DC Disaster and a Cop Duo Repeat

In this time of political uncertainty what we really need is a show that literally blows up the Washington, DC establishment and gives us a do-over. Well, maybe not, but ABC has other ideas. In tonight's Designated Survivor (see trailer) you get to see Kiefer Sutherland try a different role from super-hero Jack Bauer. Now he is bookish Tom Kirkland with a lot on his plate. Here is the scoop:

Kiefer Sutherland stars as Tom Kirkman, a lower-level cabinet member who is suddenly appointed President of the United States after a catastrophic attack on the US Capitol during the State of the Union. Kirkman will struggle to keep the country and his family from falling apart, while navigating the highly-volatile political arena and leading the search to find who is responsible for the attack.

I ignored the show 24 years ago since we had enough headlines about real torture without seeking it out in a fictional series. That said, I may tune into this new show and see what it has to say (while still watching the true comedy/farce called our presidential election).  

If you need more, you can watch Lethal Weapon on Fox (see trailer).  This looks like a rerun of the successful movies and not unlike much of current television, so I will pass on this one. But just in case you are interested, here are a few more details (or maybe more than a few):

Combining action and drama with ride-or-die friendship and humor, LETHAL WEAPON reimagines the hit movie franchise, as it follows classic cop duo Riggs and Murtaugh, who work a crime-ridden beat in modern-day Los Angeles. 

Grief-stricken after the loss of his young wife and unborn child, ex-Navy SEAL-turned-detective MARTIN RIGGS (Clayne Crawford, “Rectify”) moves to California to “start over” at the LAPD. He’s paired up with ROGER MURTAUGH (Emmy Award nominee Damon Wayans, “My Wife and Kids,” “In Living Color”), who’s just coming back to the job after a near-fatal heart attack. Riggs’ penchant for diving headfirst into the line of fire immediately clashes with Murtaugh’s prudent, by-the-book technique.

When CAPTAIN BROOKS AVERY (Kevin Rahm, “Mad Men”) assigns them their first case together, Riggs drags Murtaugh into a high-speed chase culminating inside the Long Beach Grand Prix and a seaport shootout with drug dealers – and despite his protests, the older cop feels more alive than he has in years. Meanwhile, Riggs gets a glimpse of why Murtaugh is so determined to get home safely at the end of each day – he’s got a wife, TRISH (Keesha Sharp, “The People v. OJ Simpson: American Crime Story”), teenagers ROGER, JR. (Dante Brown, “Mr. Robinson”) and RIANA (newcomer Chandler Kinney) and a newborn baby.

Riggs’ life-on-the-edge attitude makes him a priority case for the department’s psychologist, DR. MAUREEN “MO” CAHILL (Jordana Brewster, “Furious 7”). Rounding out the precinct is SCORSESE (Johnathan Fernandez, “Girls,” “Younger”), a pathologist with the LAPD who got his nickname after a stint in film school, which no one will let him forget.

By the time their first investigation ends, Riggs realizes he may have found something worth living for – a partner and friend, Murtaugh. And even Murtaugh figures this arrangement might just work out after all. If only Riggs doesn’t get them killed first…

Update:  Designated Survivor surprised me by being much better than expected.  While the destruction of DC is now a regular theme, Kiefer Sutherland's character is an interesting change from the normal know-it-all government superman.  It seems ABC agrees and the show has been granted additional episodes for a full season.  That gives Tom Kirkman more time to make America whole again.