Undercovers seems like an upgraded version of any number of USA Network shows. It's breezy, has an upbeat tempo, and everything is simplistic, the main difference being the diversity of locations and length of action scenes. But it's hard not to feel disappointed, seeing as J.J. Abrams was heavily involved, co-writing and directing the episode. The pilot of Undercovers comes nowhere close to Lost and Alias, neither bringing the forward movement that forces viewers to come back the next week, nor creating characters who are remotely realistic. If the show were created by anyone other than Abrams or a select few, I probably wouldn't be complaining, but with Abrams, I expected more.
That said, Michael Giacchino's pulsing score and Lost-like low strings, in addition to the spunk from Boris Kodjoe and Gugu Mbatha-Raw (say that 10 times fast!), made for an enjoyable hour of television which I don't regret watching. Undercovers certainly isn't appointment television, but since Wednesday is less crowded than other nights, I'll be back.
Score: 8.8/10
