Finale, or Season Finale?

Saying Goodbye to East New York?

I enjoyed East New York, which apparently has been cancelled. Now I wonder, before I get into a new series, do I need to research the likelyhood it will survive beyond a first season?

Industry insiders speculate the networks are favouring productions that are if not “in-house”, at least not made by competing companies. A major issue is the streaming rights beyond the initial broadcast of the show. Warner Brothers was the principal production company on this show made for CBS.

The same insiders speculate that cutting a series before a second season avoids having to raise cast salaries.

Sounds like it’s a tough time to be in that business.

There has been last minute speculation East New York could be picked up by another network or streaming service. I’d be happy about that. I also recognize the ongoing strike by the Writer’s Guild of America may add another level of difficulty.

I liked the questions the series has raised, and the stories it set out to tell. It offered a peak into the personal lives of the officers who worked in the fictional 74th Precinct, and the social and political forces that complicated their daily work.

I particularly liked that when an officer was wounded in the line of duty, they did not easily shrug it off as part of the job, and when it was necessary to fire upon a suspect, it did appear to be done lightly, or without regret. This was not the typical cops and robbers shoot 'em up.

I watched the closing episode with the awareness it might be the last ever. There was at least one major story-line left unresolved. (I won’t say which, in case you haven’t seen it yet.)

The final scene gave clear indication the writers knew it could be the “lights out” moment. The principal characters are gathered in their “hangout”, the restaurant owned by the girlfriend of one of the detectives (who’s been working on the side for a mobster to bankroll her, but that’s another story).

My favourite character on the show, Captain Stan Yenko (Richard Kind) noticed that many of his colleagues were scattered at separate tables around the restaurant. He corralled everyone, and had them push tables together to join their station commander, who had been sitting alone.

What followed was an appropriately sappy scene in which Deputy Inspector Regina Haywood (Amanda Warren), thanked the troops for the successful end to a homicide investigation. She recognizes they have not phoned it in, they’ve given their all, and they’ve been willing to make sacrifices.

Captain Yenko responded by confessing that working with the Deputy Inspector helped him fall in love again with police work.

Tears followed, in his eyes, and hers.