By: Kay Kellam

This 13 episode single season show is well worth a watch.  Many may refer to it as a show that was cancelled after one season, but that is by no means a fair statement.  It would be better referred to as a single season event series, that had a well thought out arc, with a well teamed set of lead characters, FBI Agent Dunn (Rachel Taylor) and Secret Service Agent Finley (Lance Gross).

In fact, those few details, may well explain why the event was destined to last only one season.  The plot in and of itself was designed to arc through one season, but equally important is the fact that there are very few situations that would realistically justify the teaming up of an FBI agent and a Secret Service Agent.

While final episode of the season provided several interesting possibilities for future seasons, and let the audience know that there was indeed more that could happen, and this was no one trick pony, the simple fact remains that the story was pitched to the audience as a single Crisis.  And it delivered.

From week to week we followed these two agents as they sought to find the kidnappers, retrieve the missing children and safely return them to their homes, and find out why they had been taken in the first place, and why the kidnappers were forcing their parents to go on a variety of missions in order to secure the safe return of their children.

The plot contained twists and turns along the way that made sense, and very rarely was the audience left shaking their head saying, “but that’s just not possible.”  It was a show that played fair, and kept the viewer coming back to see what happens next.

If anything, the only time the audience wasn’t treated fairly, was when they were told because there would be no second season of episodes, the remaining episodes would be burned off instead of airing in the same scheduled slots on the usually weekly basis.  It was as if the network forgot they had implied from the very beginning that this was a single season Crisis, and were disappointed with the audience for being happy with what they were getting.

Then again, this is an American TV show, and we are in America… we expect to go for season after season.  We are not accustomed to a 13 episode arc that tells the story of a miniseries in the style of a season, trimming away any fat, sparing no time for filler episodes but instead making sure every episode is used to its fullest.

Kudos to whoever developed the relationship between the Finley and Dunn characters.  Theirs was a believable partnership, born of necessity and a situation neither character would have ever wanted to be in, over the course of those episodes they grew, developed and evolved in a believable manner.

This is a show worth taking the time to marathon through, because even after you know who the kidnapping mastermind is, even after you think you know what his goal is, you still have more questions you want to answer, you still want to see the kids ALL get home safely, and until every last kid is home, the Crisis quite simply, isn’t over.

Fans of One Tree Hill may recognize James Lafferty as the science teacher Mr. Nash, while fans of Pacific Rim and The Unit will recognize Max Martini.