I am – Hercules!!
It is a season finale or a series finale? I don’t recall this getting a fourth-season renewal, so this may be our last sip of the Brothers Caffee. Tonight’s episode was written and directed by series creator Blake Masters, so I’d be surprised if it wasn’t pretty darn great. Masters’ only prior directorial effort was the superb “Only A Pawn …”; my favorite episode of the second season, it teamed mobster Michael with a shockingly efficient out-of-town assassin. Showtime describes tonight’s installment:

Birnam Wood Come to Dunsinane When Speaker Donatello's critical condition makes Tommy the heir apparent for the Speakership of the House, Freddie Cork maneuvers to get on Tommy's good side. With the Italian mob, the Rhode Island Police, and the Feds after him, Michael’s obsessive need to find Colin puts everyone in jeopardy.

Whether or not Showtime brings back “Brotherhood” (and they should consider it, since it's great and its ratings have been on the rise), I’ll be keeping an eye out for whatever Masters decides to do next. The critics appraise season three: Entertainment Weekly gives season three an “A-minus” and says:

… If Brotherhood isn't as brilliant as The Wire, it's just as believable. The cast is so solid, you'd never guess they hail from England (Isaacs), Australia (Clarke), Ireland (Flanagan), Hollywood royalty (Gish), and bad teen comedies (the spectacular Embry). They feel like they've always been sitting in this sad little corner of Providence, waiting for the show to start. …

The Associated Press says:

… splendid drama … There’s high-rev conflict and violence in "Brotherhood," and that keeps it exciting. But it’s grounded in realism any viewer will already know and recognize as truth. …

The New York Times says:

… begins its third exceptional season … Among its many virtues, “Brotherhood” isn’t in the business of life lessons.

The Philadelphia Daily News says:

… "Brotherhood," like "The Wire," is a story about how things actually work in places where the politics is nearly always personal and the personal nearly always political. … based on the two episodes I've seen, this season, a rebuilding one for several characters, seems to be taking a less sudsy approach, focusing instead on the devilish details of how the system works (and doesn't) that can only make "Brotherhood's" realpolitik that much more real. …

Variety says:

… a gritty, competently executed, occasionally gripping crime series that never quite rises to the lofty pay TV standards established by "The Sopranos" and "The Wire." …

8 p.m. Sunday. Showtime.

Fresh Whedon!!

$12.99 Venture Bros.!! Boxed-Set Blowout!!