TV-Reviewed

The Chicago Code borders on genius at times and on the other hand, it’ll sink to being just an ordinary cop show. The writers got a little lazy this week.

For Jarek Wysocki (Jason Clarke) and Caleb Evers (Matt Lauria), a big drug kingpin’s unusual presence in Chicago had them wondering what sort of a deal was going down. Was Daniel Romero really just in town to do a big drug deal or was something else going on? It just never felt like a drug deal. A kidnapping was perhaps the most obvious reason for having family and a large amount of cash on-hand.

While I liked the idea behind the plot – Chicago PD helping a drug kingpin get his son back – it failed to come together for me. The actor playing Romero played it all wrong in my opinion. I felt nothing for the guy despite he and his wife were going through hell. The story wasn’t helped by the cliched twist of his lawyer telling Romero’s associates where to be to help gun down the kidnappers.

Alderman Gibbons (Delroy Lindo) and Liam (Billy Lush)

Another element to The Chicago Code I was looking forward to is the ongoing saga with Jarek Wysocki’s personal life. As the wedding bells get louder, Wysocki’s still banging his ex-wife and now his son knows about it. Nice, Wysocki. Way to keep it discrete! I feel bad for the fiance, a character we’ve barely met and know nothing about. That’s something I wish the writers would focus on. We know the ex-wife better than his actual fiance. There’s something wrong with that.

The highlight of Monday’s episode was definitely Liam Hennessey (Billy Lush) driving Alderman Ronin Gibbons (Delroy Lindo). As far as impact on a show, these two characters couldn’t be more different. While Gibbons is a heavyweight on the show, Liam is barely a gnat in comparison.

Watching Liam react to the arson act hasn’t been a pleasant thing. I don’t think Billy Lush has done a particularly good job in some of these scenes. His initial reaction outside the house when the paramedics carted off a body was probably the best performance on the show thus far. He seemed genuinely in awe of what happened.

When Liam and Gibbons arrived to the last house of the day, I knew exactly who the widow’s husband was. I’m sorry, but it was painfully obvious this was going to be related to the arson murder Liam was a part of. Now that Liam is part of Gibbons’ “family”, getting regular access to the man should be considerably easier for Liam.

It’s just a matter of time before Liam compromises his cover, however. He didn’t even check on Gibbons before opening his day planner, making me questioning his intelligence, frankly. I wish Liam well, but he’s an unbearably dull character. He rarely looks the part of a guy on the wrong side of the law. I’d be extremely hesitant about trusting Liam with anything if I were Gibbons. For Liam’s sake, I hope Gibbons doesn’t catch wind of his real job.

Rating: 7