“It’s my generations fault for not teaching yours better manners.” -Gibbons
I’ve given The Chicago Code a lot leeway so far this season due largely in part to the involvement of Shawn Ryan, creator of The Shield and Terriers. I was upset a bit last week with the episode, but dismissed the notion because it was without Delroy Lindo. However with his return this week I got the same feeling: the show is good, not great. When Terriers was around I found myself loving every episode and not wanting it to end, but with The Chicago Code, I feel like I would be ok if it went away forever. That seems very harsh, so let me clarify a few things. The first is that it is infinitely better than CSI, NCIS and all their offspring procedurals. I would miss The Chicago Code because it would be better than those, but know that those shows don’t really exist in my universe. So when I say “if the show went away” I mean if it went away from the list of shows I watch or will watch. Do I wish the show to go away? No. Far from it. What I wish is for the show to improve. It has a lot of great elements in it, it just needs to find a way to put them altogether.
The Chicago Code is essentially two shows battling for air time. One show is Alderman Gibbons using his political office to run an organized crime syndicate but he has to keep batting away these annoying cops that keep trying to slow him down. What he doesn’t know is that he just took in an undercover cop into his crime family. The other show is one where a superintendent has a super detective that rides around with this young up and coming detective solving crimes, but their relationship is the real story. The super cop has a tumultuous home life and the kid cop keeps giving him grief, all while being a pretty decent detective. Both shows on there own would just be ok, but if we can find a way to weave them together, we’d be much better off.
I’m not one to just throw out problems and offer no solutions, so I’ll do my best. It is without hesitation that I can say Justified is currently the best showing airing right now. This excludes the likes of Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Boardwalk Empire and shows like that as they are currently not airing. What Justified does so well is that it has created a sense of family in Harlan County. Even when things don’t directly involve Raylan Givens, they effect him. Justified is a mix of episodic cases mixed with serialized cases just like The Chicago Code, yet Justified is such a smoother show. In fairness to The Chicago Code, Justified does not have to please a network audience. It can function in cable land. But at the heart of the matter is the lead character. We have learned to love Raylan despite his many flaws. With Jarek Wysocki, we’re not quite head over heels for him. This is why I thought it was nice in this episode to get a bit more of a look in the insight of his home life. On Shawn Ryan’s twitter he was asked when we were going to meet Jarek’s fiance, and he replied, “Soon. And when we meet her, you won’t forget her.” I thought this meant she was going to show up guns a blaze being the drug kingpin of Chicago or something. I half expected her to jump out of the Nigerian’s car with the kidnapped son, but no, it was neither of these things. It turns out that she’s just smoking hot. It’s no wonder Jarek is having trouble leaving her to go back and be with his ex wife. Beautiful ladies is a move Justified has been pulling for a while now. It’s about time The Chicago Code stepped up it’s game. Though I’ll admit, I do find Jarek’s niece Vonda a little attractive.
I think the show has taken a step in the right direction this episode though. There was a great scene where Gibbons brought Liam in to visit the family of the man he unknowingly killed. It really showed the ruthlessness of Gibbons’ character and let us know just how sick and twisted he is. This led to Liam talking to both Wysocki and Superintendent Colvin and ultimately to him saying that he’ll do whatever it takes to bring Gibbons down. Now we have all our good guys with a singular focus. Now if ruthless drug dealer gang kingpins with weaknesses for their family can stop getting the way, The Chicago Code can get focused and close out the season strong!
Showing posts with label delroy lindo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label delroy lindo. Show all posts
Monday, March 21, 2011
Monday, March 14, 2011
The Chicago Code - "The Gold Coin Kid" Review
“The way I see it, a whorehouse is a whorehouse whether it serves Crystal or Old Style.” -Wysocki
Although a good episode independently, The Chicago Code’s problems reared their head tonight. In order for it to be a successful network drama, it needs to have a touch of episodic elements while trying to maintain a serialized story. Tonight we got very much needed information on Caleb Evers and he and Wysocki’s relationship, but it came at the expense of the Alderman Gibbons arc. The show is not as strong when we get less Delroy Lindo. This in turn effects the undercover agent story line. It’s almost like this episode was aired out of order. I’m ok with episodic cop drama, though I prefer serialized. Up until this point, The Chicago Code was able to straddle both effectively. I’m not a fan of the half in half out episodes. Imagine if a train were to crash. It would be the worst case scenario if it crashed and partially remained on the track as no working train can pass through. If it fell all the way off, at least working trains could still use the track. If The Chicago Code is most effective as an episodic drama that focuses on relationships, so be it. But I think they can maintain their serialized arc once they get all their exposition out of the way.
