A young hip-hop performer is accused of murdering a rap mogul, but his friend testifies during the trial that he is the killer. Serena objects to prosecution tactics, and Branch fires her.A young hip-hop performer is accused of murdering a rap mogul, but his friend testifies during the trial that he is the killer. Serena objects to prosecution tactics, and Branch fires her.A young hip-hop performer is accused of murdering a rap mogul, but his friend testifies during the trial that he is the killer. Serena objects to prosecution tactics, and Branch fires her.
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- DA Arthur Branch
- (as Fred Dalton Thompson)
- Anthony 'Psycho' Harrison
- (as Jade Yorker)
- Judge Antonia Mellon
- (as Mary Lou Mellace)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThis episode appears to be based on the 2002 Jason William Mizell (a.k.a. Jam Master Jay) shooting case.
- GoofsWhile doing a background check on Mooney, the detectives find he is "on the job" (working for the NYPD) in Queens. In a subsequent scene when the detectives are interviewing him, Officer Mooney is shown wearing "27" insignia on his uniform. The 27th Precinct is the one that the detectives work out of in Manhattan.
- Quotes
D.A. Arthur Branch: You know, Serena, if you were right, you were right for the wrong reasons.
ADA Serena Southerlyn: Meaning?
D.A. Arthur Branch: Emotions, not facts. What was it you said, everyone you talked to said he couldn't have killed that man?
ADA Serena Southerlyn: My emotional responses make me...
D.A. Arthur Branch: ...an advocate. You're a superb attorney; you ought to be involved in cases that feed your passion.
ADA Serena Southerlyn: That would be wonderful.
D.A. Arthur Branch: Serena, you must know, that will not happen in this office. It can't. Now, a prosecutor can be zealous, but not passionate. Advocacy is warm-blooded, enforcement's got to be cold-blooded, and blind, and even angry.
ADA Serena Southerlyn: Does Jack feel as strongly about this as you do?
D.A. Arthur Branch: No, but it's my office and my decision, and he accepts it.
ADA Serena Southerlyn: Decision? You've already made a decision?
D.A. Arthur Branch: I have. You're fired.
ADA Serena Southerlyn: Is this because I'm a lesbian?
D.A. Arthur Branch: No. Of course not. No.
ADA Serena Southerlyn: Good... good.
My generally quite positive but not loved it feelings for "Ain't No Love" still stand up today for pretty much the same reasons on both good and not so good. Actually thought that much of "Ain't No Love" was great with many note-worthy things, despite a couple of big hiccups, but Southerlyn's character writing and the ending are so bad (and notoriously so within the fandom just to say) that they drag the episode down significantly.
Beginning with the good, the production values are typically slick with the right amount of grit, nothing is too fancy or too gimmicky. Nor is anything too static, drab or garish. The music is not too constant or emotionally manipulative, meanig not over-emphasising the emotion to make one think that's how we should be feeling. The direction is accommodating but also has pulse. The acting on the whole is fine, especially from Sam Waterston and the supporting cast. Jade Yorker's bone chilling performance is one that is difficult to forget.
The writing is intelligent and lean on the whole, apart from one cringe worthy line, and the story when it picks up is absorbing and not too simple or too complicated. It doesn't sugar coat the subject without being heavy handed. The moral dilemmas of the case are handled well.
Southerlyn comes over as inept here though, almost as if the writers also hated Southerlyn and had given up on her, and Elisabeth Rohm's acting has no life to it. Her delivery at the end has absolutely nothing to it, have never heard asking for a reason for a firing being said so flatly.
It is most let down by the abrupt and out of nowhere ending and the single worst line of the show (the thing that Southerlyn is most remembered for by a lot of fans), one that is facepalm worthy. Will admit though that there were hints of her sexuality in previous episodes but there was something about the way the exit was written that felt very indifferent and abrupt.
Overall, great for most of it but let down by the ending primarily. 7/10.
- TheLittleSongbird
- Jul 27, 2022