['Southland' - ''Graduation Day']

Tell me that I wasn't alone in wiping away a tear or two by the end of tonight's season finale. What got me the most: Sammy getting closure on Nate's murder, or John finally admitting he needs help? Or was it the long-in-coming moment when Boot Ben finally stood up to his training officer and told him he was a hopeless addict?

All in all, a satisfying cap to a too-short season. We don't yet know if 'Southland' will be back for a fourth season and, if not, tonight's finale hit just the right emotional note. Ben graduated, John owned up to his addiction and Sammy paid tribute to Nate by naming his newborn son after him.



What I've always loved about this show is that it lets the characters have these moments, these extra beats that you just don't see on other cop shows, like Ben's disappointed gaze across the rooftops as John finally limped into view, far too late to back up his partner. And Ben's shock at having the suspect fall to his death echoed that first day on patrol when he instinctively fired and realized he'd just killed a man.

Watching a bruised and bleeding Ben tear into John after catching him stealing the perp's pills, was a thing of righteous beauty. No mistake that the camera angle had Ben standing straight and tall over a hunched-over John as he shouted, "You may have been a good cop once ... [but] you're a goddamn useless training officer." Of course, John had no choice but to let Ben take him to rehab, and thank God for that.

I should have expected the moment when John thanked Ben for turning him in, but it caught me by surprise. Ben won that bet, but no one else is ever going to know about it. Likewise, John's admission to the nurse about all the pills he's been taking, followed by the half-proud, half-embarrassed statement, "I'm a cop."

I'll admit I got teared up when Sammy told Sal he named his new son after Nate. It may have been the obvious thing to have the character do, but it was also a very fitting gesture. Helluva day for Sammy, huh? He gets to breathe his late partner's name into the face of the dying suspect, without having had to kill the guy himself. And then he gets to hold his son for the first time.

Sammy deciding to go back on patrol and to be a training officer also seemed completely fitting, as did his being paired with Ben. And you've gotta love Ben's smile as they drove off. Even if he's nowhere near as physically intimidating as John, Sammy's going to be just as tough on Ben -- and all his Boots -- as John ever was. Ben's proven he can take it and a lot more. It would be great to see him in action as a more seasoned officer, but we've already seen that, haven't we? Our little pup has grown up and we couldn't be more proud of him.

Even Dewey, that motor-mouth screwball, had a moment of grace when his efforts to get a crack addict sober failed. All he could do for her in that moment when she lay nearly unconscious on a public bench was to adjust her skirt so it covered her just a little better. That's not something the old Dewey would have ever done. Ever since he cleaned up, he's still been a jerk, especially to long-suffering partner Chickie. Good for her for requesting a transfer, at long last.

As for Lydia, you'd think she'd have found a man who wasn't related to her partner, or that she'd at least have the sense to tell her before Josie found out herself. Those two can probably work it out, but their storyline didn't have anywhere near the emotional heft of the others. Work together or don't, ladies. We just hope to see you back for a fourth go-round.

Were you satisfied with the finale?