The Good Guys

My wife summed it up best when she said, between guffaws,"I am embarrassed to admit that I'm laughing!" And laugh we do. The flashback schtick was off-putting for the first ten minutes and then became just one more hilarious aspect of "The Good Guys". Bradley Whitford is even more irritating than he was in "The West Wing" but now he is purposefully comical. Colin Hanks is even funnier: he is so completely straight, so intentionally naive, so dull, so gormless that he is even more laughable than Whitford's overacting, if that be possible. Of course it is an odd buddy cliché but it works so very well! Straight Arrow and a time-challenged refugee from the '70s or '80s, complete with a Magnum PI moustache. Diana Maria Riva is strong as the poor boss out of her depth dealing with the madness of our oddball "heroes". It certainly helps that Jenny Wade is so sweetly pretty that I had better not complete this sentence as my wife is sitting here. If you can forgive yourself a guilty pleasure, laughing at something this preposterously silly, give yourself a treat and watch "The Good Guys". Just don't tell anyone if you want to keep your reputation intact.

Yes, this show shows promise, which means it will be off the air in a week. Still, Malcolm in the Middle lasted for a while, and this show really reminds me of that show, but with cops and shooting. First, wow does Colin Hanks look, speak, talk and act like Tom Hanks. So if you're not into Tom Hanks you probably won't be into this show. Second, for a while I thought the direction was a little too frenetic and Tarantino-like, but in a bad way. As if there was a good way. But eventually the captions, cutting and the non linear time lines stuff grew on me, like a fungus. Last, "Good Cop, Sick Cop"? That was funny, yes it was also stupid, but it's a treat to see Bradley Whitford act like a moron after so many straight roles. I'll watch this again.

If you're an overly analytical crime drama aficionado, you won't like The Good Guys. Me, I love it. It takes so many genres, mashes them together and it works like a charm - Love the Stephen J Cannell all action no plot series of the 80's? its here. Like procedural crime drama?its here. Like tongue in cheek comedy? Its here. Like Magnum's cheesy mustache, Matt Houston, pleather jackets? Its here. Matt Nix has a winner here. Its no typical crime drama, buddy cop adventure. Its a hoot and I hope it sticks around. The cast of characters is strong, plenty of action, lots of laughs and it just doesn't take itself too seriously. You want blue light CSI special effects and Law & Order procedural drama, go watch them. You want simple action, gunfights, car chases and likable characters, watch The Good Guys.

Based on this program's pilot episode, I will plan to keep tuning in to see if an already strong ensemble continues to gel and the convoluted comic antics continue to make me laugh out loud. *Burn Notice* creator Matt Nix and company have managed to pull off the parody of the buddy cop show without making the characters seem idiotic or the crimes they find themselves in the middle of seem irrelevant. Good plotting, good narrative, good characters. It's the Burn Notice formula (with a less driven Michael-like character, an even funnier Sam stand-in, and a Fiona-like foil in the guise of the boss) applied to the Dallas Police Department (which is, in itself, a nice change of locale and a potential mine of comic gold). This has the potential to be one of the great buddy cop movies (48 HRS, Beverly Hills Cop, Lethal Weapon, etc.) transferred to the small screen and made to fit just right. It is a pilot, so it's potential could either fizzle or be fulfilled, but as a stand-alone program, I feel it deserves 8/10, which means it's an excellent pilot. Once the series hits the streets, I'll adjust my rating upward or downward accordingly.

The Good Guys is a really easy, enjoyable show to watch that doesn't take itself too seriously. It's not your typical cop show. While there are plenty of explosions and shooting there are more than enough laughs. If you take the show too seriously some of the lines will rub you the wrong way, but taken the way the show is meant to be watched they are hilarious. All characters, even the bad guys, have slight comedic idiosyncrasies about them that isn't over the top. It's also nice to see a cop show that doesn't have to take place in New York/Los Angele/Miami.

Dan Stark is going to be a great character. Bradley Whitford's portrayal of him makes me laugh out loud. I hope its given a chance to grow and attract an audience.