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So.
I used to watch a lot of cop shows. I used to watch pretty much exclusively cop shows. Um, and Angel. Because we didn't get the Space Channel.
But anyway, I'm sort of over them. Even Criminal Minds, which I loved, has fallen by the wayside (except reruns!). That style of story-telling, the darkness and despair, the complete disregard for protocol, the sensationalism (most especially the sensationalism); all of these are things that I have come to not enjoy. For the most part, I can watch the early seasons on Spike TV, but after a certain point, I just can't.
Except for Flashpoint.
Flashpoint is, in a nutshell, the Little Canadian Cop Show That Could. It was the first show ever made and set in Canada to air in Prime Time on a major US network. Its stars range from Canadian stock actor Hugh Dillon to Veronica Mars' Keith Mars to the Pink Power Ranger (I'm not even kidding). The theme song really tells you everything you need to know about the show: it's subtle, friendly, even, but there's this edge to it that I can never quite describe (and yes, I have a mini heart attack on the last note every time).
It's character driven, somehow all six of them at once, and even though there is no such thing as the Strategic Response Unit (Major Crimes/Guns and Gangs would probably be the closest equivalent), the show still feels like Toronto (and here I will reference my sister, the Forensic Biologist, who hates CSI almost as much as I hate Bones...and freaking loves this show because of how true to the spirit of Toronto and to the ideal of the Toronto Police Force it is).
Now, you all know that I am picky about certain things. Like how "the girl" is written. Flashpoint doesn't have a lot of female characters (fair, if unfortunate, given the breakdown of the Toronto Police Department), but the ones it has are really kind of awesome. Jules, the only one in the credits, is phenomenal at her job (which she has had to earn twice, thanks to being shot on duty), and remarkable in her social life (which is a WHOLE SEPARATE ESSAY that I will not inflict on you at this time). Donna (played by the fabulous Jessica Steen while Jules was recovering from being shot) was fantastic, and has moved into her new role after Jules's return because it was business, and is a total pro about it. Winnie, the dispatcher, is excruciatingly competent. And then of course we had Ed's wife Sophie, who recently gave birth after issuing Ed an ultimatum.
I hate the ultimatum. (You know the one..."You pick the job, or you pick this family". hates)
I dislike this trope for a lot of reasons, but mostly I hate it because it always makes the female look bad. Always. I am trying to think of an example (outside of Flashpoint) where it hasn't, and the closest I can get is Buffy, but that's only because it was Riley who was a jerk about it. It didn't work on Criminal Minds, it didn't work on Without A Trace, it never works. It's cheap, it invariably sets up a fridging, and it bothers me, so when it became clear that Flashpoint was headed in that direction, I got really frustrated.
It just resolved itself in the episode I finished ten minutes ago, and I could not be happier. GOOD WRITING, you guys. CONSISTENT and RESPECTFUL and I LOVE IT.
Aside from the brilliant individual characters, there is also the team. The dynamics of each strike, who plays which part depending on the situation, and complete communication (between each other and to us) is just awesome. Even though I think there was only one "scorpio" (which is their kill order...in theory all members of the SRU are snipers, but I think only two of them are true snipers and the rest have talents in areas like entry, profiling, negotiation and tech, on top of being marksmen/women) in the whole of season three/four (thanks for making that awkward, CBS!), the fallout was not ignored. In fact, every time there is a scorpio order, the shooting officer is immediately cordoned, investigated, profiled, etc. It's a procedural, yes, but it's also kind of a love letter.
It's also a love letter to Toronto, and Canadian events. But it's never patronizing (though it is on occasion over-written), and it always manages to lay in a twist that makes the incident less about The Event and more about The People, which I appreciate.
And because I'm me, I feel I should also point out that a) I adore Spike (because he is pretty), and b) 90% of my love for this show is based on the fact that when the team does an entry, the front person (armed) is held by the negotiator (unarmed) via the shoulder strap on his or her tac vest, and for some reason I LOVE THAT (you probably can't make a "bulletproof kink" joke that![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
rj_anderson hasn't already made).
In an era when summer TV is suddenly really good (I think I have more summer shows than regular season shows currently), Flashpoint holds its own, my fierce nationalism aside. It's not original per se, but it is an original take on something we already see a lot of, and the way it's written, paced and filmed really makes it a compelling watch. It's not perfect, of course, but its down to earth sense and its sparse style are enough to set it apart, and the acting, writing and concept do the rest. It is primarily episodic, so you don't have to watch all the episodes (but you should!), and season four has only just started...so now's as good a time as any to watch Toronto play itself.
