspect’s ratings would have looked like a smash on AMC or FX or Showtime.
It’s all over now, but the very last Suspect was a good one, featuring guest turns from two veterans of The Wire, Andre Royo and Chris Bauer (the latter probably better known these days as Andy Bellefleur on True Blood). The episode, titled “Stuck in the Middle with You,” emphasized Brian F. O’Byrne’s Det. Reg Duffy, laboring under a death threat. It was a comic subplot that turned, like many in this show, poignant. By this point in the series, we were as invested in the supporting cast (yay, Kirk Acevedo) as we were with Bello’s Jane. There was a terrific interrogation scene spotlighting Tim Griffin’s Det. Augie Blando, who just kept getting better with every episode. It was clear, watching this episode, that Prime Suspect had a lot of juice left in it, with Jane finally having broken into the tough-boy’s club of cops who’d come to respect her (and she they). But now it joins the ranks of other good one-season dramas (AMC’s Rubicon springs to mind) gone too soon.
To quote Charles Mingus, “Goodbye, pork pie hat.”
- EW.com
After adding the Abduction screencaps (see below), I decided to continue my updating momentum, and so I have added various scans I had lying around on my computer. They are from various international magazines from over the years and range from 2006 to 2011. The Oprah Magazine article is really interesting, as Maria talks about the books that made a difference to her – I really enjoyed reading about her favourites. Big thanks to Mirik for most of these scans.
Also, I recently came across a couple of fantastic, previously unseen photoshoot pictures, taken for Flaunt magazine. I can’t work out when they were taken/for which issue, but Maria looks amazing in them!
When (or if!) I eventually get my scanner fixed I will be working on scanning my growing collection of Maria magazines, which feature many great editorials and photos we don’t have here yet!
Thanks to Michelle we now have some fantastic HD screencaps from Abduction! Maria only has a very small role in this film, unfortunately, but it looks like an emotional one! Check out our HD caps in the Gallery:
PLEASE NOTE: The screencaps DO contain spoilers!! If you haven’t watched the film yet and do not want to know what happens, do not view this album!
• Abduction (2011) > Film Screencaptures (Blu-ray) x156
Maria has written for the HuffingtonPost.com to mark the 2 year anniversary of the devastating earthquake in Haiti:
Two Years Later — Reimagining Haiti
At a prayer breakfast in Port-au-Prince last month, 23 Haitian and U.S. women colleagues met to drink coffee, share a bite and, well, grieve. Our host, Danielle St. Lot, Haitian activist and entrepreneur, did not plan this grieving and we certainly did not expect it. The hour of laughter and chatter beforehand could not have prepared us for it. But it had to happen. It had to come. It was time.
January 12, 2012 will be the two-year anniversary of the earthquake that devastated many of their lives and threw those of us invested in the country into triage mode. The network of women activists, business and political leaders that I had been working with in Haiti before the earthquake at Femmes en Democratie (FED), woke up one day to their children screaming, their grandmothers dying, their houses falling and their country destroyed. They had no time to grieve their losses because there was work to do.
Two weeks after the quake, Danielle, the founder of FED, made it onto a plane to D.C. in the only skirt she had left, a pair of flip-flops, and not even a dollar on her, to speak to members of Congress about the devastation. She was convinced that people had to know the extent of the loss and, in particular, what the women of Haiti needed. Over the last two years, she has become a voice for women throughout Haiti.
Each of the 23 women present on that balmy day in a garden restaurant in Port-au-Prince had a similar story. Lives were lost and businesses shattered. But there were neighborhoods to rebuild, people to help, and children to care for, so no one had time to stop and cry. As one guest sobbed: “We have never cried. We have been so strong. It is time to cry.” And we did. We mourned deeply.
Then we moved on.
NBC Entertainment Chairman Bob Greenblatt discussed the cancellation of Prime Suspect at the recent TCA Winter Press Tour:
The low ratings of the Maria Bello drama “Prime Suspect,” were fall’s greatest disappointment, though he considered the show a creative success, he told reporters. “Was it the hat?” he joked, referring to the main character’s wardrobe. He also said the show’s grittiness may have been too much for some viewers.
