NBC's "Grimm" and Investigating The Big Bad Wolf: A Television Review (Pilot)

Creators: Stephen Carpenter, David Greenwalt and Jim Kouf.

Cast: Russell Hornsby, David Giuntoli, Bitsie Tulloch, Silas Weir Mitchell, Sasha Roiz, and Reggie Lee.



The NBC television series "Grimm" is set to challenge other supernatural heavyweights on Friday night. In one corner is Fox's Fringe and in another is CW's "Supernatural." Just how well Grimm will fare will depend on how much audiences like the cop Nick Burkhardt (David Giuntoli) as he combats the supernatural forces that have integrated into Portland society.

This television series is based off the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm and it will put Burkhardt at odds with many creatures from both traditional legends and fictional lore. He's partnered with Hank Griffan (Russell Hornsby), who does not yet know that Burkhardt has the ability to see monsters posing as humans. Maybe he will learn about it in future episodes, but only time will tell.

The pilot episode very loosely uses ideas from the French fairy tale, Red Riding Hood. There's one big bad wolf targeting anyone wearing red. And when a young girl is involved, Burkhardt and Griffan are on the case. Burkhardt mistakes someone else as the culprit, but in what he is aware of, he knows someone is withholding information.

There is a great story slowly developing in explaining what the Grimms are—basically monster hunters—and that may be the story arc for the first set of episodes to be broadcast. Burkhardt is new to the scene, but sadly, his Aunt Marie (guest star, Kate Burton), may not live long enough to teach him everything he needs to know.

As for the rest of this film’s structure, it feels too familiar. Essentially, this series is going to follow the buddy cop format. But also, it sounds like a reinvention of an old television show from the 90's, "Forever Knight." This Canadian produced series follows the life of Nick Knight (Geraint Wyn Davies), a vampire cop trying to earn good karma so he can fight off his darker impulses, and eventually become human. His partner Donald Schanke (John Kapelos ) is just as clueless to Knight’s abilities, but Nick’s previous family, fellow vampires Lucien LaCroix (Nigel Bennett) and Janette (Deborah Duchêne) sometimes try to bring him back to the fold. While both products are not all that similar in storyline, the casting is almost exact. In Grimm, Burkhardt will eventually team up with a reformed werewolf, Eddie Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell), and this will complete the ensemble good guy cast.

In terms of what they will fight will require moving beyond the formula that’s established—something that CW’s "Supernatural" began with—and that is to fight a villain of the week. As long as the revelation of what the Grimms do, or how the hierarchy of monsters has amalgamated into Portland society, another crime fighting drama is not what audiences are looking for. Maybe the wicked witch of the west will make a cameo appearance.

"Grimm" on Facebook:

The Grimm Fan Page

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Posted in: 2011,2011 release,bloody fairy tales,fairy tales,movie poster,review,television,television series