The Good Guys Ends First (Only?) Season

    FOX's The Good Guys was a summer show that got a rare treat when seven additional episodes were ordered for this fall. Sadly, the series looks poised for cancellation, although no official word has been handed down. Certainly the show will not have any other new episodes this television season, as none have been ordered at this time, and they've already aired twenty in the last six months. Still, as much as I enjoy The Good Guys, I can't decide if I'm hoping for its survival.

     The problem with The Good Guys is its silliness, which is also the best reason to watch. Pretty much every episode, Detectives Dan Stark (Bradley Whitford) and Jack Bailey (Colin Hanks) investigate some petty crime, in the case of this week, a dine and dash. Inevitably, events snowball, and without even realizing it, they are soon taking down murderers, dirty cops, jewel thieves, and the like. Entertaining? Absolutely. As I said in an earlier review, Whitford appears to be having the most fun he's ever had in his acting career and that enthusiasm is infectious. But even suspending normal disbelief, as has to be done for any TV show, this one stretches the bounds of believability. How can that same bumbling scenario play out over and over again and still feel fresh?

     Not the show is not devoid of hope. There are glimmers that the people that make it realize their premise is limited, and have tried to add other distracting elements. Great guest casting, such as Joshua Malina (The West Wing) as an Internal Affairs agent bent on bringing down Stark, Chris Klein (American Pie) as Bailey's former partner turned deputy chief who is on the take, and especially Gary Cole (Entourage, The West Wing) as Stark's former partner Frank Savage, has helped. But how long can stunt casting really keep a show afloat before it becomes an obvious ploy?

     I think the main issue if that there are truly only two interesting characters: Jack and Dan. Early on they clashed, providing some good human drama. Now they've settled into a firm, loyal partnership, so that tension is gone. They're still fun, but their actions and decisions have become obvious, taking away suspense. For most of the series, Jack pined for assistant district attorney Liz (Reaper's wonderful Jenny Wade), but now that they're together, that is gone, too, and Liz often feels unnecessary and cumbersome to the rest of the plot. I also adore Diana Maria Riva, who plays Jack and Dan's boss, Lieutenant Ruiz. Unfortunately, she rarely gets to do anything much, with the recent exception being in the peeping tom episode. Using her more could go a long way towards salvaging things.

     Because of the stagnant four main characters, others have been added to spice things up. Early fan favorite snitch Julius (RonReaco Lee) returned for a total of eleven episodes, and originally always brought something new to the table, though even he was becoming stale near the end of the season. In the second half, Samantha (Angela Sarafyn) showed up, who was a police ally / assistant and a possible love interest for Jack. Perhaps the gun was jumped when Sam waited until after Jack and Liz got together to kiss him. However, should the show get a second season, it would not be surprising at all to see Jack and Samantha as an item, for awhile at least.

     I'm not a hater of this show, far from it. But I began getting bored after twenty episodes, and perhaps this is one show that would have benefited from a nice, long hiatus in the middle of the season, though they only got six weeks. If it does return next summer or fall, I will probably get excited again, as I will definitely miss The Good Guys after awhile. But unless something is done to seriously shake things up and change the rules of the game, it will grow old much faster in the second batch. Not only that, a shake up may kill the series, because it relies on a formula, and abandoning the formula is a serious risk.

     Perhaps this would have worked better as a miniseries or a set of TV movies. The talent level is high, but the magic is just not there in a sustainable way over the long term. Awesome concept that didn't work so well when drawn out. As a twenty episode series, it will be fondly remembered. If it becomes a forty episode run, fans may not stay so enamored. The good news is, should The Good Guys get the ax, the actors should not stay unemployed too long.


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Article first published as TV Review: The Good Guys Ends First (Only?) Season on Blogcritics.

The Good Guys is doing pretty good

Not in the ratings, sadly.  But creatively, summer's funnest show, FOX's The Good Guys, has gotten even better this fall.  Following the buddy cop formula, Bradley Whitford plays Dan Stark and Colin Hanks is Jack Bailey.  I've said it before, but I think Whitford, a fabulous actor, as proven by his long stint on The West Wing, is just plain having fun in this show.  That makes it enjoyable for the audience, when you see a guy clearly loving what he is doing.  Stark is obnoxious, backwards, sports a 70's 'stache, and goes on about the good old days.  Bailey is straight-laced, mostly by the book, though Stark has been rubbing off on him.  Hanks plays it wonderfully, too, finally a role that really suits him.

     The plot the last few weeks has gone a little further into character development.  Two weeks ago, we finally met Stark's old partner, Frank Savage (Gary Cole, Entourage, Office Space), who has long been retired, and given up his antics.  He lives a quiet life with wife, Cynthia (Rachael Harris, The Hangover, My Boys, Notes From the Underbelly), who does not approve of Dan coming back and upsetting their balance.  Also in that episode was Ethan Suplee (My Name is Earl, Chasing Amy) as Andy, the now-grown little boy that Stark and Savage saved back in the day, and a TV movie was made about it.  As the plot unfolded, one could see that Savage and Bailey are two quiet different partners for Stark.  Bailey tries to reign him in, while Savage lets the crazy fly.  They both clearly care about Dan though, with Bailey's affection grown into unwavering loyalty in just the short time they've worked together.  Do you blame him though?  Dan is nothing if not loyal, and while he can be a screwup, he is sincere and honest.  Obviously, while Stark and Savage have fun, with Bailey's influence, Stark can be a better cop than ever.

