Pop culture Q&A

April 1, 2012 at 12:00a.m.

By Rich Heldenfels

Q. Has “Revenge” been taken off TV?

A. If you mean canceled, the answer is no. The show has been on hiatus but will return to ABC on April 11. As I mentioned in a recent mailbag, the television season has far more weeks than TV series have new episodes. Some shows, especially those dependent on plot surprises, do not repeat well because the audience already knows the twists. So they often take breaks instead of repeating.

Q. One night I saw a movie with Melanie Griffith as a cop going undercover in a Hasidic household in Brooklyn. I know my husband would love it, but I don’t know its name or if it’s available. I’ve enclosed an envelope in case you can help.

A. That is “A Stranger Among Us,” from 1992. It was released on DVD; although it does not appear to be in current release, I have seen old copies for sale on Amazon.com. That site also has it available on streaming video.

Also, please save your postage and do not include self-addressed, stamped envelopes with your questions. I cannot promise individual replies.

Q. A friend and I are both watching the new show “Awake.” My friend believes that the son is the only one who died in the crash. I have a feeling that both his wife and son died. There are scenes that show the wife interacting with others when the husband isn’t present. So my friend is probably correct. Also is the male psychotherapist real and the female one a dream? I think the story line is almost too difficult to follow. I may lose interest if I can’t figure out the basics.

A. Based on a line in the premiere, I, too, suspected that both the wife and son died. But I don’t have an answer for you, as frustrating as that may be for some viewers; “Lost” always arises as an example of a show demanding a lot from its viewers as it unfolded.

“Awake” continues to work with the idea that the detective is coping with loss by moving between the different mental landscapes, one where his wife died and son survived a car crash, the other with the son dead and the wife surviving. I can’t even tell you where this is headed.

As my friend Alan Sepinwall on Hitfix.com asked, is the show “a mythology-driven sci-fi show about a man living in a fantastic circumstance where the explanation will be of paramount importance? Or is it a character-driven police procedural with a fantastic twist that’s better left unexamined as anything but a source of plot twists and heartwarming moments?”

Q. Has the last part of “The Closer” aired yet? Please tell me that I have not missed what happened to my favorite female law officer.

A. You have not. TNT will begin airing the remaining episodes of the Kyra Sedgwick drama July 9. Those will lead up to the series finale Aug. 13. That same night, TNT will premiere “Major Crimes,” the sequel to “The Closer.” Here’s what TNT has said about that show:

“Two-time Oscar nominee Mary McDonnell will continue her role from ‘The Closer’ as Los Angeles Police Captain Sharon Raydor. ‘Major Crimes’ will focus on how the American justice system approaches the art of the deal as law-enforcement officers and prosecutors work together to score a conviction. Joining McDonnell are fellow ‘Closer’ veterans G.W. Bailey, Tony Denison, Michael Paul Chan, Raymond Cruz and Phillip P. Keene, with guest appearances by Jon Tenney and Robert Gossett. New cast members include Graham Patrick Martin as a homeless juvenile and Kearran Giovanni as an ambitious undercover detective.”

Do you have a question or comment for the mailbag? Write to the Akron Beacon Journal, 44 E. Exchange St., Akron, OH 44309 or rheldenfelsthebeaconjournal.com. Please mark the email or envelope with “mailbag.” Letters may be edited for publication. Please do not phone in questions. Individual replies cannot be guaranteed.

2012 the Akron Beacon Journal

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