As for the episode itself, we finally learn a little more about Caleb Evers. Up until this point he was just a ride along detective that was trying to learn some things from Wysocki as he trys to get better at his job. Tonight we learn that he’s a Northwestern grad with aspirations to become an FBI agent. If watching cop dramas has taught me anything, it’s that local police and the suits of the FBI don’t always get along. The only instance I can think of where it worked well was the friend McNulty had on the FBI in The Wire that got him surveillance equipment. Put this against Caleb being from the North Side and we see that there will be tension between Evers and Wysocki just based on upbringing alone.
Now what was nice is that The Chicago Code didn’t let the conflict just die at that. Wysocki and Superintendent Colvin cooked up some scheme to get the department some radios. The problem is that Wysocki left Evers in the dark about it. It was a type of test that led to a 2 week suspension and a black mark in his file. Evers was understandably upset at this and called Wysocki out on the affair that he’s having with his ex-wife. Two things worked really well about this scene. The first was seeing Wysocki almost proud that Evers figured it out. He had a type of sneer that said, “I’m not even mad, I’m impressed.” The second was when Caleb yelled, “You can lie to your fiance but not your partner!” This has to hit home as Wysocki has taught his niece, Vonda, that the most important thing in police work is to trust your partner. Evers grew up right before Wysocki’s eyes. The problem being now is that Evers can’t trust Wysocki as opposed to the other way around.
I did think that The Chicago Code took the easy way out in the case that Wysocki and Colvin cooked up. One problem with the show is that the hand picking of cases for Wysocki is largely unrealistic and the amount of time he gets with the Superintendent is unreasonable. So it was interesting at the beginning when I thought Colvin was going to try and use Wysocki for her own personal gain to keep him in line. However, with them being both in on it and the willingness of both to play with fire like that, Wysocki is just being made more into a super cop that can do no wrong. I think we need to see Wysocki in some real hot water in order for the show to raise its stakes.
I’m still not so sold on the Isaac and Vonda story line. I get that it helps us see Wysocki be protective of his family. The search for his brother’s killer is still looming over our head, but I’m not sure we need full story lines from them. How does it elevate the show? I know that it exoands the universe, and that’s important, but it just seemed very detached from the rest of the narrative. Perhaps Moose was too busy filming season 2 of Justified, where he plays Coover Bennett, for them to keep him in each episode. I can’t envision a scenario where the task force and Wysocki’s cases would come into conflict. I think that angle of the show needs to be fleshed out a bit before I’m ready to see a lot more of it.
Although a good episode independently, The Chicago Code’s problems reared their head tonight. In order for it to be a successful network drama, it needs to have a touch of episodic elements while trying to maintain a serialized story. Tonight we got very much needed information on Caleb Evers and he and Wysocki’s relationship, but it came at the expense of the Alderman Gibbons arc. The show is not as strong when we get less Delroy Lindo. This in turn effects the undercover agent story line. It’s almost like this episode was aired out of order. I’m ok with episodic cop drama, though I prefer serialized. Up until this point, The Chicago Code was able to straddle both effectively. I’m not a fan of the half in half out episodes. Imagine if a train were to crash. It would be the worst case scenario if it crashed and partially remained on the track as no working train can pass through. If it fell all the way off, at least working trains could still use the track. If The Chicago Code is most effective as an episodic drama that focuses on relationships, so be it. But I think they can maintain their serialized arc once they get all their exposition out of the way.
