Tag Archives: ABC’s Last Resort

Last thoughts on ‘Last Resort’

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“Last Resort,” the good series with an awful name that evoked images of a “Weekend with Bernie”-style 1980s comedy, started off strong. The amazing Andre Braugher led a very good cast in the story of the Colorado, a U.S. Navy nuclear sub that goes renegade after its captain, Marcus Chaplin (Braugher) refuses to nuke Pakistan. The U.S. government reacts badly, to say the least, and makes the Colorado a target and Chaplin is named public enemy number one.

It turns out that something is rotten in Washington, and Chaplin, executive officer Sam (Scott Speedman) and crew hole up on an Indian Ocean island. They’re quickly isolated by a U.S. blockade, set upon by mutineers led by the chief of boat (Robert Patrick, we love you) alternately battle and canoodle with islanders and dally with the Chinese, who offer aid to score points on the global stage.

But after a strong start, the show seemed to grow more and more complicated and shed viewers who probably couldn’t keep up. I watched every episode and I found myself lost at times among all the characters and double-crosses and triple-crosses.

The 13th and what turned out to be final episode, “Controlled Flight Into Terrain,” had been written before producer Shawn Ryan found out the show had been canceled. Ryan took the time to retool the episode, however, jamming in resolutions for the characters and the central plot of the series and bringing the plot to a close.

In a single hour, we saw the resolution of the mutiny, the return of an old enemy from the crew, the climax of the Washington intrigue that served as the backdrop for the show and a homecoming for some of the members of the crew of the Colorado.

“Last Resort” probably bit off more than it could chew, not unlike “Lost” before it. But I can’t fault Ryan and the show for being too ambitious. Viewers didn’t turn out, however. So the boat was permanently beached.

‘Last Resort’ canceled

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No real surprise here, but ABC today canceled “Last Resort,” the serial drama about a nuclear sub and its crew – led by captain Andre Braugher – who go on the run after their defiance of orders puts them in crosshairs.

“Last Resort had some strikes against it from its first episode:

The name was awful. Really, why in the world would you call a show about the mutinous crew of a nuclear submarine, taking refuge on an Indian Ocean island after being targeted for extermination by a U.S. government conspiracy, “Last Resort.” It sounds like the subtitle to a sequel to “Weekend at Bernie’s.”

It aired at 8 p.m. Thursdays. I know there are only so many timeslots, but why would ABC air an hour-long serial drama at 8 p.m., and opposite “Big Bang Theory,” a hit comedy that would appeal to the same audience as “Last Resort?”

Its mythology and storyline were probably too complicated for many viewers. We had the government conspiracy, the various players on the island, the conflict among the crew, the intrigue involving the D.C.-based defense contractor … Too much going on for viewers who prefer “investigators investigate crimes” for their hourlong TV fare.

I enjoyed “Last Resort” but didn’t lose my heart to it. I’ve been disappointed by the cancelations of too many series, including most of the hour-long dramas introduced in recent years – “Threshold,” “Flash Forward,” “Alcatraz,” etc – to capitalize on the success of “Lost.”

Apparently producer Shawn Ryan says the first 13 episodes will be completed and there will be some kind of resolution. I’ll be checking them out.

 

‘Last Resort’ looks to have firepower

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“Last Resort” sounds like a bad 1980s comedy featuring Andrew McCarthy and Jon Cryer as a couple of buddies on the make at a Florida tourist trap.

But no, “Last Resort” is a new TV series on ABC, overseen by the creator of “The Shield,” Shawn Ryan, and starring Andre Braugher and Scott Speedman.

It’s also a pretty nifty hour of television that left me wanting more.

“Last Resort” debuts on ABC on Sept. 27 but it’s available for viewing now on Yahoo. I watched it tonight, prepared to be underwhelmed or at best just whelmed. But, surprisingly, I really, really liked what I saw.

Braugher is Captain Marcus Chaplin, commander of the U.S. Navy nuclear sub Colorado. Speedman is his executive officer, Sam Kendal. As the pilot episode opens, they’re at sea, tasked with rescuing a group of Navy Seals caught in the crossfire of a mission gone south.

The pilot takes a few minutes setting up the friendships and conflicts on the ship, among them the hostile attitude of Chief of Boat Joseph Prosser (Robert Patrick of “Terminator” fame) and the potential for antagonism with the Seals.

But pretty quickly things go from a slow simmer to a rapid boil as the Colorado gets orders to launch four of its 18 nuclear missiles on Pakistan. Chaplin asks Navy commanders for confirmation through other channels and is promptly ordered relieved of command. When Kendal follows suit, another Navy ship fires on them, driving them to the bottom of the ocean.

Although the crew is split over the apparent disobedience of the captain and the executive officer, the two have enough support – particularly that of Lt. Grace Shepard (Daisy Betts), daughter of an admiral – to plow ahead and try to figure out what’s happening, especially when the world is told their ship has been destroyed by missiles from Pakistan and another Navy ship has apparently nuked Pakistan in return.

Chaplin and Kendal decide to “park” the Colorado off the coast of the island of Santa Marina, a tropical paradise that’s apparently run by a strong criminal element (foreshadowing of conflict to come? no doubt).

In a bravura monologue at the end, Chaplin sends out a video to the world with a simple message: Until we can figure out what’s going on, stay the hell away or we’ll unleash our nuclear arsenal on your ass.

A few moments of “Last Resort” didn’t ring true, particularly the abrupt “hey this island is nice, maybe we should stay here” moments at the end. But a lot of the show is fast-paced, snappy fun and the performances (by the leads, at least) are first-rate.

We’ll see how future episodes go, but the pilot is equal parts “Hunt for Red October,” “Crimson Tide,” “Star Trek” and “Lost,” with a little soap opera thrown in.

I’m really looking forward to the next episode of “Last Resort.”

But I can’t help but wish they had come up with a different name.

Random thoughts:

The terse nautical dialogue in “Last Resort” reminded me of what I liked about the chain-of-command-heavy episodes and movies of “Star Trek.”

The scene where a couple of characters strip down to their underwear, all the while spouting plot points, was silly. Really, really silly. And I’m almost certain nobody is going to hear the exposition.

The least believable parts of the pilot were the characters on the island. Here’s hoping the cliched islanders are written as well as the submariners in future episodes.