APB Series Premiere – “Pilot” Review. Bought to Protect and Serve.

Season 1, Episode 1

Air Date: Monday, February 6, 2017, 8:30/7:30c on Fox

Rating: ★★★★★

“Where the hell are you people?” – Reeves

Justin Kirk as Gideon Reeves

For 20 years, Reeves Industries, led by Gideon Reeves (Justin Kirk), has been the leader in the technology revolution. An eccentric character, Reeves enjoys taking a hands-on approach, even with his most dangerous technology. But a routine stop for cigarettes turns tragic when Reeves’ best friend and CFO Elliot Sully (Eric Lynch) is shot during a mugging. As Sully slowly dies in his arms, Reeves grows impatient as he sits on hold with 911. Frustrated with the system, Reeves decides to put his money, and his technology, to good use by buying and running Chicago’s 13th Police District.

I’ve been a fan of Kirk’s since he played Andy Botwin on the Showtime series Weeds, and was excited to learn he had been cast as the lead in APB. Kirk does a wonderful job balancing his character’s emotions after losing his best friend with the eccentricities of a tech billionaire. The scenes where Reeves demonstrates his technology are made better because of Kirk’s nonchalant humor. Kirk’s portrayal of Reeves quickly drew me into the story making me eager to watch things play out.

One of the interesting things about APB is it addresses the morality of privatizing a police force. Much of the pushback to Reeves’ plans comes from Amelia Murphy (Natalie Martinez), a tough policewoman who comes from a family of cops. Murphy doesn’t hesitate to take on Reeves by asking questions like, “Why is some rich guy able to buy justice? Is crime only an issue when it touches you?” These questions create some interesting dialogue that is riveting to watch. The banter between Reeves and Murphy in other scenes is fun to watch, especially when they find themselves learning from each other.

Natalie Martinez as Amelia Murphy

While the interaction between the two is interesting, the rest of the characters in APB’s “Pilot” are utterly forgettable. Reeves mentions members of his team as “that guy” and when he does refer to people, for instance Geoff (William Smillie), it’s through casual reference where the viewer doesn’t have time to connect a face to the name. The same applies to the Chicago 13th precinct as characters like Seargent Ed Conrad (Ernie Hudson) and Captain Hauser (Kevin Chapman) have no significant role. I was thrilled to see Chapman, who played Lionel Fusco on CBS’s Person of Interest, only to be disappointed by his lack of screen time. Hopefully, as the series progresses, the writers will find a better way of developing the secondary characters.

APB is based loosely on the New York Times Magazine article, “Who Runs the Streets of New Orleans.” APB is reminiscent of Marvel’s first Iron Man movie, minus Tony Stark’s unique suit. This is especially true with Reeves’ introduction, which appears to be heavily influenced by the movie. Both have a similar narrative and feature a tech savvy billionaire fed up with the system only to take matters into his own hands.

Before a single episode had aired, APB had its fair share of struggles. Filming of the series was briefly shut down when creator David Slack left over creative differences. Burn Notice creator Matt Nix was eventually brought in to take over. Even without the showrunner change, APB faces an uphill battle. Sci-fi crime dramas like Fox’s Almost Human and Minority Report didn’t last long. Given how much turmoil APB has already been through, I wonder how long of a leash Fox has given Nix.

Overall, I enjoyed ”Pilot.” Kirk is a great casting choice; I love the dry humor he brings to Reeves. Murphy and Reeves have an intriguing yin-yang dynamic that’s fun to watch. The use of hi-tech gadets and ingenuity is entertaining, especially when Reeves demonstrates it on his own team. This brings me to my biggest complaint about the APB’s “Pilot;” I was satisfied when it ended. Let me explain.

As much as I had a good time watching “Pilot,” the storylines that piqued my interest are worked out and resolved. While I was caught up in the events of the series premiere, I couldn’t think of anything in the episode that left me wanting more. It’s like enjoying a movie but questioning the need for a sequel when it’s announced. A pilot should leave the audience eager to see what happens next, but that doesn’t happen with APB. That’s not to say it can’t happen; bottomline, “Pilot” simply doesn’t lay out the groundwork. Hopefully, the writers will find a way to draw the viewers in week after week or at least long enough for the series to find its footing. Even with my concerns, I intend to check out the next few episodes to see if the series can win me over.

Tweet me @Staffaroadtrip or leave a comment below to let me know what you think about the APB “Pilot.”

Tune in to APB Mondays at 8:30/7:30c, only on Fox.

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Greg Staffa

I provide testosterone to the site. You won’t be reading about how nice a actress looks in a dress or how much of a hunk Matt Bomer is in my reviews. I describe colors using words like brown, not taupe. My twitter name is @staffaroadtrip because I love road trips and have done two different 48-state road trips since 2008. My favorite show is White Collar.