PILOT REVIEW: Valor

VALOR

Starring: Christina Ochoa, Matt Barr, Charlie Barnett, Nigel Thatch, Corbin Reid, W. Tre Davis, Melissa Roxburgh

Created by Kyle Jarrow
Written by Kyle Jarrow, Directed by Michael M. Robin

THE PREMISE
Valor is the third and final military drama premiering this fall and this one is on a network that is not known for dramas like this, the CW. While there are some steamy and angsty scenes that may remind you this is a CW drama, it still seems more fit for CBS or NBC with its military premise. Captain Leland Gallo (Matt Barr) and Chief Warrant Officer Nora Madani (Christina Ochoa) are the only soldiers who made it home from a rescue mission and they receive the Flying Cross for Valor, but they haven't been completely forthcoming with all the details. Meanwhile, a captive from that mission, Jimmy Kam (W. Tre Davis) is in Somali custody while his anxious wife, Jess (Corbin Reid) waits for news.

THE REVIEW
I'm just so over these military dramas so this was a slog to get through. However, I think this may have been my favorite of the three (a very low bar to clear) because it seemed to be a little more sure of where it was headed and it had a conspiracy angle that made it slightly more compelling. That's not to say it was anything special, it's just that it wasn't as boring as The Brave and SEAL Team in my eyes.

There were some eye rolling moments though. Particularly, I thought the sequence with Nora being in such a rage that she just had to go to her drumset was a little laughable. And the show seems to be content with making the characters' back stories pretty standard (drug user! womanizer!) I do think the show at times aims to be a little bit more forward thinking with Christina Ochoa's character and they even hit on that a little bit in the pilot.

I remember when this show was in pilot season, we just kept hearing about how this was off brand for the CW but they absolutely loved it. And while it's not terrible, it's hard to see what was so special about this show that it made the CW really want to go off brand by picking it up. It seems like just a so-so show, not a genre busting or brilliant military drama. And I don't think the CW audience is going to be too excited about this when they would rather watch superheroes or sudsy soaps. We'll see.

WILL I WATCH IT AGAIN?
No. I am done with the military dramas at least until the next one gets picked up.