I used to watch a lot of cop shows. I used to watch pretty much exclusively cop shows. Um, and Angel. Because we didn't get the Space Channel.
But anyway, I'm sort of over them. Even Criminal Minds, which I loved, has fallen by the wayside (except reruns!). That style of story-telling, the darkness and despair, the complete disregard for protocol, the sensationalism (most especially the sensationalism); all of these are things that I have come to not enjoy. For the most part, I can watch the early seasons on Spike TV, but after a certain point, I just can't.
Except for Flashpoint.
Flashpoint is, in a nutshell, the Little Canadian Cop Show That Could. It was the first show ever made and set in Canada to air in Prime Time on a major US network. Its stars range from Canadian stock actor Hugh Dillon to Veronica Mars' Keith Mars to the Pink Power Ranger (I'm not even kidding). The theme song really tells you everything you need to know about the show: it's subtle, friendly, even, but there's this edge to it that I can never quite describe (and yes, I have a mini heart attack on the last note every time).
It's character driven, somehow all six of them at once, and even though there is no such thing as the Strategic Response Unit (Major Crimes/Guns and Gangs would probably be the closest equivalent), the show still feels like Toronto (and here I will reference my sister, the Forensic Biologist, who hates CSI almost as much as I hate Bones...and freaking loves this show because of how true to the spirit of Toronto and to the ideal of the Toronto Police Force it is).
Now, you all know that I am picky about certain things. Like how "the girl" is written. Flashpoint doesn't have a lot of female characters (fair, if unfortunate, given the breakdown of the Toronto Police Department), but the ones it has are really kind of awesome. Jules, the only one in the credits, is phenomenal at her job (which she has had to earn twice, thanks to being shot on duty), and remarkable in her social life (which is a WHOLE SEPARATE ESSAY that I will not inflict on you at this time). Donna (played by the fabulous Jessica Steen while Jules was recovering from being shot) was fantastic, and has moved into her new role after Jules's return because it was business, and is a total pro about it. Winnie, the dispatcher, is excruciatingly competent. And then of course we had Ed's wife Sophie, who recently gave birth after issuing Ed an ultimatum.
I hate the ultimatum. (You know the one..."You pick the job, or you pick this family". hates)
I dislike this trope for a lot of reasons, but mostly I hate it because it always makes the female look bad. Always. I am trying to think of an example (outside of Flashpoint) where it hasn't, and the closest I can get is Buffy, but that's only because it was Riley who was a jerk about it. It didn't work on Criminal Minds, it didn't work on Without A Trace, it never works. It's cheap, it invariably sets up a fridging, and it bothers me, so when it became clear that Flashpoint was headed in that direction, I got really frustrated.
It just resolved itself in the episode I finished ten minutes ago, and I could not be happier. GOOD WRITING, you guys. CONSISTENT and RESPECTFUL and I LOVE IT.
Aside from the brilliant individual characters, there is also the team. The dynamics of each strike, who plays which part depending on the situation, and complete communication (between each other and to us) is just awesome. Even though I think there was only one "scorpio" (which is their kill order...in theory all members of the SRU are snipers, but I think only two of them are true snipers and the rest have talents in areas like entry, profiling, negotiation and tech, on top of being marksmen/women) in the whole of season three/four (thanks for making that awkward, CBS!), the fallout was not ignored. In fact, every time there is a scorpio order, the shooting officer is immediately cordoned, investigated, profiled, etc. It's a procedural, yes, but it's also kind of a love letter.
It's also a love letter to Toronto, and Canadian events. But it's never patronizing (though it is on occasion over-written), and it always manages to lay in a twist that makes the incident less about The Event and more about The People, which I appreciate.
And because I'm me, I feel I should also point out that a) I adore Spike (because he is pretty), and b) 90% of my love for this show is based on the fact that when the team does an entry, the front person (armed) is held by the negotiator (unarmed) via the shoulder strap on his or her tac vest, and for some reason I LOVE THAT (you probably can't make a "bulletproof kink" joke that
rj_anderson hasn't already made).In an era when summer TV is suddenly really good (I think I have more summer shows than regular season shows currently), Flashpoint holds its own, my fierce nationalism aside. It's not original per se, but it is an original take on something we already see a lot of, and the way it's written, paced and filmed really makes it a compelling watch. It's not perfect, of course, but its down to earth sense and its sparse style are enough to set it apart, and the acting, writing and concept do the rest. It is primarily episodic, so you don't have to watch all the episodes (but you should!), and season four has only just started...so now's as good a time as any to watch Toronto play itself.
