Stars: David Giuntoli, Russell Hornsby, Bitsie Tulloch, Silas Weir Mitchell, Reggie Lee, Sasha Roiz
Writers: David Greenwalt & Jim Kouf and Stephen Carpenter based on a story by David Greenwalt & Jim Kouf and Stephen Carpenter
Director: Marc Buckland
Network: NBC, airs Fridays
Original Telecast: October 29, 2011

NBC has taken so many hits lately from the abysmal THE PLAYBOY CLUB to the under-performance of its other new series, that the premiere of the final new show of their season looked pretty grim.

Luckily, the show itself is called GRIMM and thankfully it’s anything but.

GRIMM is from ANGEL co-creator David Greenwalt, Jim Kouf and Stephen Carpenter – it’s a fantastic premise, executed wonderfully and filled with the kind of crystal clear storytelling than many genre shows wish they could be blessed with.

The premise is pretty simple to grasp. Detective Nick Burkhardt (David Giuntoli) has it all – he has a great job that he’s good at and he’s planning on proposing to his long-time girlfriend.

Then something strange starts happening – he starts to see people for what they are – monsters.  He’s told that he’s one of the last of the Grimms – a secret society of monster profilers that date back to the Brothers Grimm. Monsters exist and their job is to stop them.

The first case Burkhardt is involved in revolves around a werewolf-like creature going after girls dressed in red. This leads him to a different werewolf named Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell). He’s a reformed creature and ends up being his unlikely confident in this monster-hunting business. Of course now Burkhardt has to keep secrets from everyone as he learns of his newfound abilities – and Reapers are also hunting him as well.

Like BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER (which Greenwalt wrote for as well), GRIMM has a very clearly defined universe. There seems to be a case of the week structure, but also an over-reaching mythology arc, which will be doled out in pieces.

If all this continues along the same path in the coming weeks, GRIMM could turn out to be the best new NBC series to come along in some time. Granted, it’s on Friday nights and opposite both SUPERNATURAL and FRINGE, but there’s something deliciously great about this show that hopefully there’s room for all three to grow on this night.

The characters are interesting, Monroe is fantastic and provides ample comic relief and the look and feel of the show feels like it was plucked directly out of the Grimm fairy tales.

I have a lot of faith in Greenwalt and Kouf whose clear vision really makes GRIMM one of the most enjoyable new dramatic pilots on any network. Since it is so offbeat and different, yet not convoluted like some shows get, it could find a wider appeal than something complicated and heavily serialized like HEROES or LOST.

It also has the potential of bringing in the BUFFY and ANGEL audience who have been clamoring for something in that vein since the series went off – but have treated to pale imitations since then. Yes, this has a few similar ingredients, but it also serves things up in its own original way that it can only get better from here.

Here’s hoping NBC can get a foothold on Friday nights with CHUCK and GRIMM. After all, it’s about time NBC was rewarded for doing something right and this combo is as good as it gets.

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Related Link: TV Review: GRIMM – Season 1 – “Three Coins in a Fuchsbau”
Related Link: TV Review: GRIMM – Season 1 – “Tarantella”

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Article: TV Review: GRIMM – Season 1 – “Pilot”

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