Think of the WB's new action series as sort of "Rescue 90210."
OK, it's really titled "Rescue 77" -- but the show has about as much in common with "90210" or "Melrose Place" as it does with old series "Emergency!" (Which should come as no surprise, since this is the latest show to come from the Aaron Spelling stable.)Not that the idea behind "Rescue 77" is a bad one. It's sort of the other side of "ER" -- patients before they get to the hospital, complete with exciting rescue scenes.
But, as executed, this is an overwrought melodrama filled with pretty faces. Writing and acting are secondary considerations.
The two male leads, in particular, seem to have been chosen for their faces and physiques. Christian Kane stars as Wick Lobo, an overzealous type who's prone to jumping into danger and worrying about himself later.
(And the character's name really is Wick Lobo. Wick?!? What kind of a name is that? Is this guy a refugee from other Spelling shows like "Dynasty" or "The Colbys" -- shows in which names like Fallon, Krystal, Bliss, Sable, Channing and Caress abounded?)
Victor Browne stars as Michael Bell, the more settled type who's still a heart-on-his-sleeve ladies' man.
Marjorie Monaghan plays the most interesting character, Kathleen Ryan, a paramedic who returns to the job after a stress-related leave of absence. But even this character isn't much fleshed out beyond the cartoon level.
Oh, and Richard Roundtree of "Shaft" fame is on hand as the stalwart captain of the fire company.
There are some decent action scenes, including one of a dangerous rescue from a crashed plane in tonight's premiere. But the through story is pure, predictable soap opera from start to finish.
And, while the show's creator and executive producer, Gregory Widen, is a former firefighter who wrote the script for the movie "Backdraft," most of "Rescue 77" just doesn't ring true. It just looks like actors pretending to be paramedics.
The show lurches wildly from the extreme silliness of fire-hose dueling to rescuing people from life-threatening situations. Blood and guts to basic practical jokes.
(There's an extended scene in the second episode of teenagers being shot with a high-powered rifle. It's not particularly graphic, but it's a strange form of entertainment nonetheless.)
In both of the first couple of episodes, the paramedics prove to be smarter than the dumb ol' (or in this case, young) doctor back at the hospital. And both Wick and Michael project an image of unbearable overconfidence and self-importance.
What's just insufferable, however, is the holier-than-thou attitude of the show. It sometimes seems less like entertainment than a propaganda film designed to win new funding for paramedics.
And, speaking of insufferable, there are the pompous, overwrought speeches the characters make. Like when Bell grabs a wife-beater, throws him up against the wall and intones, "This is our district. The people in it are our problem. We take that seriously because we're the last line. When Social Service falls apart, when the phone lines go dead and even when the cops don't show, we come. We always come. And if we have to come again in our neighborhood, I will personally make that the lousiest day of your life."
Sheesh, this dialogue is less believable than what you hear on most Saturday-morning cartoons.