A stellar cast, a complicated family, and one dangerous secret give Line of Fire plenty of potential—even if the premiere tries to do too much at once.
NBC's Line of Fire gets off to a promising, if somewhat uneven, start. The new crime drama brings together an impressive cast led by Peter Krause and Hope Davis, while mixing family drama with the fast-paced world of federal law enforcement. The premiere doesn't always know when to slow down, but it does enough to make me curious about where the story goes next.
At the center of the series is the complicated Hollingsworth family, nearly all of whose members work in the federal government. Mike Hollingsworth (Peter Krause) is a veteran Secret Service agent approaching retirement, while his estranged wife, Jane (Hope Davis), is a U.S. marshal. Their marriage may be over, but unresolved feelings clearly remain.
Their three adult children have followed them into public service. Clare (Kat Cunning) is an FBI agent determined to prove herself; Micah (Tommy O'Brien) is a Secret Service agent working in his father's shadow; and Russ (Taylor Bloom) has just joined the Department of Justice. The show quickly establishes that the Hollingsworths' dinner conversations are anything but ordinary.
And then there are the secrets.
Micah is secretly involved with Sydney (Savannah Lee Smith), the first daughter he is assigned to protect, putting both his career and his family's reputation at risk. Meanwhile, Mike becomes increasingly convinced that former President Thomas Barnes is in danger. Hanging over them all is the disappearance of Jack, Mike and Jane's son, who is presumed dead.
The murder of Clare's boyfriend, Logan (Pico Alexander), is what truly sets the story in motion. After an awkward first meeting with the Hollingsworths, Logan is confronted at their home by a seemingly friendly neighbor, Joel (Charlie Barnett), who reveals that he knows Logan is hiding something. The encounter ends in Logan's murder, leaving Clare to discover his body as her family faces a homicide investigation on its own doorstep.
It's a solid setup, but it also exposes the premiere's biggest weakness: Line of Fire has a lot of plot to establish. Between the family dynamics, federal investigations, secret relationships, former-president subplot, Logan's murder, and mystery surrounding Jack, the episode sometimes feels determined to introduce every possible storyline before the opening credits have finished rolling.
The payoff, however, is intriguing. While processing Logan's murder scene, Mike and Jane discover a silver origami crane—a personal symbol connected to their presumed-dead son, Jack. Instead of telling the rest of the family, they quietly keep the discovery to themselves.
Then comes the big twist: Jack is alive.
The revelation immediately changes how I view everything that came before it and gives the season a much larger mystery to unravel. There is clearly more going on within the Hollingsworth family than anyone realizes, and the possibility that the greatest threat could come from within gives the show a compelling hook moving forward.
Peter Krause and Hope Davis are the biggest reasons I'm sticking around. They bring enough history and emotional weight to Mike and Jane that their complicated relationship feels like more than another plot point. The supporting cast is strong as well, even if some of the characters haven't had enough time to develop fully.
The pilot is a hit-and-miss experience. At times, it feels overloaded with storylines and characters, and the dysfunctional-family angle occasionally feels familiar. Still, there is enough here to suggest that the pieces could come together as the season progresses. The premiere lays plenty of groundwork, and I'm willing to give the show time to build on it.
After one episode, I wouldn't say Line of Fire has completely found its footing. But with its stellar cast, tangled family secrets, and final reveal, I'm ready to tune in and see where the story goes next. Overall, I give the premiere a 7.5/10.
Have you watched the series premiere of Line of Fire? What did you think? Will you be tuning in for next week's episode? Leave a comment below.
You can catch Line of Fire on Mondays at 10/9c on NBC and stream it the next day on Peacock.
No comments:
Post a Comment