The main story thread here: a trio of evil miscreants, clearly gang members since they wear colours, go on an ugly crime spree in a bar. Frank, sickened by the aftermath, vows to use any means necessary to find and punish those responsible. To do this, he will stage another summit with gang leaders so he can get their attention. J. D. Goes undercover in a prison cell in the hopes that he'll hear another character (guest star Richard Foronjy) make a confession - and gets an unpleasant surprise due to the presence of a child molester in another cell. And Belker makes the acquaintance of Captain Freedom (guest star Dennis Dugan), a deluded but sympathetic self-styled vigilante who fancies himself a superhero.
Captain Freedom had unintentionally interfered with an arrest, and while Belker is at first disgusted with the guy, he comes to like him once he gets to know him, and appreciates his outlook on life. Dugan is excellent as this sincere character who is clearly not playing with a full deck, and easily won this viewers' sympathy. The massacre at the bar takes a serious toll on Frank (this viewer had never seen the character THIS angry before), as he hates the idea of this level of evil taking place on his turf. And yet, Frank is able to once again able to offer Fay a shoulder to cry on, as she mourns the loss of Hal. Not that the whole episode (written by Michael I. Wagner) is entirely grim: there's some amusing nonsense when Hill & Renko keep having problems with their ride. At one point, their horn won't shut off, and they show up at Belkers' undercover operation, which causes him great distress. HE gets pretty mad, too, in this episode, but we expect that from him. 'The World According to Freedom' has a sweet wrap-up as Frank decides to give his son a call.
Also featuring the late Trinidad Silva, in his recurring role as gang leader Jesus Martinez, and Victor Campos, as a crime scene investigator.
Directed by Jeff Bleckner, a TV veteran whose credits include things like 'Boston Legal', 'Castle', and the Peter Benchley adaptation 'The Beast'.
Eight out of 10.