You can smell a rookie like you can smell fresh paint. That’s what Police Academy grad Andie McNally (Missy Peregrym) is told by her training officer her first day on the job. The quote originated with her father, a cop now retired from the force. Rookie Blue follows a group of police academy grads from first day on. The group, Fifteen Division, is supposed to have the most promising rookies in their classes, fresh faced and ready for anything, but learn very quickly that there’s nothing that can prepare you for life on the street.
We meet the group in the first episode at a bar celebrating their graduation from the academy. Each rookie is handcuffed by an officer, pushed on the bar, and told to get out of the handcuffs “any way they know how.” This is an effective plot device in that depending on how each rookie tries to free themselves from the handcuffs, we can discern something about their personality. Main character Andy McNally plays by the rules, first wiggling her arms to the front, and trying to pick the lock, something she utilizes later on in the series. Privileged and crafty Gail Peck is the winner of the contest, using her wiles and name dropping skills to convince an officer to free her with a key. None of the male officers are able to free themselves, Epstein (Gregory Smith) provides comic relief, Diaz (Travis Milne) spends the entire time fiddling with a fork, and Traci Nash (Enuka Okuma) is tough and never complains.
We then join the crew on their first day on the job, where each rookie is paired with their training officer, the officer they will ride with that day. As members of fifteen division, they’re told to: “Serve, protect, and don’t screw up.”
The dynamic between the seasoned cops and the painfully green rookies is entertaining, they don’t know little things like how to turn on the police radio. McNally makes an arrest her first day out, but then she is mortified to discover she’s arrested Sam Swarek (Ben Bass), an undercover cop from her own squad who has been posing as a drug dealer for eight months. Andy does get the chance to redeem herself later on, though, when she finds the actual dealer, an armed teen whom she is able to talk him down and take his weapon.
The show is shot in a way that is reminiscent of the old WB shows, like Dawson’s Creek. There’s an ensemble cast of young people learning as they go, making mistakes, growing and changing. Music choices like “The Good Life” by OneRepublic aid to create a feel-good atmosphere. You’re not pulled into this show in the same way, though. The characters seem somewhat stock and their actions are predictable. For example, McNally is quickly established as the main character with two love interests: a well meaning detective and Sam Swarek, the cop she arrests by accident who likes taking chances. Will Andy go for the good guy or the bad guy? McNally’s dad is a retired cop who once trained her training officer, this seems too easy, as are his unfortunate drinking habits that embarrass her at work functions.
This show does provide a unique perspective in the cop genre, however. It’s not often that an entire show revolves around new law enforcement and this “fish out of water” perspective is relateable and entertaining. The seasoned officers are reminded through the rookies that you’re not born knowing this stuff, they were rookies too once, and overall the show serves to humanize authority figures we’re all familiar with.
The show does not provide an immediate sense of place aside from that of “large city.” The show is Canadian and perhaps that’s intentional but in this genre the city the cops work in is as much of a character as the officers themselves. I prefer my cop shows a little grittier. This can come off a bit like High School with guns. The cast is young and hot and they don’t lose out on any chances to show that fact.
DVD Bonus Features
A behind the scenes featurette where creators discuss their new take on an old genre. The cast seems young, bubbly, and thrilled to be working together, much like their characters themselves.
"Rookie Blue: The Complete First Season" is on sale May 31, 2011 and is not rated. Television. Directed by Ellen Vanstone, Morwyn Brebner , Tassie Cameron , Tatia Rosenthal. Written by Tassie Cameron, Ellen Vanstone, Morwyn Brebner . Starring Ben Bass, Charlotte Sullivan, Enuka Okuma, Gregory Smith, Missy Peregrym, Travis Milne .
