#pov i have very strong opinions on the upper class and people in power as a mexican trans man

[reverentwormpriest]

there's no room for "but I hope they're okay :(" "but I wish people wouldn't make jokes abt their deaths :(" in the term "eat the rich". you either eat them with forks and knives like the pigs they are or you leave

[roslinadama-sinequanon]

Sharon Raydor vs. Winnie Davis

Finally have the time to do some written reflection on the Sharon vs. Winnie Davis theme. There has been a lot of talk about the similarities between a Winnie walking in and wreaking havoc on Sharon in the same way that Sharon did with Brenda Leigh and I totally see that. But, I also think there are some very real differences between Sharon and Winnie.

First of all, let me give you my unpopular opinion right up front. I was never really a fan of Brenda Leigh. I didn’t like the way she handled her department/job and I REALLY didn’t like the way she treated the people in her life, especially Fritz and her parents. They always seemed to be more of an annoyance to her, people who got in the way of her doing what she really wanted to do whereas I do love that Sharon seems to have a better balance in her life and she is always present in the life of those she loves.

Anyway, moving along. I did not hate Sharon from the start. Sharon came onto the scene with a job to do and to be honest, Brenda acted and treated her like an immature child would. So, I was just as frustrated with Brenda’s lack of professionalism as I was with this new sort of rigid by the books woman on the scene. As difficult as Sharon was at times, I always saw her POV and I was always thinking “Geez Brenda, give her a break and let her do her job, things will go so much better for you and the department if you would”

Then there was Sharon’s second episode, where she did come off as pretty bitchy. However, she had reason to react the way that she did. A member of her team had been beaten by her husband and Brenda was again behaving like a child who was being forced to do something she didn’t want to do, not putting much effort into solving the case and worse not seeming to care. But I think what really clicked with me was the fact that Sharon was reacting the way she was because she truly cared about this woman on her team and really wanted to make sure that she did not become another domestic violence statistic and that the man who hurt her would be punished for it. I can’t remember the woman’s name now, but she obviously knew how much Sharon cared about her team and about women in general, because she knew just who to play and how to play her. She knew Sharon would not let those bruises go unquestioned. And then, later in the episode, Sharon had the class and dignity to apologize to Brenda and admit that she had acted like a bitch. It takes a strong, confident person to be able to admit their mistakes, a person who cares about and respects the people she works with.

From that episode on, while Sharon seemed like a thorn in Brenda’s side, she was really doing everything she could to help Brenda, the team and the LAPD. She did not have a vendetta against Brenda or her division and in fact went out of her way to help them. Even though Andy had behaved like an ass to her at times, she still tried to help him when he got attacked by making sure Major Crimes could investigate the attack rather than her and she genuinely wanted him to get well soon. Then when Brenda was in trouble she even brought in, God bless her, Gavin, to give Brenda the best defense possible. In fact she always had Brenda’s back. And Brenda still, most of the time, behaved like an ungrateful brat--though it was nice to see her come around a bit by the end. So, I guess I never really saw Sharon as the antagonist in the same way that I already see Winnie.

Now, onto Winnie. In their first scene together. Winnie had a point. Provenza did screw up the training, wasted a lot of time and money and did not take it seriously. And yes, Sharon did pull a bit of a Brenda by saying that Provenza had been reprimanded harshly when in fact she’d just given him a little slap on the wrist. But it was the way that Winnie went about things that really showed who she was. She wasn’t confronting Sharon for the betterment of the department, if that had been the case she would have let Sharon finish her interview then asked to speak with her in her office. Or if she didn’t want Sharon to have the upper hand by being in her own office, she could have called Sharon to her office. In any case, it was a total power trip. She yanked Sharon out of the interview in front of her team and then proceeded to chastise her right where anyone could see and hear her. And the last line and the snide way it was said “Your boyfriend is calling you” was totally below the belt.

So, where did that come from? I’m going to be very, very presumptuous here because we know absolutely nothing about Winnie’s personal life. However, she comes off very much like my boss so I’m kind of projecting some of this with my observations of Winnie. What I see in Winnie is a no-nonsense woman who has made her career her life. She lives and breathes the LAPD and climbing up the ladder is the only thing important to her. So, when she sees other women who maybe spend more time on their hair and fashion (ahem Sharon) and who have balanced lives outside of their work ie. Significant others, children, interests she automatically assumes that they don’t have the level of dedication to the job that she has. And it doesn’t matter that they work as many hours, that they get the job done and that they have massive amounts of respect and prestige, she still regards them as “less”.  And, when a woman reaches a certain age she starts to reflect back on what she has or doesn’t have in her life. My boss is Winnie’s age and she commented to me once that she was always happy to put her career before all else and that she didn’t miss having a partner or a family when she was younger, but as she hit fifty she started realizing what she didn’t have in her life and that made her job even more important. So, was Winnie’s “your boyfriend is calling” a put down of Sharon in that she has a life outside of work so she isn’t as dedicated to the job? Or was it even a bit of jealousy in that “Why should this woman who is beautiful, has a man who adores her and family who love her (I’m sure she’s met Rusty) also get the coveted job that I want?” Or was it just her trying to get under Sharon’s skin by intimating that she was doing something wrong by getting involved with Andy even though it’s not against the rules. Maybe Winnie doesn’t believe LAPD personnel should be allowed to date and even though Sharon has done everything above board she just felt that need to get a dig in.

The second scene in Fritz’s office was just totally unhinged. This woman is NOT working for the betterment of the LAPD as Sharon was in The Closer. She has an agenda and that agenda includes some kind of vendetta against Sharon (Sharon even alluded to this when she told her team that Winnie’s been trying to get something on her for some time now) . And since this is the first that we’ve heard of this woman we can only assume that it is not because of anything other than the fact that she wants the Assistant Chief position and she sees Sharon as her biggest threat. That makes her a REAL antagonist. But, going after Sharon by intimating and then flat out accusing her of not doing things by the book should really end up backfiring on her. I like that Fritz told Winnie that if she wants the job she’s going about things all wrong.  Winnie might have had a point with the training exercise--and later we see that Sharon did make the team participate as I think we all knew she would--but to try to accuse Sharon Raydor of not following the rules, or not going by the book is just absolutely ludicrous.

Also, Winnie made a statement about a lack of strong leadership. I think she meant that as much for Fritz as she did for Sharon. It’s obvious she thinks that Fritz is being too easy on Sharon and not taking hold of the reins as tightly as she would, so I agree with Sharon, he really needs to watch his back.

So I guess in conclusion I’d say that from the first moment she stepped on the scene in The Closer Sharon Raydor has always shown that while she is ambitious she is not simply on the job to promote herself or to rise in the ranks. Sharon truly cares about the people around her and she always has the department’s best interest at heart. Winnie Davis, right now, seems to only have Winnie Davis’s best interests at heart. And I really hope they keep it that way. I think it will be very interesting to see Sharon and Fritz deal with a woman who is really cutthroat about getting the job and to watch them try to deal with it. I hope they don’t cop out and just do a same old/same old with the Brenda/Sharon model, provided Sharon and Fritz win of course.