Copper (2013)

If you want the gloves to come off... so be it.

The gloves certainly do come off for season 2 of BBC America's period drama, but it is mostly to the show's detriment. The plot becomes cluttered and haphazard with too many plotlines and characters coming and going that nothing is ever finished. The first episode sets up one character as a terrorizing and fearless villain that could easily have been an interesting arc for Detective Corcoran to go against, but is then dropped by the end of the episode. This could have been a clever bait and switch, but clearly isn't as it happens about 3 more times over the course of the season like the writers got bored or distracted by something shiny and switch to something else at the drop of a hat with all the indecisiveness of a housecat deciding whether it wants to go outside or not. Interesting events that are part of the time period like disease outbreaks and opium addiction are set up as major defining moments and then discarded with no resolution and minimal effect on the main story arc. What resolution there is from season 1 is written off in a rather implausible way just to seemingly get back to the status quo of season 1 like the show-runners finally pulled themselves out of their cocaine and/or alcohol binge haze to notice the colossal mess they were making and tried to clean it up in the worst way.

When the show does get back to what it does best (vicious period drama crimes and character dialogue) there are glimmers of the entertaining show it once was, but it mostly tries to fill the void with extended gore and basic cable nudity. The plots set up aren't even bad per se, just muddled because they were all shoved together into a gelatinous mass instead of spreading it out and letting what worked play through to some sort of closure. All of it is then dropped at the end of the season for an unnecessary and shoehorned bit involving Lincoln's assassination that is cheesy and should really have had nothing to do with the rest of the show. The show comes back to end on a regular cliffhanger, but then it was cancelled making it one more unresolved moment to add to the pile. Donal Logue puts in a decent turn as a sleazy politician, even though despite his actual Irish heritage he seemed out of place at times and Alfre Woodard makes a brief cameo of sorts as a freed slave that was palatable, but could have been better. Though it was one of the few plot threads that actually had a full arc, so that's something. Overall nothing other than the set and wardrobe designers were really on point and what character drama there is to enjoy is not up to snuff for the bar the show set for itself in its first season.

Buyer's Guide:
Available on iTunes and Amazon Instant Video with a forthcoming DVD release.

2 Sympathetic anti heroes that aren't sympathetic out of 5

Copper (2012)

BBC America's first original show follows Detective Kevin Corcoran in 1860s New York as he searches for answers in the disappearance of his wife and the murder of his daughter while he was away fighting in the American Civil War. He searches while simultaneously solving crimes in the neighborhood of Five Points. He is known for being relentless and solving many cases. Unbeknownst to many though is he does it with the help of a doctor friend who he keeps secret because he is black and so the evidence gained through his scientific inquiry would be racially dismissed. Also with the help of his fellow immigrant cops they will catch criminals and root out corruption in a violent and corrupt manner.

The show could be dismissed as another procedural, but makes the most of the time period it's set in by solving crimes through old fashioned methods as this is before the advent of forensics and miranda rights. Also the characters are wonderfully flawed and interesting, like Corcoran himself who is probably the most upstanding dude around, but isn't above prostitutes, beating information out of suspects or generally bending the rules to solve a case. Or the brothel madam who dreams of high society despite the fact she gets nothing but neglect and derision from it. The racism proves an interesting plot device, but is somewhat underused which is puzzling given the setting. As Corcoran gets closer to answers, more questions will be raised and more violence will be dealt with.

The show is very well put together with characters and story but feels a little underwhelming in the sets. They don't feel as organic as the sets in say Hell On Wheels, another period drama. But that is understandable on it's cable budget and is just a smudge on an otherwise great 10 episodes.

Buyer's Guide:
Available now on iTunes and Amazon Instant Video.

4 Brass knuckles cracking real knuckles out of 5