As for the episode itself, we finally learn a little more about Caleb Evers. Up until this point he was just a ride along detective that was trying to learn some things from Wysocki as he trys to get better at his job. Tonight we learn that he’s a Northwestern grad with aspirations to become an FBI agent. If watching cop dramas has taught me anything, it’s that local police and the suits of the FBI don’t always get along. The only instance I can think of where it worked well was the friend McNulty had on the FBI in The Wire that got him surveillance equipment. Put this against Caleb being from the North Side and we see that there will be tension between Evers and Wysocki just based on upbringing alone.
Now what was nice is that The Chicago Code didn’t let the conflict just die at that. Wysocki and Superintendent Colvin cooked up some scheme to get the department some radios. The problem is that Wysocki left Evers in the dark about it. It was a type of test that led to a 2 week suspension and a black mark in his file. Evers was understandably upset at this and called Wysocki out on the affair that he’s having with his ex-wife. Two things worked really well about this scene. The first was seeing Wysocki almost proud that Evers figured it out. He had a type of sneer that said, “I’m not even mad, I’m impressed.” The second was when Caleb yelled, “You can lie to your fiance but not your partner!” This has to hit home as Wysocki has taught his niece, Vonda, that the most important thing in police work is to trust your partner. Evers grew up right before Wysocki’s eyes. The problem being now is that Evers can’t trust Wysocki as opposed to the other way around.
I did think that The Chicago Code took the easy way out in the case that Wysocki and Colvin cooked up. One problem with the show is that the hand picking of cases for Wysocki is largely unrealistic and the amount of time he gets with the Superintendent is unreasonable. So it was interesting at the beginning when I thought Colvin was going to try and use Wysocki for her own personal gain to keep him in line. However, with them being both in on it and the willingness of both to play with fire like that, Wysocki is just being made more into a super cop that can do no wrong. I think we need to see Wysocki in some real hot water in order for the show to raise its stakes.
I’m still not so sold on the Isaac and Vonda story line. I get that it helps us see Wysocki be protective of his family. The search for his brother’s killer is still looming over our head, but I’m not sure we need full story lines from them. How does it elevate the show? I know that it exoands the universe, and that’s important, but it just seemed very detached from the rest of the narrative. Perhaps Moose was too busy filming season 2 of Justified, where he plays Coover Bennett, for them to keep him in each episode. I can’t envision a scenario where the task force and Wysocki’s cases would come into conflict. I think that angle of the show needs to be fleshed out a bit before I’m ready to see a lot more of it.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
The Chicago Code - “Gillis, Chase, and Baby Face” Review
“Don’t you threaten me Hugh. It’s not productive. And it’s not polite.” -Gibbons
When this episode first got going, I thought we were in for another episode that was a chess match between Superintendent Colvin and Wysocki versus the rest of the force. That would have been just fine. Inter department politics are always interesting to me. I personally would have liked to see a little of the Jonesy tow truck scam. This is why police dramas will never get old. There’s always material. Anytime they want, they can go off a tangent that will still keep us interested. But what the episode ultimately delivered was even better. We now know just what type of villain the Chicago PD is up against in Alderman Gibbons.
Finally we get to see the evil side of Alderman Gibbons, and the brilliance of actor Delroy Lindo. Up until this point it was all speculation and what the show told us, but now we see just what he is capable of doing. He was able to get both the Irish mob and the police force under his thumb in swift set of maneuvers. One of my favorite scenes of the episode was where Gibbons and Hugh discussed leverage. Hugh put all his cards on the table whereas Gibbons remained deathly calm. I was told growing up that if you get into a fight with someone and they talk all your best punches and never flinch, yet still come after you, it’s time to flee because you’re dealing with someone that’s not on your level. He will beat you. This is my view of Gibbons. He’s so insulated. The criminals need his protection and the police department needs the money he controls. Gibbons uses both of these groups against each other to further his agenda. The question is, what is his agenda? He’s rich and appears to be happy, but what else does he want? Surely he can retire at this point. Is the crime life that addicting? Is he trying to build an empire of sorts? Does he want to be elected mayor? At this point he’s only made moves to clean up messes. Things could get really ugly when he starts making his own moves to get more of what he’s after. Until we know just what his end game is, I don’t think we know the extent of what he will do to get it.
