Article first published as BATTLE CREEK Review on Seat42F.
Detective
Russ Agnew (Dean Winters, Law & Order: SVU) is a frustrated cop in
Battlecreek, Michigan, a city of 50,000 whose force is underfunded and
underappreciated. When the FBI decides to open up a field office in the
same building the police inhabit, Agnew thinks he will show them “The Battle Creek Way,” which is also the name of the pilot episode. Boy, is he in for a surprise in CBS’s new drama, BATTLE CREEK.
BATTLE CREEK is most likely going to be a
case-of-the-week, buddy cop series, which is nothing new at all. While
both of the main protagonists are men, an idea that almost feels fresh
again after the male-female pairings of Castle, Bones, Law & Order:
SVU, and so many others in recent memory, it really is a tired old
concept done to death in the 90s and earlier before being fairly
recently retired.
Yet, the pilot doesn’t feel tired. Maybe it’s because Battle Creek
is set in a small town in the Midwest, rather than New York or LA, as
most television shows are. As an Ohioan myself, I greatly appreciate
this. Maybe it’s the excellent cast, which is better staffed than any
procedural has the right to be. Maybe it’s just the snarky dialogue and
the impeccable chemistry between the series’ leads. Maybe it’s the fact
that House’s David Shore and Breaking Bad’s Vince Gilligan created this
series, lending it a high pedigree. Whatever it is, I really enjoyed the
pilot.
Now, that doesn’t mean I’m giving this
series a great review. While it is my job to judge a show based on its
premiere episode and I do it often, I personally usually give a series
more than one episode in order to figure out if they make the list I’m
going to continue to watch. I have seen a number of great programs
spring from poor pilots. It’s rarer that a series would go the opposite
direction, but given the network BATTLE CREEK airs on and its inherent
premise, that could certainly be the case in this instance.
Let’s get back to this show
specifically, though. Agnew’s partner is Special Agent Milton
Chamberlain (Josh Duhamel, Transformers), a golden boy “promoted” to run
his own office in the podunk town. Milt knows this isn’t exactly a plum
position, but he’s determined to make the best of it, and brings a
calming counterpoint to Agnew’s hot-headedness.
If BATTLE CREEK stays focused on just
the two of them, it is doomed to grow stale quickly. I hope this won’t
end up being the case, as the ensemble is quite capable of more, and it
is stacked with a comedy bend that could keep the tone from being bogged
down in the cases. There’s Detective Fontanelle (Kal Penn, House),
Agnew’s former partner, office manager Holly (Aubrey Dollar, Women’s
Murder Club), Commander Guziewicz (Janet McTeer, Damages), Agnew’s boss,
and Detective Funkhauser (Edward Fordham, Cuts), as well as recurring
roles Detective Jacocks (Liza Lapira, Super Fun Night) and Detective
Niblet (Damon Herriman, Justified). Almost all of these are most
welcome.
The first hour spends a lot of time on
character introductions, and there’s a case tossed in for good measure.
At least half the running time is on the former, which is a good sign,
but it’s possible that is only done because this is a pilot. The ratio
between character development and finite story is what will determine if
the show is any good or not. Most CBS series rely very heavily on the
latter, to their detriment.
If BATTLE CREEK shall succeed, it should
remember to keep the focus on the players, toss in larger arcs and many
recurring characters (including some who work for or with Milt, since
so far everyone is on Agnew’s team), and make sure it is accurate in its
depiction of the setting, something I’m not familiar enough with the
real Battle Creek
to judge. However, whether the last is handled with authenticity is
likely to become more obvious in the coming weeks, and I hope it
respects the local flavor that could set it apart.
BATTLE CREEK premieres this Sunday at 10 p.m. ET on CBS.
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