With just one more episode of 19-2 left to air, I’m at a crossroads. I want to know how the series ends, but I’m not ready to say goodbye to the series. I’m thrilled and appreciative that showrunner Bruce M. Smith was given a fourth season to conclude the series but I really, really wanted more. With the series finale coming next Monday, Smith et. al had a lot to wrap up.

Would “Wake,” written by Nikolijne Troubetzkoy and directed by Louis Choquette, see Ben manage to get out from under the mob? When we last left his apartment, Martine had been grabbed by the man sent to kill Ben. Meanwhile, Nick was feeling the pain of meddling in Farah’s affairs and she had broken up with him. And Dulac appeared headed for some kind of breakdown after becoming addicted to oral sex via a prostitute.

Monday’s new episode began at Ben’s apartment, and from all of the cop cars and the ambulance, I was afraid Martine had been grievously injured. After all, last week’s final moments found her with a gun jammed in her mouth. Thankfully, Martine was just shaken. Ben, on the other hand, was pissed. The protection he was promised didn’t extend to his place and—apparently—thugs from Toronto were looking to muscle in. That meant putting Martine on a bus and her saying goodbye to Ben; for good if she had anything to say about it. “I don’t want to be here anymore,” she told Ben before climbing on a bus for Hamilton, Ont. “Bad shit happens.” Amen, girl, amen. The attempt on Ben’s life lead to an all-out response by 19; they targetted a bar frequented by a motorcycle gang and took everyone into custody.

I’ve written before about how I watch 19-2 with a terrible feeling in my stomach, wary a key character could die at any moment. So my guts were roiling when Ben and Nick accompanied a strung-out teacher back to the place he’d left all his clothes. Were they walking into a dangerous place with no backup? No, but Nick did receive a troubling phone call from his mother: she’d fallen and was hurt and scared. Turns out she’d broken her hip, but was suffering from malnutrition and abusing her medications. In short, she needed round-the-clock care and it was Nick’s responsibility to take care of it. A visit to his mother’s house revealed to Nick and Ben what she was going through: an empty fridge and freezer and a bedroom full of memories of Emelie. We also got a crash-course in the fractured relationship between mother and son. She doesn’t like his career choice and makes no apologies for her stance.

(The teacher, thankful Nick and Ben didn’t arrest him, asked the pair for help with one of his students. That brought the past back to the partners; they reported to the same high school where the massacre took place in Season 2. The bullet holes have been filled in, but the memories remain.)

Audrey, meanwhile, faced her past head-on when she requested to ride solo; the first time she’d done it since being violently assaulted. With flashbacks still fresh in her (and our) mind, Audrey came upon a group of people looking up: a woman was standing on the edge of a building. After attempting to talk the woman to safety, the pair tussled and for one horrifying moment, Audrey was in danger of falling. Then, as quickly as it started, it was over: the woman plunged off the roof and broke both her legs. She would survive, but the incident shook Audrey; J.M.’s ghost haunted her, explaining “the job fucks you up.” Will it do the same to Audrey? She was doing her best not to let it by calling Liam; talking to someone about her feelings is more important than bottling them up.

As for Dulac … well, things were getting serious for the rookie and Tammy, and not in a good way. Tammy’s ex-boyfriend had tracked her down and travelled from New Brunswick to Montreal to stalk her. Dulac ran to her aid off-hours and was promptly jumped by Tammy’s ex and beaten badly. I had an awful premonition recalling Emilie but that didn’t happen to Dulac. Instead, Tammy and her ex-boyfriend were collared and Dulac was admonished for dating a 17-year-old sex worker. Gendron was going to protect him … for a favour. Oh, how I’ve missed the sleazy side to Gendron.

After a long time away from 19-2, Maxim Roy returned as Isabelle, with a plan to help Ben shake his troubles for good. The plot? To arrest a mob guy with ties to several unions (including the police) while television cameras captured it all. It was a show of police force, but I couldn’t help but think the mob would consider it a middle finger and will come down on Ben even harder. Still, it does seem to have worked for now: the man who targetted Ben was found dead in the St. Lawrence.

