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healingmirthI think I saw someone describe Detroit 1-8-7 (10pm Tuesdays on ABC) by saying it was like The Unusuals, but not stupid.
Now, I really liked The Unusuals, so I'm not sure how I'm supposed to feel about that description, but I love Detroit 1-8-7 so far. Where The Unusuals was comical (and dramatic, and a little romantic, and a little actiony, which is to say a slightly confused at the best of times), Detroit 1-8-7 is a much more focused drama.
I'm still curious as to why Hulu's got it pegged as a comedy. I've seen a few articles that refer to the pilot having been shot as a mockumentary, though I don't think quite that's the term they mean to use. At least to me, the term mockumentary is not the same as faux documentary. This show is not The Office and I have a hard time imagining that it was ever intended to be. There are a few early moments where Detective Fitch (Michael Imperioli) and his quirks seem to be played for humor, but I don't think that's going to last.
This review from the LA Times seems to really hate it. The New York Times reviewer was more positive. I haven't been forced to watch ten hours of crime procedurals leading up to the fall season, and that probably explains why I liked it so much more than the critics did. Actually, unless you count NCIS, which I don't, I haven't followed a typical cop show since season eight of CSI.
The first two episodes of Detroit 1-8-7 are peppered with details of the characters' personal lives, and from the preview of the third, it looks like they're going to be doing that for a while. It seems to me that this is going to be a character-driven show as much as a crime-driven one, and I appreciate the fact that they made it through the pilot episode without an infodump.
Proving that the type of television writing that I enjoy is not for everyone, the LA Times reviewer wrote, "Most of the rest of the cast, though they come in assorted sizes, shapes and colors, has not yet been given the material to make much of an impression, just the superficial tics that too often pass for character nowadays," and then goes on to detail and disparage all of those details that I really enjoyed.
Detroit 1-8-7 isn't edgy or ground-breaking, but I'm really happy to see it, and I hope it sticks around for a while.
Now, I really liked The Unusuals, so I'm not sure how I'm supposed to feel about that description, but I love Detroit 1-8-7 so far. Where The Unusuals was comical (and dramatic, and a little romantic, and a little actiony, which is to say a slightly confused at the best of times), Detroit 1-8-7 is a much more focused drama.
I'm still curious as to why Hulu's got it pegged as a comedy. I've seen a few articles that refer to the pilot having been shot as a mockumentary, though I don't think quite that's the term they mean to use. At least to me, the term mockumentary is not the same as faux documentary. This show is not The Office and I have a hard time imagining that it was ever intended to be. There are a few early moments where Detective Fitch (Michael Imperioli) and his quirks seem to be played for humor, but I don't think that's going to last.
This review from the LA Times seems to really hate it. The New York Times reviewer was more positive. I haven't been forced to watch ten hours of crime procedurals leading up to the fall season, and that probably explains why I liked it so much more than the critics did. Actually, unless you count NCIS, which I don't, I haven't followed a typical cop show since season eight of CSI.
The first two episodes of Detroit 1-8-7 are peppered with details of the characters' personal lives, and from the preview of the third, it looks like they're going to be doing that for a while. It seems to me that this is going to be a character-driven show as much as a crime-driven one, and I appreciate the fact that they made it through the pilot episode without an infodump.
Proving that the type of television writing that I enjoy is not for everyone, the LA Times reviewer wrote, "Most of the rest of the cast, though they come in assorted sizes, shapes and colors, has not yet been given the material to make much of an impression, just the superficial tics that too often pass for character nowadays," and then goes on to detail and disparage all of those details that I really enjoyed.
Detroit 1-8-7 isn't edgy or ground-breaking, but I'm really happy to see it, and I hope it sticks around for a while.
