Tonight at 8PM (ET), new episodes of Nikita start again in the show’s new timeslot on Friday nights, taking the spot that was for the past three years owned by Smallville.
The show’s cast – Maggie Q, Lyndsy Fonseca, Shane West, Xander Berkeley, Aaron Stanford, and Melinda Clarke – is all back for more, and with the show focusing more on this core, it becomes a whole lot stronger.
With only one exception, the cast of characters is all put to good use. This time a year ago, Michael and Nikita were on opposing sides and we weren’t quite sure what Michael’s deal would be. Now, Michael and Nikita are together – lovers rather than allies. The big bad Percy has been stopped, but there are other, possibly worse threats out there. In the season premiere, Michael and Nikita learn about an “inside job” that framed an innocent man years ago – trying to right the wrongs by Division and Oversight. Do they succeed? Or will Amanda and the sub-contracted Alex keep them from success? And how does Birkhoff fit in, anyway? All of these answers wil come within this hour.
I can also say without hesitation that if you’ve never seen Nikita, this is a great jumping-on point. The things you may need to know are on the “Previously…” although if you like what you see, the first season is on DVD if you want to catch up. I feel like as the show has evolved it has really found itself, and that’s probably thanks to a talented writing staff and a good group of actors who really seem to love what they do.
The season premiere has humor — something that I think the show needed more of, especially in the early episodes last season. But don’t fear that it’s a farce, either. There’s still some serious action, gunshots, kicking, punching, and maybe even some flying drones.
A minor spoiler, but not one that I think I’d get in trouble for mentioning as it has been said in interviews, is that Amanda is heading Division now. This is a great opportunity for the incredibly talented Melinda Clarke. I’ve loved her since Julie Cooper was the best part of The O.C. and she’s one of Nikita’s highlights. Most of her scenes are with Lyndsy Fonseca’s Alex, who seems to now be against Nikita – or is she?
The only weak spot in this premiere is something which could get better as the storyline progresses, but I’m not going to be too optimistic because I didn’t care for the character in Season 1 – and that’s Percy. I still feel he’s being built up as this Big Bad on the level of an Arvin Sloane, and I’m just not feeling it. In fact, there were some parts from him that veered over-the-top to the level of camp. I don’t know if it’s the writing for the character I’m not feeling or if it’s just how it’s performed – I know Xander Berkeley is a good actor – but I just wasn’t feeling it. Fortunately, at least for now, he seems to be incarcerated. The high-water mark for me when it comes to awesome characters in imprisonment is Lena Olin’s Irina Derevko from Alias – so maybe I’m just being a snob.
But please don’t let that one complaint kill your intention to watch, because it is really fun, especially if you’re looking for something to watch on Friday before Supernatural now that Smallville is gone. Like I said, it’s really gelling, and I can’t wait to see more. If this premiere is a sign of what Season 2 will be like, we’re in for a fantastic ride.
The Nikita season premiere airs at 8PM (ET) tonight on The CW. Here are some extras associated with the episode that you may enjoy:
Forum Thread – Episodic Image Gallery – Shane West & Craig Silverstein Interview (September 2011) – Maggie Q Interview – Shane West Interview – Lyndsy Fonseca Interview – Aaron Stanford Interview – Craig Silverstein Interview – Episode Description – Preview Clips
