Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Bluff City Law’ On NBC, Where Jimmy Smits Plays A Lawyer Dealing With Bringing His Daughter Back Into His Firm

The first time most people were exposed to the massive charm of Jimmy Smits was on L.A. Law, where he played young attorney VIctor Sifuentes. That show premiered 33 years ago (!), and he’s been on our TVs ever since. Why? Because he brings a gravity to his roles but also can handle them with a sense of humor and grace. Which is why, now that he’s playing fathers of adult kids, he’s still the draw on any show he’s on. This is especially true for his new series, Bluff City Law. Read on for more…

BLUFF CITY LAW: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: We see a woman looking at herself in a bathroom mirror, panic on her face. “I hold a family’s future in my hands,” we hear from her in voice over.

The Gist: We flash back six weeks. Sydney Strait (Caitlin McGee) is a top-notch attorney in Memphis, mostly representing huge corporations in class-action suits. Her job is to put doubt in juries’ minds when it comes to how her clients product may or may not have affected the plaintiffs’ health. After a particularly satisfying deposition where she did just that, she gets some horrible news: Her mother suddenly passed away.

At the funeral, she’s approached by her father Elijah Strait (Jimmy Smits), whom she hasn’t talked to in a few years, mainly because she found out about the affairs he’s had over the course of his parents’ marriage. He’s one of Memphis’ most respected activist attorneys, representing the plaintiffs in the same cases Sydney works on the other side, as well as other types of cases where the underdog needs someone to fight the system. Her mom was the heart and soul of the firm, and Elijah thinks that Sydney can take her place and be in a position to change lives. “When you lose the love of your life, you realize you don’t want to miss one moment with your incredible daughter,” Elijah tells her. She reluctantly agrees.

The first case is one that the firm has been working on for some time: A class-action against the manufacturer of a cancer-causing pesticide. Sydney immediately suggests the family they’re representing break from the class-action and call for an expedited trial due to a worsening of the client’s illness. Elijah and Anthony Little (Michael Luwoye), an old friend she used to go to law school with, are wondering if this new direction is wise, considering how much work they’ve put in to this point. For her part, Sydney feels the pressure of having one family’s fate in her hands, instead of being on the other side, where a loss for a big corporation is just a blip.

In another case, Elijah’s best rainmaker, Jake Reilly (Barry Sloane), is given a case that Elijah’s wife had started working on before her death; a man who admits to a murder after he’s convicted, despite the evidence not adding up. After Jake enlists Sydney to introduce him to her ex-husband Robbie Ellis (Josh Kelly), who happens to be the city’s chief of detectives, he finds out more info that leads him to figure out why the firm was working on the case. The man admitted to the crime to ensure his family had a life instead of waiting around for appeals.

Our Take: Bluff City Law feels like one of those shows that’s going to completely live or die with its cast. As a case-of-the-week law show, it’s nothing special. In fact, given the fact that Elijah Strait’s firm are activist attorneys defending the “little guy,” it’s going to often come off as too earnest for its own good. The “good guys” might not always win, but they will win more often than not, and the speechifying about making a difference will get old fast.

But EPs Michael Aguilar and Dean Georgaris have put together a pretty good cast, starting with Smits. It doesn’t matter that the Brooklyn native’s attempt at a Tennessean accent is distracting; Smits has been giving us his combination of authority and warmth for almost 35 years now. There’s a reason why he keeps getting cast in shows; he lends his shows a gravitas but knows how to not get too bogged down in the heaviness of a role. He does the same thing here as Elijah.

McGee doesn’t overplay her role; she’s still conflicted about working with her father, and readily admits being on the plaintiff’s side is more nerve-wracking because of the stakes. Luwoye and Sloane, along with Jayne Atkinson as senior lawyer Della Bedford and Stony Blyden as nerdy paralegal Emerson Howe, also fit into the ensemble well. The interplay and chemistry among this ensemble will be the key to keeping audiences engaged in Bluff City Law, because the cases… well, they’re nothing special.

Sex and Skin: All business in the first episode.

Parting Shot: After winning their case, Sydney hears Emerson address Elijah in an completely unexpected way.

Sleeper Star: We don’t see a lot of MaameYaa Boafo as Sydney’s best friend Briana Johnson, but what we did see, we liked. Also, the city of Memphis itself is a fine co-star; we give this show a lot of credit for setting and shooting in a fascinating city that doesn’t usually get depicted on network TV.

Most Pilot-y Line: We always wonder why, when a huge verdict in a lawsuit goes the plaintiff’s way, why everyone celebrates as if it’s all over. Won’t the massive corporation with its expensive lawyers file appeals until the cows come home? You never hear about that.

Our Call: SKIP IT. Despite the cast, the cases in Bluff City Law are just too generic for us to stay interested.

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.com, RollingStone.com, Billboard and elsewhere.

Stream Bluff City Law On NBC.com