USA has a recipe list for lots of its top shows; take two
guys, put them into a procedural situation, put a divide between them and
feature a good supporting cast. So to find out Common Law is about two cops who
have issues with one another came as no surprise. After all, if you’ve got a
good thing, why change it? So does the formula suit Common Law? Yes and no.
The casting is good. Michael Ealy plays Detective Travis
Marks, a trigger happy cop who charms his way through life. Warren Kole plays
his partner, Detective Wes Mitchell, a cynical former Lawyer who doesn’t like
to bend the rules. The chemistry between the leads is good, though not as
strong as that between Roday and Hill in Psych or Macht and Adams in Suits. The
pair attend couples therapy led by Sonya Walger, which was the most enjoyable
and humorous aspect of the episode.
However, despite the good casting, the episode left me
unsatisfied and at times, bored. The plot was rather predictable, there aren’t
enough supporting cast members to keep it interesting if you tire of the leads
and some of the situations were a little ridiculous (if you watch it, you’ll
know what I mean at the gas station).
Overall, if you enjoy other procedural shows that USA has to
offer like Psych and Suits, you may well enjoy Common Law. However, it does not
match the standard of these shows and I for one will not be tuning in again.
Catch Common Law on USA Friday May 11, 10/9C.
yeah, figured it'd be so-so.. the promos weren't impressive enough the intrigue..
ReplyDeletewho knows, maybe it'll click with some audience..
You did not sell me that the show was bad, since you only have seen the pilot. I rather hear a review of more episodes than just a pilot. Pilots easliy oversell things, and often does things more lightheaded then the rest of the episodes. Some series have also quite bad pilot-episodes that i turn of. And somewhat i like the latter episodes really much.
ReplyDeleteIt is on tonight? I tought it was next friday after that legal-show on USA.
Agreed. Pilots rarely hit it out of the park but if the foundation is good it's worth giving a show time to find their feet. It is next Friday, May 11th. I'll be watching for at least a few episodes.
ReplyDeleteAgreed! I would think one would need more than 1 or 2 episodes to gauge how a show is.So far 3 different reviews basically saying the same thing,their has to be
ReplyDeleteThey're actually not saying it`s garbage or bad at all. The reviews says its only predictable, even the crime parts of Awake is quite predictable for me. But the show is otherwise great. But they are all reviewing the first episode, not the full first season, not even the second episode or third episode. In my opinon pilots usually stinks when it comes to shows outside some premium cable-shows like from HBO or Showtime.
ReplyDeleteFor me White Collar and Psych is garabage at this point, and the reviews i have seen come more of as something written by people who the likes shows on USA i really hate now, saying they are more fantastic than i really think they are. I also remember seeing similar reviews when Burn Notice was comming on air in 2007, and i loved and loves that show. The same also with Suits, witch is another show and the only other show so far from USA i still love after the first season.
Yep,that's why i said more than one viewing is needed,and yes they all same the show is predictable..
ReplyDeleteI like White Collar and Burn Notice,i could live w/o Psych.I can't wait to see how Suits does,also Covert Affairs and probably some others that i'm forgetting...
You're right, it's next Friday! I've edited the post to update :)
ReplyDeleteGotta disagree. The actors do a good job with their roles, the premise is silly & fun, and there is obvious chemistry between the two detectives. We chuckled all the way thru it, and the "perp" was not obvious, making the story intriguing enough to watch & enjoy right to the end.
ReplyDeleteSure, the formula has been done before, but I thought that the pilot was good and I hope they let the show develop because both of the lead characters have more depth than the average character in a law show. I thought the tension between the two was great and also adds a lot of potential for future exploration.
ReplyDeleteOh and one more thing, I thought it was awesome that they used that song "Blanco" by Pitbull and Pharrell when Wes and Travis were chasing Ramon through the streets of downtown, that song is so intense it really added the icing on the cake to a great action scene - plus, I love a great foot chase.