     This past week the guest talent kept coming, with Ed Begley Jr. (Gary Unmarried, Veronica Mars) as Jack's crooked but charming Uncle Nate, and Method Man (The Wire, How High) as an arson-happy villain.  Nate brought some needed background and depth to Jack, as usually the past we hear about it Dan's.  Dan also managed to drag his favorite snitch, Julius (RonReaco Lee, Worst Week, The Shield) into the fray, though Julius wasn't too happy about it.  It's always a pleasure to see Julius, and hopefully the series will keep him coming back.

     The show isn't all great guest casting, though the past two weeks have been among the best in the series.  It's about the characters that star every week.  There are two women in the opening credits, too, and though they don't often get much plot, they are wonderful actors.  Diana Maria Riva (Studio 60 On the Sunset Strip, The West Wing) plays the boss, Lt. Ruiz, while Jenny Wade (Reaper) is Jack's ex-girlfriend, whom he is still smitten with, A.D.A. Liz Traynor.  The two girls were featured a few weeks ago, as they attempted to bring down a Senator (Wade's former Reaper co-star Ray Wise) on their own.  It was nice to see the two out of an office, and while Bailey and Stark and definitely the heart of the show, hopefully the women will get more to play with, as they can certainly handle it.

     I highly recommend you check out The Good Guys, as they can really use a ratings boost.  The show is way better than many other shows with higher numbers, and one of the most laugh-out-loud cop dramas ever made.  It's not high quality television, but it's loads of fun.  The Good Guys airs Friday nights at 9pm on FOX.

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The Good Guys' summer is over

    The Good Guys have packed it up.  After a mere nine episodes, the final airing last night, the Fox summer series has come to an end.  This is regretful, as I think it has been hands down the best show of the summer.  Happily, however, it will return this fall.  Unhappily, the return date is two months away, and that's a long time to go without my weekly dose of Dan Stark (Bradley Whitford) and Jack Bailey (Colin Hanks).

     Although it is not the standard crime procedural, on paper the series does not have a lot going for it.  Every episode goes through a lot of the same plot points: Stark and Bailey are assigned a minor crime, they want to work a larger crime, somehow the minor crime ties itself into the larger crime.  Stark screws up and angers their boss, Lt. Ruiz (Diana Maria Riva).  Bailey makes subtle passes at his ex-girlfriend, Liz (Jenny Wade).  Through a series of lucky happenstances, the two take down whatever big villain exists, usually with the help of a small villain, who barely qualifies as such, and earns the audience's sympathy, and gets away with whatever he or she did, or gets a very slight punishment.  Time jumps around in whatever way to best please the audience.  Because of the shear number of coincidences, one episode is unrealistic.  But it happens again and again, every week.

     However, something about The Good Guys rises above the ingredients.  It doesn't matter that the episodes don't change much, or that they aren't believable.  It is still miles of fun to watch.  Creator Matt Nix (Burn Notice) has got something on his hands that is light-hearted and action packed.  Tons of bullets fly, things blow up, and somehow, rarely is anyone scratched.  Bradley Whitford seems to be having the most fun of career, overacting the washed-up, former legend with the '70's look.  Hanks, despite his obvious similarities to his father, Tom, has never had his career take off.  But in playing the straight man against Whitford, he's found a home.  Wade is sweet, and Ruiz is more than someone for the audience to get mad at for chastising the heroes.  Usually, you can easily understand why she gets so upset.

     It may not be the smartest thing on television, or the best written, but it has a charm that transcends it, and makes it better than summer fare.  Deservedly, it will return Friday nights beginning September 24th.  A Friday time slot is not usually a good sign, but as the show escaped summer, it can probably escape the death knell of Fridays, too.  Watch The Good Guys on Fox.

The Good Guys is bad a**

    Fox has a new buddy-cop show this summer, called The Good Guys.  Two episodes have already run; the first ran many times over a two week period.  It's odd for a summer series to get so much attention and air time, but this is no ordinary summer series.  In fact, if they just cleaned up the writing a little bit, it could be a good contender at any time of year.  In fact, with twenty episodes now ordered, it will be running in the fall on Friday nights, which could spell doom.  However, it seems it's being given a fair shake, on Monday nights this summer.

     The show is from creator Matt Nix (Burn Notice) and stars two cops.  The new-ish partners are washed up legend Dan Stark (Bradley Whitford, The West Wing), and abrasive, going-nowhere Jack Bailey (Colin Hanks, Roswell).  Though, Dan seems to be anything but ineffective and Jack can solve cases with the best of them.  So how they became the no-go duo is kind of anyone's guess.  In the first two episodes they turned routine cases into big take downs.  For reality's sake, the cases are either going to have to get more minor, or they are going to need to get promoted.  Hopefully it'll be the latter, because what's happening on screen is great fun, the primary component being the wonderful chemistry between the two leads.

     The series also stars the lovely and talented Jenny Wade (Reaper) as Jack's ex, Liz, and the tough and feisty Diana-Maria Riva (Studio 60 On the Sunset Strip) as their boss, Lt. Ruiz.  It's a shame they weren't given a larger group to work with, because I wish Julius (RonReaco Lee, In the Motherhood), their snitch, was sticking around.  He brought much levity to the first two episodes.  But from the cast, to the colorful setting of Dallas, the show has plenty going for it.

     An annoyingly too-often used device in recent television is showing the ending of the episode first.  The Good Guys often does this, but many of the other scenes also air non-chronologically.  It's always done for good reason, and actually adds another fun element, rather than falling into the cliche trap.  I hope they keep it up.

     If you want to watch The Good Guys, and I certainly hope you do, please tune into Fox Monday nights at 9pm.