CBS already has five police procedurals
and three more shows about lawyers on its schedule. Thus you’d expect
that fictional crime rates should have dropped to nil by now, disallowing
any more entries into the genre.
You’d be wrong. There are apparently still enough heinous
unsolved fake crimes to warrant yet another crime drama, “Numb3rs,” which
premieres Sunday night on CBS before moving to Fridays at 10 p.m.
The surprising thing is that, even with the over-saturation of such
shows on the network, “Numb3rs” finds a new angle of crime fighting to
explore. It’s as fresh as anything in the vein can feel at this point,
when “CSI: Des Moines” seems almost inevitable.
“Numb3rs" isn’t immune to those hokey police
procedural standbys, like showing shadowy glimpses of how the perpetrator
committed the crime or over-dramatizing confrontations between police
brass and the crime solvers.
But thanks in large part to a superlative cast and an
original premise, “Numb3rs” offers a welcome cure to “Law &
Order”-induced comas.
Don Eppes (Rob Morrow) is an FBI agent with a slightly odd
mathematician brother, Charlie (David Krumholtz), and a genial dad, Alan
(Judd Hirsch). When Don begins working a particularly challenging rape
case, Charlie offers to help him figure out a pattern to the crimes using
mathematical equations.
At first Don is skeptical, insisting that no pattern exists
that can help find the serial rapist, who has attacked 13 victims and
killed the most recent woman. But after Charlie runs his equation through
past crimes, and predicts with 80 percent accuracy the location of the
perpetrator’s house based on where he dumped the victims, Don becomes a
believer.
He and partner Terry Lake (the versatile Sabrina Lloyd) begin
working within Charlie’s parameters. It takes a few tweaks, but
eventually they find their man and Don finds a new method of solving
crimes.
We know this because, in one of the show’s few annoying
habits, people keep saying, “This will be a whole new way to solve
crimes.” Perhaps that’s just CBS trying to reassure viewers that this
isn’t just another “CSI.”
Actually, the mathematics angle provides surprising drama.
The way Charlie ultimately adjusts the equation to find the rapist proves
that you need Charlie’s book smarts and Don’s street smarts to find a
solution. Hey, maybe they should go on “The Apprentice.”
“Numb3rs” doesn’t reinvent the copper genre. The
dialogue isn’t overly stimulating, especially within the confines of the
FBI building, where “L&O”-style jargon dominates.
But it’s nice to see a crime drama that’s as comfortable
at home as it is at work. There’s a wonderful warmth between Morrow,
Hirsch and Krumholtz that promises to grow as the series progresses.
Quality of show (on a scale of 10): 7.5
The actors are first rate. It’s as if CBS rounded up all
your favorites from the TV past – Krumholtz from “Freaks and Geeks,”
Morrow from “Northern Exposure,” Lloyd from “Sports Night,” Hirsch
from “Taxi” and Peter MacNicol from “Ally McBeal.”
Krumholtz stands out. He doesn’t have the traditional good
looks of a leading man, which is refreshing, and he conveys the manic,
nearly compulsive personality that makes Charlie such a great
mathematician and a somewhat clumsy human being.
MacNicol, who plays his mentor, inhabits another weird role,
just as he did on “Ally,” but he brings a welcome eccentric flavor to
“Numb3rs” that’s missing from “CSI” and its ilk.
Though the plot isn’t all that imaginative--there's no big
twist in the rape case--the mathematics provide a nice sidelight. You’re
not expected to understand the equations, but you will understand the
rationale behind them.
It would be nice if the actors got dialogue with more pep
than “Death is a permanent position,” but perhaps that's asking for too much
of a cop show. Seeing Hirsch, Krumholtz and Morrow interact makes up for
the stale talk.
Positioning (on a scale of 10): 3
CBS can’t expect great things from any show it relegates to
Fridays at 10, where “dr. vegas” died quickly last fall.
The slot is even tougher now that NBC has the mild hit “Medical
Investigation” there, which has averaged a 3.2 adults 18-49 rating. “Vegas”
averaged a 2.1. Even a 2.5 might keep “Numb3rs” on the schedule.
Cachet, or the “Arrested Development” factor
(on a scale of 10): 6
Morrow is an old CBS favorite, having starred in the quirky
drama “Northern Exposure” years ago, and Hirsch brings several Emmys and
industry respect. Plus, movie director Ridley Scott (“Hannibal”) is
one of the producers.
Reviews have been good to medium. No one expects a big hit,
but most predict a better performance than “vegas.”
Overall (on a scale of 30): 16.5
Not worth staying home for on Friday, but probably worth
recording on your TiVo.
|
The Media
Life Meter
Rating this year’s new shows |
| |
“Numb3rs” (CBS) |
Avg. for all 2004-’05 shows |
|
Quality of show (on a
scale of 10) – Grading the writing, acting, premise and creativity
of the show. Is it any good? |
7.5 |
5.8 |
|
Positioning (on a scale
of 10) – Does the show have a tough time slot or a compatible
lead-in? Is the subject matter appropriate to the network on which
it airs? |
3 |
4.8 |
|
Cachet, or the “Arrested
Development” factor (on a scale of 10) – Examining the reviews,
the star power and the prestige the network gets for the project.
“Arrested,” for example, has high cachet for being well reviewed
and intelligent, even though its ratings aren’t great. |
6 |
4.5 |
|
TOTAL |
16.5 |
15.1 |
|
Probability of
Survival |
|
|
30-27 |
Odds are this
show will make it to next season. |
|
26-22 |
Odds are this
show will make it through this season. |
|
21-15 |
Show may not
survive the season. |
|
15-9 |
Show will be
canceled sometime this season. |
|
8 or lower |
Catch it while
you can – this show may not make it to four episodes. |
|
Source: Media Life |
|
