on The Kill Point - Season 1

the second of my five summer shows had its season finale this past Sunday and i just caught the episode tonight. did it finish as good as it started, or did it fizzle and die like John from Cincinnati?

i'm happy to report that, while it might not have finished as strong as it started, it did have a pretty satisfying ending.

to refresh your memories, this is the show about a bank robbery turned hostage situation. most episodes dealt with the robbers trying out a new plan to get out of the bank. when the planning or negotiations weren't happening, the show got quiet and would focus on the hostages, the robbers, or the police - without getting too melodramatic. it was a pretty good blend of action and drama.

the length was pretty perfect as well. with a show about a botched bank robbery they knew they couldn't stretch it out too long or they would simply run out of things to write about, so they kept it to 8 episodes. you know, if anything the last episode felt a little rushed... i wouldn't have minded if they took it to 10. BUT, a tad too short is better than way, way too long (Mr. Cincinnati).

the story of the robbers is also pretty good. it's a platoon of men following their sarge in because they feel their country owes them. however, not all is well with the platoon and once the hostage situation begins the team starts to unravel. it reminded me a bit of The Shield actually - you're watching these men that do mostly bad things, and you should really probably hate them, but you can't because they also do good things. in fact, when bad things happen to them you feel bad for them. however, you have to keep reminding yourself that they are both shows about the unraveling of a team. for Vic it started with the act he did at the end of the first episode. for the robbers here it happened when they stepped foot into that bank. excellent scenarios. i like my writing with shades of gray.

HOWEVER, one spot the show faltered is in how they painted the characters. everyone should have shades of gray, but unfortunately only the robbers did. the robbers and hostages were all painted in a rather sympathetic light, but then the SWAT team and negotiators were painted in a negative light. they TRIED to keep it impartial but in the end they just couldn't help it. maybe the actors didn't help either, as i really disliked the main SWAT lady, the SWAT member that was waiting to breech, and the sniper. i think it was partially the lines given to them but also their bad acting.

another spot where the show would falter is in the technicalities. it suffered from some sloppy writing. without going into too much detail my least favorite mistake the writers made is to overuse a bug SWAT planted in the bank and then mistakenly have it work OUTSIDE THE RANGE THEY PREVIOUSLY SAID IT WOULD WORK. what, you didn't think we'd remember?

as you can see by the title of this post, this was the end of what the creators are saying is Season 1. without giving too much away, i'll just say that another season of The Kill Point wouldn't sit well with me. the hostage situation was resolved, and so either you focus on the robbers in a new season, or you focus on the police team who are brought into another hostage situation. both situations pose a problem. these actors/characters worked pretty well together, but apart they wouldn't be as interesting - especially the police team. i guess you could focus on the hostages but wow the show would be way different.

so i think i'm going to take my Season 1 of The Kill Point and just enjoy that. it had a great blend of action and drama, pretty good acting (robbers yes, police no), a great story about a team unraveling, and some pretty cool twists and turns that kept you guessing.

i'd say it's worth a viewing.

- kawitchate