Newbies: Graceland

A new edition to USA's blue-skies procedural line up, Graceland (Thursdays at 10) just may be the network's edgiest series yet. Don't get me wrong though, in general the show is still done in the same light drama style of Burn Notice or White Collar, but if Suits is the USA version of Mad Men, Graceland is almost like their version of The Shield in a way. Not to say that it is USA's best show, or even resembles The Shield too closely (it isn't and it doesn't), but Graceland does feature more of the gritty side to undercover detective work, including some brutal violence and hard drug use. The premise is that the FBI uses a seized kingpin's Los Angeles beach estate as a house for various FBI, DEA, and Customs agents who work undercover in the area (the kingpin loved Elvis, so the name stuck). The diversity of agencies involved allows the show to delve into a variety of cases and characters, helping to mix up the standard formula of close-ended cases in each episode framed by an ongoing serialized story arc.

One way Graceland sets itself apart from other USA programming is its large central cast of six agents who live in the house together, though four of them are FBI. An episode will generally feature a stand alone case belonging to one of the agents (and sometimes as many as three cases), and the other housemates will then join in for the specific missions to help bring down the bad guys. Similar to semi-procedural shows like FX's Justified or BBC America's Copper, some cases in Graceland also spill over into subsequent episodes so a viewer is rewarded for their loyalty. Much more like a USA show however, the agents on assignment are often joking around with each other, making as much fun as they can out of their situations, until things get serious during a mission. Additionally, having six primary characters allows for a lot of different match-ups, as each episode rotates which agent's current target will be focused on and which other agents help them complete their assignment, portraying different types of cases depending on the leading agency and allowing the audience to gain more insight into the various dynamics of the house.

The central character however is fresh FBI rookie Mike Warren (Aaron Tveit), who soon discovers he has been assigned to Graceland to investigate Agent Briggs (Rescue Me's Daniel Sunjata), a modern FBI legend who has been at Graceland longer than anyone, though his tactics often prove unorthodox. This task will of course prove more difficult as Briggs serves as a mentor to Mike, helping him through missions and putting him on track to take down the biggest Heroin dealer in the city by eventually becoming his personal bodyguard. Briggs' isn't just Graceland's oldest resident though, he also acts as its protector, with his highest priority being to preserve the headquarters' cover under any circumstances. The cast is rounded out by two more FBI Agents, the blunt Brooklyn-bred Charlie (Vanessa Ferlito) who typically covers as a junkie and the fun loving Johnny (Manny Montana) who can cover as a Latin gang member. There's also the requisite potential love interest in DEA agent Paige (Serinda Swan) (unless that role turns out to be filled by Charlie, or refreshingly by none of them perhaps), and no-nonsense Customs Agent Dale Jakes (Brandon Jay McLaren, previously of Falling Skies and The Killing) whose cover is often Jamaican.

Despite all its edginess, in the end this is still a USA drama, meaning nothing quite too heavy and a show that will probably never equal the addictive must-watch caliber of more substantial dramas found on networks like HBO or AMC (although Suits does get much closer to that status and is certainly must-watch television). However, Graceland is still a fun show that dares to delve deeper into the lives of young undercover agents and their high stakes assignments with a relatively unfiltered lens, while also basking in the lighter aspects of six younger people living in a beach house together (such as horsing around or bickering over the chore wheel).