The only thing I knew about this show going into the series premiere was that it starred Christopher Meloni and there was a flying blue horse. After watching the premiere, I’m very glad that was all I knew.
Trigger Warnings – graphic violence
This show opens on Nick Sax (Meloni) puking blood in a bathroom, looking in a mirror, shooting himself in the head with TWO pistols, then suddenly in a disco themed Christmas club dancing with a few ladies. To say this show was setting the bar high would be stating the obvious.
The writers did a good job of putting small details in the episode that gave backstory to the characters without slowing down the story line. A newspaper heading and a few conversations, suddenly we know that Nick Sax was a good cop, one of the best, who lost it all. We know that he changed a lot of lives and always did the right thing. We know that he was very good at his job, but when he lost it all he stopped caring about anything and everything. After losing it all, he became a hit man.
Happy, which is the name of an imaginary blue flying unicorn, appears throughout the episode as a voice only. We don’t actually see who Happy is until about half way through the episode when Nick is finally able to see him. He has sought out the help of Nick to save his friend Hailey. It is from that point on that we find out that this “imaginary” blue flying unicorn is somehow real. He is able to see things, like 5 men in a hallway on their way to Nick, without Nick seeing it. Nick realizes this, too, and decides to trust Happy.
Once we have established the core of these two characters – Nick being an excellent cop turned hit man who can’t seem to die, and Happy who is desperate to save his friend – then we know this unlikely pair will be working together to save Hailey.
But why did these two end up together in the first place? It is revealed at the very end of the episode that Hailey is Nick’s daughter, which is why Happy went to Nick for help.
I’m interested to see where this series takes us. This episode’s timeline was only a few hours, therefore could mean that a season would only be the duration of a few days. It seems like the objective of the show is for Happy and Nick to work together to save Hailey, while overcoming other obstacles in their path. If these episodes’ timelines are longer than only a few hours, then I’m not sure how the writers would carry the show for a full season. This also means that if they find Hailey at the season’s end, then where will they take the story for season 2?
The concept of this show is good. The directing and writing for this first episode was well done. I am only concerned that the set up for the entire show isn’t one that holds longevity.
