(S05E09) "Pussies run. Gavins fight." - Colleen

We've all been raving about Rescue Me's creative resurgence this season. Every episode thus far has been classic stuff - a streak of good writing and acting that we haven't seen since the first season. However, up until last week's brilliant homage to The Iceman Cometh, there hadn't been a truly defining moment for season five. In the wake of that stellar hour, I got worried in anticipation of "Thaw." Would the streak continue or would things now start to meander along, suffering from the weight of 22 episodes instead of 13?

The answer? It only got better. There were a lot of interesting dichotomies presented in this episode and it made for some really introspective scenes - Rescue Me is a great show, but it's not exactly known for evoking moments of truly deep and philosophical thought. This hour pulled it off and then some.

Take Janet and Sheila. Tommy is right back where he started with the two of them. They both want sex with only the most minimal of favors in return. Janet thinks she and Tommy she should keep going at it in bed and in return, she wants Tommy to help keep up appearances of family-as-usual for Katy's benefit. Sheila agrees to give Tommy nookie (and a safe haven for drinking) in exchange for him watching over Damien once he joins 62 Truck. The irony in all of this? Tommy would have done exactly what Sheila and Janet are requesting anyway, without sex on the table period!

However, getting back in the saddle with his two favorite flames got Tommy's mind tinkering. If you recall, last week's episode featured the return of Tommy's late son Connor as the latest in his ghost visions. Granted, we don't know what a 25 year old-ish Connor would look like, so Tommy's mind just appropriated the image of that bum who came by the bar. Anyway, last week Connor was depicted as a drug-addicted fiend willing to do anything for the next blast. This week? As a successful stock broker who also happens to have some serious parenting flaws.

It makes you wonder how Tom came up with these images and it only makes sense that the second version of Connor came after screwing Sheila. Assuming Connor never died and Tommy had tried to maintain his relationship with Janet, the hostile family environment would have continued and Connor very well may have become to addict his father envisioned. However, had Tommy continued shacking up with Sheila, who does nothing but spend her 9/11 widower money on expensive things (like that massive penthouse), maybe that influence would have led Connor down the self-absorbed stockbroker path. Bottom line? Is either outcome all that good? Not really. If anyone has a lack of faith in his own parenting skills, it's definitely Tommy.

A few other things I loved about "Thaw" --

• One of the biggest things lacking during last season were good sub-plots and that issue has been corrected as well. I'm loving the direction of things like Sean's cancer, Franco's boxing career, and Needles attempts at exerting authority. Even the the problems between Tommy and Mike have come back in a very logical way - the handling of Damien's "protection."
• The final montage was excellent, especially the return of some of Tommy's lesser ghosts like Billy Warren and the little girl with the cat.
• I know I quoted it above, but Colleen's "Tommy" moment was priceless. Very similar to Kim Bauer's "dammit!" in the 24 season finale a few weeks ago.

Now I've got to wonder/worry again - that was a really good episode. Part of the streak or the end of the line?