AGAINST THE WALL
JULY 31, 2011-OCTOBER 23, 2011
Another twist of police drama that pits family members against one another when the only daughter of a police officer accepts a job in Internal Affairs. The brothers Kowalski are set against her decision and await the moment when she has to confront her father Don (Treat Williams). This choice has so many pros and cons personally as well as professionally that the door is open for plot lines to zig-zag.
Abby Kowalski (Rachael Carpani) has just made detective and with limited openings in her district, she chooses to accept a position in the Internal Affairs Department. She comes from a line of blue collar police officers who do not take likely the fact that she is now considered the enemy. Two of her three brothers; Richie (Brandon Quinn), and Danny (Chris Johnson) begin putting on the pressure for her to "come to her senses" and return to the beat cop life. Her third brother, Donny (James Thomas), is the ear for the brothers with understanding and compassion but strays little from the family philosophy to stay true to the police motto: "cops have each others backs." The true balance in the family is mom Sheila (Kathy Baker) who has the ability to see both sides of the coin while building bridges to keep the family from disintegration.
Lifetime Network, which has the reputation of having a more female-based audience, needs to have stronger female characters. When an officer is accepted into Internal Affairs, they have a proven track record of strength and endurance as this job can challenge even the strongest mentally. There is only hope that the writers will build her with more backbone and less "daddy's little girl" syndrome. The weekly storylines will sustain the show while the family drama side should be directed more to "a peek inside."
The cast has a well-beaten track of its own and should bring great acting craft to the table each week. Every cast member has seen their share of on-camera roles and with success in the rear-view mirror, this should expand the potential of each script. The are so many amazing shows that fill the 10pm time slot on Sunday nights that it will be hard to find an audience. The foundation of Lifetime should garner a steady fan base but it will be the direction of the scripts that will keep viewers coming back.
7/31/11