Los Angeles in the 1980s was a force to be reckoned with, Hollywood, Sunset Boulevard and driving ambition were all part of the scene and Wicked City, the ABC white knuckle crime drama full of nostalgia delivers this new offering on October 27, 2015. Anyone who visited the city of angels in the late 1970s early 80s will remember the hookers on street corners and the XXX rated clubs between Hollywood Boulevard and Sunset. The strip had more drug dealers and deaths per square inch than any other part of the city.
Having seen the pilot it is easy to see that this will be one heck of an addition to the ABC lineup. Set in the time were serial killers were falling over themselves in the world of glitter, glamor and drugs, Wicked City packs a punch in its opening episode.
Starring Jeremy Sisto, Taissa Farmiga, Erika Christensen, Ed Westwick and Gabriel Luna Wicked City follows an ambitious young reporter Karen McClaren (Farmiga), a detective Jack Roth (Sisto) and a serial killer, Kent (Westwick).
The show takes us back to a time where pagers were cutting edge and Pat Benetar could be heard on most rock channels. Smoky clubs along the strip, like Whiskey A Go Go, were packed with wannabes and Billy Idol performed live. The Hillside Stranglers were behind bars and the police were terrified of the possibility of copycat killers.
McClaren meets a helpful man at the “Whiskey” who likes to pay back and Roth is a cop with some baggage. Kent is pretty disturbing and the three main players are joined by a group of characters that include an undercover cop, a fast burner detective and a lot of victims.
This new crime drama boasts a more than capable cast and the sets look so convincing that one almost needs to look out the window and double check that we have not somehow been transported back to 1982.
Taissa Farmiga proves that she does not need American Horror Story to give a great performance and that those chops are improving with each project. Jeremy Sisto convinces as the detective who is determined to put another serial killer behind bars before he can kill again. Ed Westwick is truly unsettling as Kent and it is brilliant to see W. Earl Brown as Captain Williamson.
The pilot of Wicked City packs a lot of suspense into the series open and while there are no car chases, overly gratuitous violence and only the most modest of sex scenes, the episode excites. More of a mystery thriller than cop show, this new offering from ABC looks to be entertainment with a capital E and guarantees some solid performances and white knuckle viewing.
The show airs October 27 on ABC. Tune in and take a trip down memory lane or if you are too young for that, have a look to see what “The Strip” was like “back in the day.” Fans of Farmiga will be pleased with what she brings to the show and Ed Westwick kills it as Kent (Pun intended.).
http://www.disneyabcpress.com/abc/video/vgq63_7qluycv0zlvek7ydn8j16lvwdi/embed?t=170
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