Pilot Review: Chicago P.D.

Chicago P.D. (NBC)
Premiered January 8 at 10pm

I honesty can’t remember a thing about the pilot of “Chicago Fire,” which premiered in October of 2012, except for that it involved David Eigenberg, Steve from “Sex and the City,” as a firefighter about to lose his house. That’s the last time I thought about Dick Wolf and his grand TV universe. It seems to be the thing to do these days to have shows unnecessarily spin off other shows, and I’d much rather that a return to Chicago law enforcement would instead mean more new episodes of “The Chicago Code” with Jason Clarke and Jennifer Beals. Instead, we get this very run-of-the-mill show that’s trying hard to be edgy by having its main character, played by the insanely deep-voiced Jason Beghe, much better as a madman intellectual on “Californication,” prove his toughness by bending the rules and using violence to intimidate criminals into submission. The cast has a few familiar TV faces, including Sophia Bush from “One Tree Hill,” Elias Koteas from “The Killing,” Jon Seda from “Treme,” and Melissa Sagemiller from “Sleeper Cell,” though her guest credit made it less than surprising when she got her face blown off when she made the mistake of opening a door during a bust. Ending the episode with the kidnapping of one of the detective’s children signals dark themes ahead, which I suppose could be compelling if it’s not too depressing. This pilot didn’t offer anything new for me, and I hardly think it’s worth checking in for a second round.

How will it work as a series? Dick Wolf has successfully compiled many seasons of different “Law and Order” shows, and so coming up with a new case each week and drama for his characters shouldn’t be a problem at all. This is the kind of procedural that has worked wonders on NBC for two decades now, and so I think it will do just fine for those who love Chicago and cop shows.
How long will it last? Probably a good long time. NBC relishes good ratings, and this show managed to get them, keeping most of the people watching “Law and Order: SVU” glued to their screens. This is a definite win for NBC, and aside from “The Blacklist,” it’s their biggest surefire hit this season.

C-