Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Northern Rescue’ On Netflix, Where William Baldwin Plays A Single Dad Raising Three Teens

Canada has been a good source of programming for Netflix, whether it’s shows that have been on TV up north for years (Schitt’s Creek, Workin’ Moms) or, like in the case of Northern Rescue, is a joint production between the streaming service and the CBC. Netflix’s Canadian content has been very hit and miss; what category is Northern Rescue in? Read on for more on that…

NORTHERN RESCUE: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: Shots of Boston, and a voice over talking about the definition of family: “A group of adults and children living together in a household. Sounds simple right?” We then see a teenage girl put a jacket on and the voice over says, “I’m the oldest, which comes with all of the responsibility and none of the glory.”

The Gist: The girl is Maddie West (Amalia Williamson) who, as a 17-year-old, has a predictably complicated relationship with her parents. Middle kid Scout (Spencer Macpherson) tries to find out who his is, as many middle kids do. The youngest, Taylor (Taylor Thorne), is pretty smart, though something called Singapore Math trips her up. Their dad, John (Billy Baldwin), is a commander in Boston’s search and rescue squad, which takes him away from his family. Though he’s looking for a promotion that will have somewhat more regular hours.

But when the kids’ mother (and John’s wife) Sara (Michelle Nolden) suddenly collapses, the tensions that were simmering among the family members bubble over. Maddie is especially prone to acting out, sneaking out with her boyfriend Henry (Evan Marsh), drinking and smoking weed. Then Sara, whose cancer has metastasized, dies suddenly and much sooner than everyone thought, leaving the Wests in a state of chaos.

Not only is Maddie out late, she’s so angry that her mother “left” her, that she punches a girl she thinks is sweet on Henry, then breaks up with him. Scout and Taylor aren’t doing well either. And a mere six weeks after Sara’s death, John is at the end of his emotional and financial rope; he doesn’t get that promotion due to his volatile nature.

He finds out from Sara’s sister Charlie Anders (Kathleen Robertson), that the little island town they all grew up in is looking for a new search and rescue commander. He decides to take the job, for a “fresh start.” However, he’s pretty sure that getting the kids to buy in to the move is going to be difficult.

Our Take: Northern Rescue is a pretty inoffensive, straightforward family drama that was jointly produced by Netflix and the CBC. It has pretty much all the earmarks of a broadcast or basic cable family drama: A parent with an unusual job, a family tragedy that they have to deal with, a move, and three teens/preteens at various stages of rebelliousness. The only things that set this show apart from the others is that a) the shots of Parry Sound in Ontario are gorgeous, and b) Billy Baldwin has somehow morphed into his older brother Alec, making his role much more intense than it was likely written to be.

It’s odd, really, watching the Baldwin that used to be the “young one” (though Stephen is younger) be paunchy, gruff and project menace with the same tone Alec does. There’s something about the way he plays John West that’s downright intimidating at times, especially when he lectures Maddie after bailing her out of jail following her altercation with the girl she saw talking to Henry. It’s a bit off-putting for what’s supposed to be a middle-of-the-road family drama, and doesn’t match the tone of the show very well. Yet, in other scenes, Baldwin is just fine.

The rest of the show is OK; the kids playing the West family are fine, just playing typical TV kids. It all elicits a shrug from us. We guess that the dynamic of the family staying with their aunt and John’s search-and-rescue job will make things a little different down the road. Also, there seems to be a secret that Maddie is hiding about her mother that, yes, feels artificially teased out in the premiere. Let’s hope that payoff is worth the narrative torture that method sometimes generates.

Sex and Skin: Not that kind of show.

Parting Shot: As the Wests arrive at their aunt’s house, they find that the move is going to be more complicated than they thought; Charlie was outside, watching in horror as her house smolders after a fire was put out.

Sleeper Star: Kathleen Robertson (who had quite a long arc on the original Beverly Hills 90210 is fun as Charlie. She’ll be a confidant of the kids while re-establishing a close relationship with John, who she’s known since she was a kid.

Most Pilot-y Line: “You don’t know anything about me. You don’t know anything about… anything. Especially mom,” Maddie says to her dad in a spate of drunken depression. There they go, teasing it out again. Why doesn’t she just tell John the truth?

Our Call: SKIP IT, unless you’re into listening to Billy Baldwin do his best impression of Alec Baldwin.

Joel Keller (@joelkeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting and tech, but he doesn’t kid himself: he’s a TV junkie. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Slate, Salon, VanityFair.com, Playboy.com, Fast Company’s Co.Create and elsewhere.

Stream Northern Rescue on Netflix