Two episodes into NBC’s Grimm, and I’m still not sure what to think. The show’s got a great pedigree: David Greenwalt helped build one of my all time favorite shows, Angel, spinning off a character I never liked from Buffy and eventually turning out a far superior show. Even then, Angel was never my favorite character — always outshone by the likes of Wes, Fred, Lindsey, Lilah and later, Spike. So far, I have had a very similar reaction to Grimm: everyone in the background is much more interesting than the show’s lead.
I’d rather not belabor this point, but I’m not a big fan of David Giutoli’s Nick Burkhardt. I think his performance was called wooden enough on the Internets in the last week; you don’t need to hear me attempting (and failing) to find a new and unique spin on it. So, instead of focusing on why I don’t like him, let’s talk about how everyone else is awesome.
If they could have found away to switch Giutoli and Russell Hornsby, I think half of my problems with this show would vanish. So far, Hank Griffin is fun to watch on screen – he’s smooth, knowledgeable, confident … Granted, his isn’t a character dealing with the revelation that monsters surround us all, but hey, we’ve all got problems, right? If he can look that good standing in the back, just imagine how he’d do fronting a show.
Grimm wouldn’t be the same if it weren’t for everyone’s favorite big bad wolf, Silas Weir Mitchell. At first glance, Eddie is around for two reasons: comic relief and exposition. In his scene with Aunt Marie, though, he had the opportunity to stretch his dramatic chops, and show that his “other” side is not one to be taken lightly.
Even obnoxious, the obnoxious junior cop is awesome. Of course, that is because he is played by Reggie Lee. Awesome on Persons Unknown, awesome on No Ordinary Family, of course he’s going to be the same here. He hasn’t been given much to do yet, but things aren’t going to stay that way for long.
I’d be remiss if I left out the antagonists. Sasha Roiz’ Captain Renard raises the stakes for Nick. It is one thing to be tossed into this new, dangerous world with little preparation; it is entirely different when your boss is actively trying to kill your family members. Plus, Claire Coffee’s Adalind seems to be playing a larger role than I originally expected. There’s just something attractively sinister about her character that I’m drawn to.
Grimm did surprisingly well in its premiere last week, especially considering it was going up against Game Seven of the World Series – and had a horrible lead in from Chuck. As always, I think the second episode is a much better indicator of how well a show will do. Did you see enough from Grimm’s second episode to keep you coming back for more?
Notes & Quotes
Clacked by Ivey West 
on Nov 05, 2011 @ 10:32 EST5EDT
I hate to agree with you on this (or agree with you on anything :) ), but if you told me David’s father was Geppetto I wouldn’t argue with you (get it? wink wink, nudge nudge :) David’s blue eyes and angsty, yet transparent emotions pulled me in during the premiere. But, this week, he didn’t seem in character at all.
In fact, a lot of the characters seemed off. The aunt who gave off crazy intensity in the pilot, seemed cold, but without that driven warrior feeling that she gave when in the kitchen, in the street or first hospitalized in the pilot. “Wolfy” aka Silas seemed slightly more manic\hyper than in the pilot, but I still enjoyed his wisecracks.
The only actor who seemed in character was Russell H. But, I still enjoyed the chief and Reggie Lee. I wonder how long it took them between filming the pilot and the actual second episode.
Acting aside, this episode didn’t do it for me. I didn’t notice the red hooded jogger in the preview; but, the opening flash on the bear post (and repeated focus on bear statues) just gave the plot away. I would’ve preferred if they left it casually in the background. Plus, I miss the eerie ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ film style of the pilot. Even the outdoor shots with the harvest moon night or the forest shots were beautifully creepy. Here, the camera angles felt uninspired and just showed the characters without adding to the story. I also miss the 70s\80s-ish aesthetic with the VWs and the guys’ member-only style jackets.
The sum of the pilot proved better than its parts with dead-on acting, covert writing, great camera shots and a deliberate aesthetic. It even had that great ‘Buffy’ research vibe. But, now, with decent acting and decent writing (but without the other elements), it felt like a typical crime procedural.
Side Note: Russell actually helmed an awesome show for multiple seasons on ABC family, playing a hard-bitten cop protecting his family (which I mentioned in my preview post. And, um, ‘Angel’ as the ‘far superior show’? Bleh!