Major Crimes Season 6 Episode 12 Review: By Any Means: Part 3
Jack Ori
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It looks like it's going to be a battle to the death between Stroh and the Major Crimes Unit as the show wraps up.
With just one more installment left, Major Crimes Season 6 Episode 12 moved into exciting territory, as the team tried to use Stroh's hack of their phones to set a trap for him, and Stroh became more determined than ever to continue his killing spree.
Meanwhile, Rusty wondered aloud where Stroh finds young boys desperate enough to work for him even though it means signing their death warrants, while the team freaked Dylan out as part of their plan, leaving me to wonder whether this particular weirdo is going to be the primary reason Stroh's plans fall apart.
For all his hacking skills, Dylan really seems naive. He is definitely an amateur when it comes to serious crimes.
First of all, his attempt to hack the security footage that could track him was what led Major Crimes to realize they were being hacked at all, plus his attempt to mess with the video didn't disguise his identity very much.
He is not very street smart, considering how easily Major Crimes found him and how simple it was to push his buttons and freak him out.
I still don’t understand how Stroh finds these weirdos who are willing to partner up with a psychopath. Who are these people?
Rusty
It's weird to me that an accomplished criminal like Stroh would bother with a weakling like Dylan. I guess Stroh is so used to killing his young accomplices when they outlive their usefulness that he doesn't care how incompetent Dylan is.
The kid may be good at computers and phony accents, but his total lack of intelligence when it comes to criminal matters make him a real liability, and I wouldn't be surprised if his freaking out and/or his determination to protect his girlfriend from Stroh lead to the mastermind losing the final battle.
Stroh: I need a floor plan and schedule.
Dylan: He has a wife and two kids. Uh… you don’t care about having to kill his kids.
Stroh: Let me lay it out for you. I want you to think of these people like insects. Ants. Ants outside your house, just fine. Ants in your kitchen… they have to be exterminated. When you step on an ant, do you think about whether it’s a child?
He fits the trope of the incompetent accomplice ruining the plan perfectly. But I still felt a little bit sorry for him when Stroh revealed his true colors.
Stroh's speech about the people who get in his way being like ants who just had to be squashed was so creepy and devoid of empathy that it sent chills down my spine. It seemed like Dylan finally realized exactly who he had hooked up with, but by then he was in way too deep.
Computers are not my strong point, but I trust Tao with all the technical stuff, and Buzz… Buzz set up my printer. So I think we can come up with a plan to trap Stroh.
Provenza
I was pretty impressed that Provenza, despite his trademark lack of knowledge of technology, was able to come up with such a solid plan to use it to trap Stroh and Dylan.
Even more impressive was the fact that Chief Mason acknowledged that Provenza knows what he is doing and should lead this case. Whatever happens in the end, Provenza scored a major victory and it seems that he is poised to lead Major Crimes as the series wraps up.
I was a little confused by Stroh killing Hunt.
When Provenza asked Chief Mason to call Hunt and try to warn him, I thought this was part of some set-up to catch Stroh. So I was surprised and disappointed that Stroh actually got away with killing Hunt.
As heartbroken as I am about Major Crimes ending, I will not miss Stroh's killing spree. He's managed to kill more than enough people with that knife, and I don't want to ever see another graphic stabbing on television.
Gus: You know, I have note taking apps on my phone. You can download them.
Rusty: If Stroh goes to trial, my phone may be subpoenaed and I’ll never see it again. A notebook is safer and it can never be hacked.
Rusty and Gus continued to be mismatched, with Gus not having a clue how to help Rusty or why he was doing things the way he was doing.
Offering to help Rusty, who studied journalism before becoming interested in law, find a notetaking app to download was insulting enough.
But when Gus tried to use the situation to his advantage, any hope there was for redeeming this couple in my eyes vanished.
Rusty was smart, empathetic and professional while talking to Mrs. Wellington, and I begrudgingly had to admit that Gus reminding him of Sharon's warning not to play detective was helpful. But then Gus interrupted Rusty's musings about the case to suggest they sleep together!
That didn't disgust me because it was too stupid to be disgusting. But it irritated the heck out of me.
The two of them were only in the same room because their lives were in danger. Instead of doing anything that would help Rusty see what he was missing so he could share new insights of the case with the team, Gus chose to try to manipulate Rusty into sex that Rusty has said no to more times than I can count.
I'm losing hope that the series will end with Rusty kicking Gus to the curb after Stroh is defeated, but I wish it would. Gus is immature, not all that bright, and only seems to care about how much sex he can have.
Rusty deserves better than this rushed, annoying reunion. Rusty and Gus sharing a room because their lives are both in danger is the premise of a bad sitcom, not a show that has been so consistently high quality as Major Crimes has been for the past six years.
How is our Philip Stroh play going? Flynn in the running for an Oscar?
Provenza
I'm looking forward to the showdown, though, which I am predicting will end with Stroh dying and Dylan going to jail, unless history repeats itself with someone taking Dylan in and helping him turn his life around.
Rusty and Gus will probably end up together despite all my reservations, and Provenza will probably end up as the new head of the Major Crimes division.
I have no idea what is going to happen to Julio or Andy.
I'm just glad Julio made an appearance on "By Any Means: Part 3" since he has been MIA for most of the season. We'd better find out what it was he wanted to tell Sharon before the end, though!
I feel awful for Andy that Sharon died right after their wedding. I don't know what kind of happy ending there can be for him, but I want to see one.
What are your predictions for the series finale of Major Crimes? And what did you think of "By Any Means: Part 3?"
Weigh in below, and don't forget you can always watch Major Crimes online if you missed anything.
Jack Ori is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. His debut young adult novel, Reinventing Hannah, is available on Amazon. Follow him on X.
