Note: Some spoilers follow for Last Resort – basically the same plot points revealed by the network in trailers for the past few months. But keep in mind, you can watch the full pilot online now, before it debuts on ABC.
Shawn Ryan has more than proven his TV mettle at this point, having given us the awesomeness of The Shield, while in recent years delivering terrific (even when frustratingly ratings-challenged) programming like Terriers and The Chicago Code.
All of which is to say, Ryan’s involvement immediately had me interested in Last Resort, the new ABC series he created with Karl Gajdusek (Dead Like Me). And the very happy news is, wow, does this show deliver. Last Resort is easily fall’s best new TV series.
Andre Braugher stars as Captain Marcus Chaplin, commander of the nuclear submarine the Colorado. When Chaplin is confronted with that horrific moment where he’s actually given orders to fire his nukes on Pakistan, the highly suspicious circumstances of the orders doesn’t sit right with either him or his XO, Sam Kendal (Scott Speedman). Chaplin’s instincts are correct, and his refusal to carry out the order without more information suddenly makes him and his crew enemies of the state, with their lives on the line.
With more than one crew member shocked (if not filled with outright rage) at his decisions, Chaplin impulsively takes the sub to a small, inhabited island – creating a new home base for all onboard, while they try to sort out why these insane turn of events have occurred and who is behind them.
Martin Campbell directed the pilot to Last Resort, and the action veteran brings to the proceedings the intensity and skill he gave Bond films GoldenEye and Casino Royale – giving the show a big, appropriately intense vibe almost from the start.
If I have any quibble about the Last Resort pilot it is that it does feel almost too jam-packed – if any series could have benefited from an old school two-hour “event” premiere episode, it would be this one. For instance, we might have spent a bit more time on the Colorado as the crew goes through a normal routine, as the episode, in the interest of brevity, begins with them rescuing a team of Navy SEALs (who are being suspiciously tightlipped about their own mission), and at first it’s easy to feel a bit out of sorts about what exactly is going on.
Overall though, Ryan, Gajdusek and Campbell are to be highly commended for efficiently and effectively conveying so much in just 44 minutes. Even with the limited time they have, they distinctly establish the characters and relationships on the Colorado before the true crisis begins, from Sam’s longing to get home to his wife, Christine (Jessy Schram), to the struggle the sub’s third in command, Lieutenant Grace Shepard (Daisy Betts), has establishing authority among certain members of the crew, thanks both to her gender and to her powerful Admiral father (Bruce Davison), who some feel helped secure her position.
The cast are excellent, with Braugher bringing exactly the right feel of leadership, intelligence and cunning to the role of Chaplin. We have to believe that Chaplin is a man with a long, honorable history in the military -- that his decision to not fire when ordered to do so would not be one he’d make lightly -- and Braugher is exactly the right actor to portray that history and someone who has to handle so much weight on his shoulders without crumbling under the pressure.
With just a couple of big scenes each, for the most part, plenty of other cast members quickly establish fertile ground to build upon – including Autumn Reeser as Kylie Sinclair, a D.C. power player who has a vested business interest in what’s happening on the Colorado, but is not simply the ice cold opportunist she appears to be; Daniel Lissing as one of those aforementioned Navy SEALs hiding secrets of his own; and Dichen Lachman, Sophie Girard and Sahr Ngaujah as residents of the island the Colorado arrives at, who quickly have to make some big adjustments to their lives.
An alum of Ryan’s previous military-based series, The Unit, Robert Patrick, is great as Master Chief Joseph Prosser, conveying a complicated mixture of character traits, as Prosser is clearly old fashioned and rigid, but also doing what he feels is right through and through…. In what is possibly a combustible combination.
Last Resort has such a tense, “How will this be resolved?!” scenario, it’s hard not to also wonder, “How do you sustain this for several years?”, if it finds its deserving success. But the pilot feels so confident and powerful, I’m more curious than concerned when it comes to answering that second question.
It’s rare to have a truly terrific pilot episode. By their very nature, they are just chapter one in what’s meant to be a long story - burdened with establishing the overall situation and filled with exposition and introductions. Last Resort stands out as one of those shows that grabs your attention from the get go and delivers a tricky balance of strong character beats and big action set pieces. Don’t miss this one.
Last Resort premieres Thursday, September 27th at 8pm on ABC.
Eric Goldman is Executive Editor of IGN TV. You can follow him on Twitter and IGN.
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