User Reviews

== Moderate spoilers ahead ==

The episode starts off on a lighthearted note with the famous/infamous nude scene with Detective Connie McDowell. ABC faced fines for the nudity although the fines were later overturned. Andy Sipowicz jokes about the encounter later on.

The levity continues with the return of Julian, the character who reminds Sipowicz of the death of a former detective. Julian appeared in other episodes, always playing a comedic role. He gets under the skin of Sipowicz and Junior but he is not a vicious character. Julian is the victim of a crime but he is not seriously injured.

The episode takes a far more serious turn when Detective Clark tries to find out why his father hasn't been returning his calls. Clark Jr. had been upset about his father's drinking and his poor decisions regarding IAB.

In the other criminal story, a woman is upset about being conned out of $100. Det. McDowell and Ortiz don't consider the crime a high priority because of the limited financial loss and the uncertainty of finding the perpetrator. They learn that the woman was dealing with another difficult situation.

The two criminal stories intersect in a surprising manner. The stories share themes of trust, betrayal, perseverance and personal loss. John Clark's story also covers these same themes. What started out as a comedic episode turns into a heavy, dramatic episode. Uncomfortable to watch because of the painful themes but definitely worth watching. Excellent writing and acting. Yet another high point for NYPD Blue, one of the best television dramas of all time.

While the title of the episode refers to the nude scene, which hints at this being a lighthearted episode, the

First of all. The beginning of this episode is actually funny as hell with Andy Sipowicz delivering one of the all-time classic lines after finding out that his son Theo accidentally walked in on Connie getting ready to take a shower.

There is also a somewhat amusing storyline involving CI Julian when he discovers that his wife is trying to have him killed.

However, it wasn't a complete surprise when John Clark and Andy SIpowicz head over to John's father's apartment to find that he's committed suicide. Quick thinking as always, Andy makes sure to restore Clark's dignity by making sure that it's reported that he died trying to clean his gun.

As if John Jr. Hasn't already been through enough, he's confronted with something like this. Those who have already seen this series will know that Clark isn't out of the woods and things continue to compile and that it will be father-figure Andy Sipowicz who pulls him back from the brink.

However, Rita's feeble attempts to try and help Clark through his grief--a grief that is literally only hours old--is almost insulting. Anyone who has lost someone from a tragedy--and I have--the last thing you want to hear is rationale and justification for what's happened. It's almost as bad as someone telling you, "Get over it. Move on." And as subsequent episodes will reveal, she's so self-absorbed that she can't even just be there for him and allow Clark the time to grieve in his own way. She takes it personally and immaturely when he's unable to recover as quickly as she'd like. Simply put, Rita will ultimately prove why she's a bad fit for Clark.

Season 10 sees Sipowicz and Clark growing closer together. Sipowicz and Simone were the ultimate friends, but Sipowicz and Clark begin to share a deep father/son bond--with Clark filling the shoes of Andy Jr. And Sipowicz being like a father to Clark. It's this dynamic that really turns into a thing of beauty that would continue until the end of the series.

Apparently the Connie nude scene at the beginning made quite a stir back in 2003. Andy makes a joke at the beginning but from then on it's serious. The guys are called to scene where a guy has been shot in his car. It turns out to be Julian Pisano. As things unfurl, we come to realize that his wife and boyfriend are behind this--that there was an actual hit which failed. In a second story, a persistent woman is taken for 100 dollars by a con. She asks that a huge effort be made to find the woman who did it. Little chance of that. We later find out why this lady was so hurt by this event. Finally, John Clark has not been able to reach his father for several days. The episode ends in an intensely dramatic way. Kudos to Joe Spano who has played this complex character.

Famous/infamous for the pre-credit sequence where young Theo walks into the bathroom on Connie, who is completely naked, "Nude Awakening" is as good an NYPD Blue episode as there is.

Sipowicz's quip that Theo wanted to go to Hooters instead of school when Connie inquires about how the boy is coping was fantastic. Delivered as only Dennis Franz can. Jokes aside, it was a controversial moment back in the early 00's, and yet one more example of NYPD Blue really pushing the envelope where sex and nudity on primetime network TV is concerned. I can only imagine the stir...

'Friend of the squad' (definitely in inverted commas) Julian Pisano makes an appearance after he is shot at. The detectives have to figure out who was trying to kill him and why. It wasn't the outcome I expected.

Clark is worried when his father doesn't return his calls. He and Sipowicz go around to Clark Sr.'s apartment and discover that he has taken his own life. Not an unexpected turn of events given the last few episodes.

A very well-acted (and well-written, for that matter) final few minutes. Joe Spano's video monologue was so well done and you can definitely feel Clark Jr's grief through Mark-Paul Gosselaar's brilliant performance.