E-Ring - Military Minds

Critics of this show say there is a fundamental flaw with the concept of E-Ring: the main characters, including the protagonist played by Benjamin Bratt, are not really heroes.

The line of thinking says that characters have to operate completely autonomously to be considered heroic. The comments I've seen point out that Bratt and his colleagues (including boss Dennis Hopper) direct others to do the work but need to get approval from above for that work to be carried out. In other words, they don't DO anything themselves.

I watched the episodes I've seen with a jaundiced eye, the critics' words in mind. But Bratt comes off as, while slightly arrogant and naive, a true crusader who is learning to work the system to get very heroic things done. Along the way he designs some pretty creative military missions.

Jerry Bruckheimer may be stretching himself a little thin, but this one is pretty darn good. I would give it 7 out of 10. For one thing, the acting and writing (discounting a few egregious clichés) is better than CSI: Miami.

I think of "E-Ring" is a NBC's version of FOX's "24" but yet a in different style. "E-Ring" is about a former CIA agent, Jim "J.T." Tisnewski (Benjamin Bratt) who is an irreverent and resourceful U.S Army Major who works with Colonel McNulty (Dennis Hopper) in the military team. It's a hub of highly explosive conflicts between American military heroes and the civilians to whom they report -- a world where crises can escalate into life-and-death climaxes, for individuals or entire nations! I'm glad Jerry Bruckheimer decided to do this show instead of making another CSI show because those CSI shows are kind of getting out of line! Plus I wonder if Dennis Hopper's character will die at all? Because vast majority of the characters he plays, most of them die. But if you want a show with good action, you should check out this one! This show premiered on NBC, September 2005.

User Rating: 9/10

BOTTOM LINE: ANOTHER PIECE OF GREAT WORK DONE BY JERRY BRUCKHEIMER!

We want E-Ring returned to it's original prime-time location. It made Wednesday evening something to look forward to. Enjoyed the action & the personal interchange of the characters. Ventures into the Middle East are informative. We considered E-Ring an intelligent introduction into the workings of our military & state departments. A look into our covert shenanigans is helpful in keeping the American people aware of our government's activities in other nations. Excellent & interesting cast! Powerhouses like Dennis Hopper & Benjamin Bratt really added spark! We were also really looking forward to MSgt Jocelyn Pierce's budding romantic relationship. Hopefully, E-Ring will return! Soon!

The political and bureaucratic hurdles facing covert operations make an interesting and informative juxtaposition to the actual operations themselves. The show is like the West Wing (with somewhat less left-wing bias) combined with The Unit (without the soap opera/Desperate Housewives storyline). The characters are realistic, and the special forces exploits appear fairly plausible; however, I doubt that Pentagon staffers head into the field with any regularity, even if that does make for good television.

I enjoy E-Ring and hope NBC or another network picks it back up and continues to run it. (It would be amusing if E-Ring were to go the way of JAG, which started on NBC, was dropped at the end of the first season, and then ran for nine additional, successful seasons on CBS.) Whoever runs it, I certainly hope the show is not killed for good.

Thanks for reading.

-dave

I enjoyed this show to no end. It was great, a thousand times better than it's same slotted ABC competition. It showed the military from a perspective that few people get to see. I love that fact that Benjamin's character was is in the Delta Force and is able to give his battlefield perspective, when important military decisions are made. As a Non Commissioned Officer myself, it is all to rare when you see officers concentrating on the men and mission and not the politics. These few officers are greatly appreciated by people such as myself. The show was complete from top to bottom. It had great suspense and conflict and it told a great story. IT's like getting to see a great Jerry Bruckheimer produced movie every week. I saw zero flaws in this show. It was so realistic that it's scary to see how much insight the public has to the Department of Defense. Politics versus Soldiers is the classic struggle that we face everyday. There is nothing on TV better than this show