Homicide: Life on the Street
A Many Splendored Thing
TV Flash files “A Many Splendored Thing” as the last listed hour of season 2 — Homicide: Life on the Street (1993–1999) on NBC, season 2, episode 4, aired 1994-01-27, 60 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S02E04: listed hour 13 of 122 in the Homicide: Life on the Street guide, last listed hour of season 2. It aired 1994-01-27 (60 min). The listed hour before it is “Black and Blue” (S02E03). Next is “Nearer My God to Thee” (S03E01).
Catalog log
Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.
Pembleton and Bayliss investigate the S&M-related murder of a young woman, which initially makes Bayliss uncomfortable, but ultimately forces him to confront his own darker side. The detectives eventually learn the woman was killed by her neighbor, who accidentally choked her to death during rough sex. In another case, Lewis and Crosetti (Jon Polito) pursue a suspect who killed a man over a $1.49 pen. Lewis is deeply shaken by the seemingly pointless motive. Meanwhile, the despairing Munch crashes the first date of Bolander and Linda, ruining their evening by venting his romantic woes, until Linda offers him words of encouragement.
Viewer FAQ
Where does A Many Splendored Thing sit in the Homicide: Life on the Street guide?
S02E04 is listed hour 13 of 122 — last listed hour of season 2, season 2 episode 4.
When did Homicide: Life on the Street S02E04 air?
A Many Splendored Thing aired 1994-01-27 and is listed at 60 minutes.
What is it based on?
David Simon's nonfiction book about a year with Baltimore homicide detectives — reporting texture, not cop-show candy.
In the series
Why this series still plays
Baltimore detectives, handheld grit, and cases that refuse to tidy up for sweeps. Paul Attanasio developed David Simon's reporting into literary cop TV: Andre Braugher's Pembleton turning interrogation into theater, a red/black board, and moral ambiguity as house style. The missing link between Hill Street and The Wire — network crime that reads like a novel.
The useful first thing *Homicide: Life on the Street* does is refuse catharsis. Baltimore detectives work murders with handheld grit, a red/black name board, and moral ambiguity that will not tidy up for sweeps. Paul Attanasio developed David Simon's nonfiction *Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets* into NBC drama (1993–1999). Andre Braugher's Frank Pembleton turns interrogation rooms into theaters of intellect and rage. Yaphet Kotto, Kyle Secor, Richard Belzer, Clark Johnson, Melissa Leo: the unit as a city…
Open the Homicide: Life on the Street package · Season 2 hub
Filed against
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- Kyle Secor as Tim Bayliss
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