Who is your favorite buddy cop duo? – Clacking in Color

Anyone who knows me can attest to the fact that I’ve never been a fan of crime procedurals. I just feel as though television is practically oversaturated with them. Has Hollywood really run out of ideas? Perhaps that’s a topic for another column. Still, after making a shocking discovery this weekend by realizing that I actually have On Demand on my cable box, I decided to peruse the USA Network selection by watching the first two episodes of Common Law, a quirky crime procedural utilizing the buddy cop duo dynamic.

This clichéd device is something that can be found in most procedurals, but it seems that the folks at USA got it right with this one. Common Law focuses on two policemen with issues serious enough to land them in couples’ counseling … but here’s the catch: they’re straight! They bicker like a married couple and squabble like siblings, but they can’t seem to live without one another. Hilarious, right? I think it’s clever.

Furthermore, it’s nice to see Golden Globe nominee Michael Ealy on television again. As Travis Marks, a streetsmart detective who spent his life as a foster child, Ealy is definitely given a lot to do in Common Law. It’s even hard for his costars to keep up with him. As an aspiring actor, it’s refreshing to see people on screen that look like me. Ealy is one of those talents that really knows how to light up a screen. Perchance this is his moment to shine.

I digress. Anyway, after watching Common Law, it got me to thinking about all of the other cop shows that utilize the same buddy cop duo dynamic — something that has proven effective as evidenced by the millions of individuals that tune in to these shows on a continual basis.

To that end, who is your favorite buddy cop duo?

While Travis and his partner Wes are still growing on me, I think I may have to go with Shawn and Gus from Psych, another one of USA’s top rated shows. With them, I get the sense that they are soulmates and genuinely care for one another. Sure they may talk a lot of trash, but you know that at the end of the day both of them have each other’s backs. It also doesn’t hurt that one of the leads is a person of color. I mean, let’s keep it real, folks. This is Clacking in Color, after all. Personally I think it’s refreshing that the USA network has given us not one, but two pretty good shows with a buddy cop duo consisting of smart African-American characters. Psych’s Gus really knows how to keep Shawn in check, and Dule Hill is a genius in the role while Common Law’s Travis really knows a thing or two about staying ahead of the baddies. The USA network seems to know the value of diversity in their casting choices.

And for that matter, so does CBS. After all, LL Cool J is the perfect ying to Chris O’Donnell’s yang in NCIS:Los Angeles. And kudos to ABC and Fox for giving us Castle and Bones respectively, two procedurals utilizing the buddy cop dynamic but with sharp female leads. See? Diversity really is the spice of life, people!

I’m curious to know who your favorite buddy cop team is. Is there a network that seems to get it right? Feel free to let me know. In the meantime, I may have to rethink my opinions regarding some procedurals. Common Law seemed to have me at hello. While nothing really separates it from other cop shows, it is nice to see Ealy back on the small screen. It’s also nice to know that a brother is getting paid. That’s always a good thing, right? Still, is there anything the show could do different? Is it all really one big cliché?

Eh, if it ain’t broke … don’t fix it.

Clacked by Jaylen Christie
on May 29, 2012 @ 09:00 EST5EDT