The other dynamic we have working is Wysocki’s professional relationships. It’s clear both he and Colvin share a mutual trust and respect, but it is that very relationship that endangers the life of him and his partner. Allegiances will be tested inside the department. Wysocki can’t be a successful cop if the rest of the cops freeze him out, yet because he hasn’t done anything to warrant their hate, he isn’t going to submit to them. This puts Caleb Evers in an interesting position. In his voice over in the previous episode, he stated that a successful stint riding with Wysocki will lead you straight to the top. But Evers is seeing the cost of doing business this way. In this episode he asks, “Is it worth it? I want to do my job, but if we can’t even trust other cops to have our backs, this job gets dangerous.” That answer to his question will surely be answered and constantly redefined.
Te struggle between Wysocki and the rest of the cops will be ongoing. As we saw with Moose, Wysocki can’t just take an apology and everything is ok. Moose put his and his partner’s life in danger by freezing them out. This lead to them not catching the criminal and having to resort to Wysocki shooting and killing him. Rather than take Moose’s apology, he punched him in the face further alienating himself. Wysocki’s rigid sense of justice is what makes him a great cop. However, it may be his undoing inside the force.
When this episode first got going, I thought we were in for another episode that was a chess match between Superintendent Colvin and Wysocki versus the rest of the force. That would have been just fine. Inter department politics are always interesting to me. I personally would have liked to see a little of the Jonesy tow truck scam. This is why police dramas will never get old. There’s always material. Anytime they want, they can go off a tangent that will still keep us interested. But what the episode ultimately delivered was even better. We now know just what type of villain the Chicago PD is up against in Alderman Gibbons.
Finally we get to see the evil side of Alderman Gibbons, and the brilliance of actor Delroy Lindo. Up until this point it was all speculation and what the show told us, but now we see just what he is capable of doing. He was able to get both the Irish mob and the police force under his thumb in swift set of maneuvers. One of my favorite scenes of the episode was where Gibbons and Hugh discussed leverage. Hugh put all his cards on the table whereas Gibbons remained deathly calm. I was told growing up that if you get into a fight with someone and they talk all your best punches and never flinch, yet still come after you, it’s time to flee because you’re dealing with someone that’s not on your level. He will beat you. This is my view of Gibbons. He’s so insulated. The criminals need his protection and the police department needs the money he controls. Gibbons uses both of these groups against each other to further his agenda. The question is, what is his agenda? He’s rich and appears to be happy, but what else does he want? Surely he can retire at this point. Is the crime life that addicting? Is he trying to build an empire of sorts? Does he want to be elected mayor? At this point he’s only made moves to clean up messes. Things could get really ugly when he starts making his own moves to get more of what he’s after. Until we know just what his end game is, I don’t think we know the extent of what he will do to get it.
The other dynamic we have working is Wysocki’s professional relationships. It’s clear both he and Colvin share a mutual trust and respect, but it is that very relationship that endangers the life of him and his partner. Allegiances will be tested inside the department. Wysocki can’t be a successful cop if the rest of the cops freeze him out, yet because he hasn’t done anything to warrant their hate, he isn’t going to submit to them. This puts Caleb Evers in an interesting position. In his voice over in the previous episode, he stated that a successful stint riding with Wysocki will lead you straight to the top. But Evers is seeing the cost of doing business this way. In this episode he asks, “Is it worth it? I want to do my job, but if we can’t even trust other cops to have our backs, this job gets dangerous.” That answer to his question will surely be answered and constantly redefined.
Te struggle between Wysocki and the rest of the cops will be ongoing. As we saw with Moose, Wysocki can’t just take an apology and everything is ok. Moose put his and his partner’s life in danger by freezing them out. This lead to them not catching the criminal and having to resort to Wysocki shooting and killing him. Rather than take Moose’s apology, he punched him in the face further alienating himself. Wysocki’s rigid sense of justice is what makes him a great cop. However, it may be his undoing inside the force.
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