New York Undercover

This was one of those unique shows that should have acquired more praise. While white-dominated cop shows seem to be the norm, this show broke new ground with a diverse cast and minority related issues. Sadly, the whiteness of Hollywood was far too much to overcome in regards to the shelf life of this show. Malik Yoba and Michael DeLorenzo were especially excellent in this series, demonstrating their talent as they were constantly torn between race, culture and the police force. I especially felt the opening montages to the show provided quite a trademark within the series, using no words and only the pulsating beats of contemporary hip-hop and R&B artists to tell the story in a neo-silent film fashion. Whenever I can catch this show at 1 a.m. (and this is only on the weekends), I am rarely disappointed.

I thought this show was very good. When I saw the first season, I was somewhat iffy about where it was going. The next season they added the beautiful Lauren Velez, and I think it was then that the show took off. I became a New York Undercover addict! I even enjoyed the episodes in which they brought in Detective Macnamara, played by Jonathan LaPaglia. The next thing I know, New York Undercover just went down hill due to the killing off of the characters Torres and Macnamara. I thought for sure that the season after Macnamara was introduced, that it would get better just as the show always seemed to do at the start of every new season. Well, Mr. Wolf handed fans a HUGE disappointment. I agree with the person who stated that this show could have survived at least two or three more seasons had they kept the Eddie Torres character. Dick Wolf should have seen disaster on the rise. Viewers were used to seeing Torres and Williams. You can't kill off one of the lead characters and expect to have a chance at good ratings. Not only did they kill off Torres and Macnamara, but they killed the spirit of the show. Tommy Ford as Lt. Barker looked more like a pimp than a cop. And who were these other rejects? Even Lt. Cooper left the show. I think fans only watched the very FIRST episode of the last season because they wanted to know if in fact Torres' character was really dead. Once they found out, that was it. Dick Wolf has learned his lesson I'm sure. When you've got a good thing, keep it the way it is. Nobody likes drastic changes to something that they're used to. He's learning that with Law & Order.

I am currently streaming NYU on Peacock and this show is EXCELLENT. I'm not sure who or why they inexplicably destroyed this show by killing Det. Torres and adding McNamara, and then axing Lt. Cooper. It appears that it intentionally harsh...they way they killed off Torres. I only watched like 2 episodes of season 4., and I guess everybody else agreed that season 4 was awful since there are only 13 episodes 😂. I've read that this show was the number one show in Black & Hispanic households and I believe it! The show had action, strained relationships, a dysfunctional family...it has it all. I don't think a reboot could recapture this magic.

This series was without a doubt, the best police drama made in the 90's. It was action packed, contemporary, well written, cutting edge material. The show evolved around the characters of J.C.Williams & Eddie Torres who were so connected with the gritty streets of N.Y.C., it made them naturals for the undercover work that they were assigned. Lt. Cooper was perfect as the no nonsense commander of the unit who gave them just enough flexibility to get the job done. The story lines read out of the newspaper of the day and every week, they would have whoever was the top current musical artist perform at "Natalie's", so the show stay current with the times.

The show went south when the stars tried to pull a "Friends" and demand higher salaries and wanted their contracts renegotiated. The producers responded by killing off Torres and replacing Cooper. It was a shame, because the show was a hit. After DeLorenzo & D'Arbanville left the show, it only lasted one more season, and it was not as good as the first three seasons. I'm not sure if it is on DVD, but if it is, it's worth the price.

I caught a few reruns back few years ago. If you are a fan of shows like the wire then you will love this. If only it was available to stream