PILOT REVIEW: NYC 22

NYC 22

Starring: Adam Goldberg, Leelee Sobieski, Stark Sands, Judy Marte, Harold House Moore, Tom Reed, Felix Solis, and Terry Kinney

Created by Richard Prince
Written by Richard Prince, Directed by James Mangold

NYC 22 is a new cop show on CBS that focuses on six rookie NYPD police officers just starting out in Upper Manhattan. Each of the six main cops have different back stories, which were only explored a little bit in the pilot. They are all being supervised by the gruff but caring Daniel Dean (Terry Kinney). The pilot showed their rocky first day on the job.

THE GOOD: This is actually a really solid cop drama. It's not reinventing the wheel by any means but not every show needs to. The cast is strong enough to overcome the potential stereotypes that make up their backstories. Each one of the six rookies showed vulnerability and uncertainty yet showed how much they care about doing the right thing. The show has a gritty nature to it that isn't quite at the levels of the iconic Hill Street Blues or NYPD Blue or last year's fantastic but underrated Detroit 1-8-7 but if could get there if it had time. All in all, it did justice to the police genre thanks to the strong cast including standout Leelee Sobieski who delivered an interesting performance in the pilot where she said very little but showed a lot.

THE BAD: Not everything was wonderful as the show might have some growing pains. For starters, the treatment of the rookies from the veteran cops seemed a little overplayed and unrealistic in the opening scene.
Would they really be that unfriendly? I may be naive but I don't think they'd be that nasty to the newcomers. Also, the angry husband didn't play real to me. The cops in the scene (Adam Goldberg and Judy Marte) did well but the guest star was way overacting. The good news is he is not a regular character.

BOTTOM LINE: This season has seen many unique shows that I've said deserve to succeed if only because they are something different. Once Upon a Time, Revenge, Smash, and Grimm are all examples from this season. However, not every show needs to be groundbreakingly different and unique. Sometimes a good cast with a familiar story can be enough and that is true with this cop drama. There's no crazy conspiracy twists or anything like that, it could just be a solid cop show if CBS gives it time, which is sadly unlikely. It's surprising they didn't try to put this on Fridays with fellow NY crime dramas CSI: NY and Blue Bloods. I must also mention that it has a theme song, which is forever a plus.