Flashpoint

First impressions from the Pilot show "Flashpoint" to be a hybrid of special forces, hostage situations, lots of weapons and character study.

The show seems to have a lot of potential, even if the dialog is a bit rushed and difficult to understand for the average viewer who isn't used to the office lingo of the special forces team that handles these high stakes situations.

The team, led by Sarge (Enrico Colantoni of "Veronica Mars") and Ed Lane (Hugh Dillon) seem to gel well so far, but future episodes will tell if they can pull off the show's premise.

There is some humor, but the Pilot also sported multiple slow-mo shots of character interaction, and each of their reactions to the reality of their job.

A bit rushed in places, and jaunty, as any series premiere is expected to be - hopefully "Flashpoint" will find its stride as a sleek, cop drama with brains, edge and heart.

Wow, a cop show without perps. A TV drama with guns and not 'necessary' evil. Moral, caring cops with emotional consequences. Explosions, when all else fails.

I like 'The Unit' (also on CBS) when it addresses the egregious use of force needed to defend against force and the guilt that comes from fighting evil with evil actions. They have their moments of destruction far from home and leave the guilt for later (when they are home). Flashpoint takes place down the street. In your office building or mall. The consequences of action or inaction are to be replayed in their mind, home, community and above all on TV. And despite the preparations our heroes take, it just doesn't assuage the situations that go tits up.

This show is grounded in moral motives that will pierce the heart of it's viewers. Let the Rambo's have their shows, and let us tread the thin, ever moving and twisting thin blue line of Flashpoint. In the show's own words, "We're not here to target practice, we're here to save lives".

This show is in it's first season in Australia (glad to see we have a 2nd to look forward to!) Only a half dozen episodes in, but so far I'm really enjoying it. Love the way it gives you the 'teaser' at the start, then you get the full story leading into the situation. Although it would help if the network airing it here could show the episodes in order for a little continuity... Yeah, yeah, we all know it's not totally realistic - that's why it's called 'entertainment'. I work in police communications here in Melbourne Aus., and I can assure you we NEVER have anything this exciting happen, but that's probably not a bad thing. I find the at the end of each episode I'm wondering where the hour went!?!

The basic premise is that they show the 'flashpoint' of a situation, a brief glimpse at a volatile situation. This teaser provides a context for the story telling that comes afterward as a depiction of the various events that led to the situation, and then goes to resolve the issue.

I really, really enjoy this show. Working in Toronto, I enjoy seeing some of the same places that I travel to in this show. The 'shades of grey' antagonists, the not quite impenetrable armour of the protagonists and the fact that there are unexpected twists to the stories makes for some great watching. Unlike some of the other shows, where you get into a "Oh, we're getting near the commercial, he's going to puke / crash / seize" routine, the show has managed to use believable twists and character development to surprise, despite the 'spoiler' that begins each show.

I sincerely hope that there are many seasons to come, and that it will continue to develop the characters and story lines behind them. Kudos to the wonderful cast for their great performances, and to a show based in Canada that doesn't look like it was crafted on a shoe string budget.

Now I've never been to a SWAT training nor have I any background knowledge about proceedings. Well other than having watched quite a few shows and/or movies about it. This being one of them. And it could not be farther away from something like The Shield. Even though some may argue that the main guy (also head of the group) in both shows has some physical resemblance.

Other than that though this is more of a clean cut show. The Shield dove into the dark minds and went to the gutter one may say. While the people of this show also have issues, it is nothing compared to the other show. Having said all that this is really and technically really well made. It looks like a lot of effort has been made and a lot of thought has gone into this. The way the team and all act is or at least feels like very close to how they would respond in real life.

Overall the characters may seem a bit one sided at times and if you are nit-picking you can also see some cliches here and there. If you can set those and your cynicism aside, there is a really good show to enjoy here though