New York Undercover

At the beginning it was only detectives JC Williams (Malik Yoba) and Eddie Torres (Michael Delorenzo). In that first season it showed the viewers that it was the first black and hispanic cop show on the history of television. Which also gave the viewers, how we see urban crimes today. The first season played all the latest R&B and urban style of music we listened to. The fashions these cops wore the urban community can relate to and the hip language they spoke. JC Williams played by Malik Yoba was a tough New York cop who had no patients for law-breakers. He is also the father of a ten year old son (G),who he has a hard time raising because of the long hours trying to crack down on a case,and his son becoming an adolescenes. It was difficult for JC because he has a finacee he has to spend quality time with,and had to juggle his personal time around his work hours. As for Eddie Torres played by Michael Delorenzo he had issues of his own like someday owning his father's nightclub (Natalie's)and dealing with his father's drug problem. Their work is overseen by the no nonsense Lt.Virginia Cooper. The second season introduce a new member to the detective duo (Nina Moreno) and she was Eddie Torres partnered while JC was recovering from a near fatal incident. The beginning of that season JC became bitter and more aggressive towards criminals,and his partner (Torres) took notice of that and tries to tell him to lightened up some (due to the fatal homicide of his finacee to which JC felt helpless and knowing the killer is still walking the streets). At the end of the "Brotherhood" episode there was a dramatic seen where Torres and JC fight and Torres letting him know that he is still with him,after JC told him he is still mourning the pain of his murdered fiancee. The second season ended with the new detective Nina Moreno (Laura Velez) as Eddie Torres love interest. By the third season the show became more diverse by adding a third cast member name Tommy Mcnamera (Jonathan Lapglia who is Italian). Mcnamera became Nina's partner till she froze up at gunpoint when a criminal who had Mcnamera's life in his hands. Sadly the third season ended with Torres and Mcnamera being killed off by a couple of bank-robbers. There leaving JC and Moreno transferring to a special unit which the show now suitable to a wall street-like audience. At the end it sucked,but in the beginning the show was interesting.

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 miss this show so much! It was great until the crew almost completely changed. As soon as Eddie Torres was killed, the show went down hill.

The music was AMAZING, too! I would give anything to have it all on DVD.

It had a real cool "urban" feel to it, and these guys dealt with some real-life issues in their day-to-day drama. It became personal for them on many episodes.

What a great idea for a show this was!

Farewell NYU!!!!!!!

TORRES (MIKE DELORENZO) MADE THAT SHOW COMPLETE!

Peace

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

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.