Karen Sisco

I've only seen the pilot of Karen Sisco, but I think that it's got real potential. TV shows today seem to be becoming more and more like movies, and while watching this I had trouble remembering that it was actually a TV show. Since TV shows generally have cliff hangers, I found myself eager for more of this great new show. Carla Gugino, Thomas Kretschmann, and Xander Berkeley were exceptionally good, and all I can say is that I can't wait for more! :)

Karen Sisco (Carla Gugino) is a US Marshal in Miami. Her father Marshall Sisco (Robert Forster) is the only one she unequivocally trusts. Amos Andrews (Bill Duke) is her boss.

Based on the character portrayed by Jennifer Lopez in Elmore Leonard's Out of Sight, Karen Sisco is a smart, sexy, and tough character. Carla Gugino plays her with gusto. It never really took off and lasted only 7 episodes with 3 unaired remaining. I think there were two main problems.

The first is they shot this is L.A. If they could do it in Miami, it would add so much more local flavor. There is a difference and the audience can feel it. The second is the need for edginess. Seeing the successful 'Justified' (another Elmore Leonard adaptation), it seems obvious that Karen Sisco just doesn't have the grittiness in both style and substance. It just isn't Elmore Leonard enough.

As others have noted in these comments why is it that studio execs keep putting reality show dreck on? I have never watched survivor, the bachelor or any other "reality" show drivel. Since really those shows are for the average person to have their 15 minutes of fame and since most of them are self centered idiots (at least that is what the commercials show them as) why would a rational, thinking person ever watch it. If you want to watch a reality show watch The Soup and you will get the best parts of it anyway. This show was very well put together and if you had watched the Jennifer Lopez/George Clooney vehicle Out of Sight you would have gotten a little bit of background on her character. This could have been an excellent series. This and Ms Gugino's other series Threshold (way, way better than Invasion even though that has William Fichter)I don't get it. Two series that she has been in and both well done and what do the networks do? Please someone slap them for those of us that would like a little bit of thinking behind out entertainment.

This was a very hard to find Carla Gugino show. I could not find this show to stream or release on disc or VHS. I was lucky enough to buy a homemade DVD copy of this show off someone on EBay who recorded it back in 2003 off their TiVo. Spent a pretty $50 for it....later I found that this series is available to view on the "internet archives" (if anyone is wanting to watch this).

After watching the show, I found it a little vanilla and bland. If it wasn't for Carla Gugino I'm not sure I'd watch it the first time. I know I won't watch it a second time. Carla looks great and any fan of hers can appreciate her. But the writing, dialogue and mechanics of police, investigations and Marshalls are unrealistic. For example, police do not make outlines of bodies at crime scenes.

Also, why is her father called "Marshall sisco"? I mean, does he not have a first name or is his name Marshall? If he's no longer a Marshall, why go by Marshall? A bit confusing but the father daughter relationship was cute.

And while I loved Carla gugino, I'm not sure I was a fan of the character Karen Sisco (ignoring that Karen is now a slur, basically). I'm not a fan how the writers always gave her a new boyfriend she was romantic with each episode! Can't we have a female character not being romantically involved with men and being a horn-dog? Kinda lost respect for her and yeah it added filler but yawn.

For a Carla gugino show I recommend leopard skin, threshold, wayward pines, haunting of hill house, etc. This show was not worth $50 and not worth searching for.

I knew I had seen something special. After the hour-long episode 5 (Nostalgia) I knew I had not imagined it. Yes, this was a critics' favourite, and yes, they all gave the same reasons and impressions I'd had. There's no coincidence here.

What is it that gets you to not turn the channel? When you see something intriguing already in the opening titles? Les Paul used to say that an audience will never remember the first song you play - they're busy making up their minds whether they like you or not, and they make up their minds in those first two minutes.

So with Karen Sisco. This is well acted, well directed, and above all well written. More and more it's become apparent to me how vital a good teleplay is: without it the directing and acting will fall apart, lacking a foothold.

I imagine this crew has a lot of fun. Yes, there's violence, and I don't like that, but there's a coziness and a sense of adventure too. And the humour - or should I say wit?

Enjoy.