Another Great Pilot Turns To A ‘So-So’ Show ~ Rizzoli & Isles

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Rizzoli & Isles

I was so excited to see that Rizzoli & Isles was going to be a new cop drama staring Angie Harmon-who I absolutely love in everything she does. The pilot episode was season finale strong, but the second and third episodes have left me more disappointed than wanting more.

First of all, and this is just my personal issue. The main character is Jane Rizzoli-who is Italian and whose mother is played by Lorraine Bracco. I love Lorraine in everything she does as well, but for a show set in Boston, you would think she could at least get rid of the Brooklyn-esque New York-New Jersey accent she has going. I mean, she should have a thick Boston accent, but come on, no one in ‘Friends’ had a New York accent, but this is just something that bothers me.

On that note, only Donnie Wahlberg had any resemblance of a Boston brogue and he left after only two episodes, after establishing that his character and Rizzoli had chemistry and setting him and her up for a possible romance.

Sasha Alexander who plays Maura Isles is flat and needs to push more in some direction. I also feel no chemistry between her and Rizzoli and wonder if Sasha and Angie hate each other in real life. The character feels like a stereotype of every other forensic specialist on every other cop show out there, and also like a weak imitation of Bones.  I like this actress, but it isn’t working for me.

Another really picky thing is that the show opens and is riddled with Irish music, because it is set in Boston I am sure, but doesn’t seem to work with an Italian lead. I love the music, but for me it doesn’t fit the show.

That all said, I feel like the show has potential if they just fix some bugs and pay closer attention to the small details. I know that some people don’t care about accents, music, and chemistry, but I do. I grew up on the east coast and anyone who ever spent more than a week or two in Boston has an accent. Hell, I still say  ‘wicked’ and I never lived there.

I will give it a 3.5 stars out of 5 and keep watching in hopes that they can pull off another great one like the pilot. I had a feeling this would happen, but was hoping it wouldn’t. I hate when I am right about these things.