The 19-2 series finale airs next Monday at 10 p.m. ET on CTV.

Images courtesy of Bell Media.

To say last week’s episode of 19-2 was shocking would be an understatement. I think we all knew, as loyal viewers, that J.M. was headed for a bad end, but I never imagined it would be in a hail of gunfire at the station, defending his fellow cops. That climactic finale capped off one hell of an instalment that had begun with the squad letting off steam at a rented cottage.

Appropriately, Monday’s newest episode, “Flowers,” dealt largely with the aftermath of the events at the station with a funeral for J.M. 19-2 will always rank among my favourite television shows not just because of the dialogue and action, but the quiet moments. Bruce M. Smith’s spare script and Louis Choquette’s direction was stellar in Monday’s opening moments as Ben prepped in his dress blues, the ghost of J.M. standing, reflected, in the mirror. Usually, when Ben sees something ghostly he turns away and it disappears; in the case of J.M. the dead cop was still there, a spectre over Ben’s shoulder. It was an incredible piece of drama and symbolism.

It was good to see Suarez attending the funeral, back on his feet and recovering from being shot, as well as J.M.’s wife, Justine. It’s been awhile since viewers have seen her and Justine looked healthy; kudos to Nick for sitting with her, lending support and holding her hand. Bear’s speech was heartbreaking and heartfelt, presenting J.M.—at that moment—as a hero who saved lives by engaging a suspect armed with an assault rifle with a mere handgun. The camera panned to Ben and Nick, two men who spurned J.M. and shut him out. Were they feeling guilty for the way they’d treated him in the days before J.M.’s death? And who would Audrey turn to now that the one person she could relate to was no longer there? (The music and camera work during the moving of the casket was spectacular.)

The moments of quiet reflection on 19-2 are always brief. The funeral over, Ben was approached by an ex-cop who shook his hand and then wondered where the items were that Ben stole. He was, of course, referring to the drugs and guns Ben secreted out of the car of the dealer he was doing surveillance on. The drugs and guns he dropped off a bridge into the river. (Reeling from that information, Audrey poured more pressure on Ben, demanding he recognize J.M.’s heroics.) Ben then told Nick he was reporting the incident to Internal Affairs and planned to inform them he’d stolen from the dealer and very likely gotten the man killed. I understand Ben wanting to get it all out in the open but—paired with him saying he ran down the student—it was going to be bad news. Would Ben choose justice or the truth?

The meeting with Internal did not go well. The suits weren’t interested in the threat against Ben but whether or not he did steal the items and why his partner left him that night. In fact, because Ben had killed a boy (he hadn’t) and of Nick’s history with Internal, the detectives didn’t want to work with Ben at all. Their advice? Take a year off patrol, work a desk, and get the stink off. Speaking of stink, Ben and Nick’s next call—trespassing—uncovered illicit goings-on at a homeless shelter being used for gambling, drinking and drugs. Gendron, smelling the opportunity to get even more support of the city behind them following J.M.’s death, ordered a public display of ousting the biker gang who’d taken up residence inside and ensuring the homeless had beds.

Dulac, who had been surprisingly quiet for most of the episode because he was internalizing everything, vented his frustrations on a mouthy ex-con who was trying to get into the shelter. The man shoved Dulac, who retaliated and broke the man’s leg; not good for public perception. Luckily, one idle threat from Tyler later and things had been smoothed over, but Dulac is acting out in a dangerous way that may jeopardize his career. That said, Dulac’s actions did have a positive outcome for Audrey. Delivering the man to the hospital personally meant she met a hunky doctor named Liam. Soooo … are things looking up for Audrey?

Nick appeared to be headed for some romance as well. He met up with Farah and a long walk ensued where the pair discussed kids, life and careers. Yes, it’s an unorthodox pairing, but both deserve happiness and it looks like they’re finding it in each other.

19-2 airs Mondays at 10 p.m. ET on CTV.

Images courtesy of Bell Media.