"Dead stood behind him, and said:
'Follow me, the hour of your departure from this world has come' "
(Source: Death's Messengers. Opened Season 2, Episode 4 of "Grimm")
As we bid farewell to NBC's "Grimm," I have some parting reflections and a few spoilers.
In 2011, a series with tremendous potential and an interesting mythical canon began. Because it was the brainchild of David Greenwalt (“Buffy”) and Jim Kouf (“Rush Hour” / “Stakeout”), and produced by Sean Hayes, I had high hopes.
Despite mostly bad acting (with the exception of the phenomenal Silas Weir Mitchell) and weak storylines, it stumbled through its first season and gathered a fan base. From the beginning, the character of Juliette was poorly developed, poorly written, and worse, poorly cast. It was the least favorite character per fan consensus. When Juliette died, fans rejoiced. But because the actress (Bitsie Tulloch) was/is romantically involved with the show’s lead (David Giuntoli), the writers brought the actress back as a doppelganger Hexenbiest named Eve, to the chagrin of most fans. While Tulloch seems like a perfectly nice person, she lacks acting chops. Her emotional range is consistently flat-lined. But as the writers refined the voices of other characters and built storylines that gave Tulloch less screen time, her presence became less distracting.
Adalind (played by the wonderful Claire Coffee) became the new onscreen love interest for Nick (Giuntoli), giving us scenes with evenly-matched actors. But the fifth season brought teen actress (Hannah Loyd) as Diana (Adalind’s daughter). Loyd was likely hired more for looks and geographic convenience (local to the area) than talent. If her performances were anymore wooden, I’d suggest she play Pinocchio’s long-lost sister on ABC’s “Once Upon A Time.” To avoid her annoying monotonic nasal delivery, I would wash dishes or hit the loo during her scenes so I wouldn’t have to endure the sound of her voice. There are thousands of talented child actors out there. Even though the show was shot in Portland, surely they could’ve found someone better.
In the final season, many arcs from earlier seasons were abandoned and left unresolved, including the “Royals” and the coins. Friday, March 31 was the series finale. So how did they do? "Grimm" went out with a predictable gimmicky and unoriginal whimper. The episode was rife with laughable B-movie SFX, terrible makeup/mask on the villain, and poorly shot stunt double fight scenes. And no appearance by Bud? Did the budget get cut for the finale?
As a side note, the infant portraying Kelly in the episode appears to have been played by Coffee’s real-life baby; the resemblance was uncanny. I’ll miss Coffee and Mitchell the most, as they brought their A-game to every line, every scene, every episode. The rest of the cast was adequate. Somehow even Tulloch was tolerable tonight. Gratefully, Loyd had few lines as the majority of the episode was carried by Giuntoli. Hopefully Tulloch and Loyd will take acting classes before their next gig.
The book of "Grimm" pulled a "Wizard of Oz" meets "Lost" meets "Newhart" ending. I'm sure fans ate it up, but after seasons of increasingly convoluted non-plots, I guess Greenwalt and Kouf had written themselves into a corner. The tag, a 20-year leap forward, should've paid off with a peek into where each character ended up, including Monroe and Rosalee's triplets. Instead we got a predictable sequel/spinoff setup for Diana and Kelly.
I know this review reads as if I hated "Grimm." I didn't. I was a fan from day one. I just wish science-fiction and fantasy shows would put more effort into casting people who can act. When you have outlandish stories and hokey effects, you need actors with real chops to pull it off. The same holds true for ABC's "Once Upon A Time." Some actors are outstanding: Robert Carlyle and Lana Parrilla bring gravitas to their dialogue and characters. Their scenes together shine so much that Smeagol would be envious.
"Grimm" had enough episodes that guarantee it will be in syndication. I suspect they'll also entertain a spin-off with the kids, a movie like "Firefly," and probably video games, to exploit the property as much as possible. While I enjoyed the show, I do not mourn its demise. Me? I can't wait until HBO's "Westworld" comes back later in 2017. Now that's a show with great writing, great dialogue, great characters, and exceptional acting. With the bar raised, broadcast television should rise to meet it.
Ultimately, setting and filming the show in Portland, Oregon, was key to its look and feel. Portland's known for being "Weird" and having tons of gloomy weather. Perfect fit.
“How often when we are comfortable,
we begin to long for something new! ” ~ Jacob Grimm