Prime Suspect‘s failure to click with viewers “was probably the biggest disappointment,” Greenblatt said. “Was it too cable, was (Maria Bello’s character) too abrasive? Maybe I should say it was the hat and move on.” In the final analysis, it seems like “the audience wanted to be entertained with comedy and fairytales” this fall, “and there wasn’t appetite in the country for a hard-hitting cop show.”
Even though PRIME SUSPECT looked like one of NBC’s most promising fall dramas (and was given the prime Thursday 10:00 pm time slot), yet the series never clicked with viewers.
Reflecting on why the series didn’t work, NBC Entertainment Chairman Robert Greenblatt spoke briefly about the series and his disappointment that it didn’t nab the ratings he expected.
“Creatively I loved that show and everyone who worked hard on it and Maria Bello was incredible,” says Greenblatt. “What did we learn? I learned that, it’s going to take awhile. There is no revelation or shocking epiphany about the fall, it reinforces how hard it is to break through. We’re struggling. You can’t spend 20 million on every ad campaign and the show has to do some heavy lifting. How do we find those shows to break through? It’s easier to do in cable. With PRIME SUSPECT, was the character too cable a character for broadcast? Maybe I should just blame the hat and move on.”
As it’s January 1st already, I would like to take a second to wish all of our visitors and fellow Maria fans – as well as Ms Bello herself – a very Happy New Year! I hope 2012 brings you lots of happiness and success.
2011 was a very successful year for Maria, with the announcement and airing of her very own TV cop show! Prime Suspect – and in particular it’s leading detective, Jane Timoney – gained a very dedicated fanbase who lapped up each new episode. Unfortunately, the ratings weren’t enough and NBC cancelled the show after only half a season. While we’re all disappointed with this cancellation, we have no doubt Prime Suspect has introduced the talents of Maria to a whole new legion of people, and 2012 will be sure to bring new and exciting projects.
Thank you for visiting Maria Bello Online in 2011, we hope you’ve enjoyed your visit! Lisa and I will continue to cover Maria’s career in 2012, bringing you the latest and greatest on this versatile and admirable leading lady.
Lisa and I would like to wish all of our visitors, plus Maria and her loved ones, a very HAPPY CHRISTMAS! I hope your holiday is spent with loved ones and filled with lots of joy!!
HAPPY CHRISTMAS !! Maria recently went back to Haiti to continue her work with We Advance, and this time took famed reality TV star Kim Kardashian with her. Read more about their trip below – it’s pretty interesting. Whatever our reservations about the Kardashian name, you can’t deny that her name being linked to Haiti and We Advance will at least spread the word about the cause and bring it more attention, which is never a bad thing.
The duo wrote an article about their trip for the Huffington Post, which you can read just below. And Kim Kardashian mentioned it on her Official Blog too, saying she will be posting more about it soon.
We Came to Haiti to Celebrate…
BY Kim Kardashian and Maria BelloWho knew a woman who runs around on TV with a gun and another who runs around in heels would have so much in common? We were brought together through a bizzare turn of events, and we discovered our mutual goal of empowering women using our own unique voices. We decided to journey together with Kris, Farouk Shami, Patricia Arquette, Suzanne Lerner, and a few of their friends to experience the Haiti that Maria has come to know and love through her organization, We Advance.
We Advance was started after the earthquake in January 2010, as a direct response to the increase in gender-based violence and poor health care for women in the poorest areas of the country. We Advance works with and represents the voices of over 40 micro-organizations working in the most desperate situations and communities in Haiti.
Our itinerary was to visit some of the small, grassroots NGOs that We Advance works with, including Artists for Peace and Justice, Femmes en Democratie, and Give Love, and to join women at the trade fair and fashion show in celebrating their achievements.
This is who we celebrated:
Make sure you tune in to Prime Suspect tonight, US fans! It’s an ER reunion of sorts again, as Laura Innes co-stars. Here are a couple of previews:
The Business of Porn
Augie can’t thank Jane enough for putting him on porn duty.
Look to Your Latin
When Duffy tries to pass off work to Jane, Sweeney shuts him down, invoking veiled threats in an ancient tongue.
For our final update today (don’t miss our other 3 below), I’ve added some new candids of Maria out and about at night in LA a couple of weeks ago.
