PLOT: When nice guy family man cop Vince Faraday (David Lyons) is framed for crimes and murders he didn't commit by the criminal known only as Chess, he is forced to go underground, where he joins a rag tag group of circus criminals led by Max Malini (Keith David), who bestows upon him the cape, a mysterious object forged from a time long ago, endowed with magical properties. Determined to bring down the real Chess, Peter Fleming, the evil, corrupt businessman who tore his life apart and get back to his wife and son, Vince becomes the Cape (which incidentally was also the name of his son's favorite comic book superhero), and joins forces with the mysterious computer hacker Orwell (Summer Glau).
This series had a lot of potential that was still untapped at the time of its all too early cancellation. True, there were flaws in the execution, which is sometimes to be expected in a debut season. As the lead, David Lyons was good despite not always having the best material to work with (the episodes that aired often had him going on about trying to get back to his family before going off to fight someone - and then talking about his family again afterwards), but he was often upstaged by the supporting cast; in particular veteran character actor Keith David, that burly, baritone voiced force of nature that he is, often devoured Lyons in their scenes together as his mentor. Another problem was some uneven casting in the Faraday family. Lyons definitely had solid chemistry with Jennifer Ferrin, who played his wife Dana, but Ryan Wynott, the child actor chosen to play their son Trip, was a blank. Surely there must have been better child actors who auditioned, because Wynott is incapable of expressing any genuine emotion, which hurt the storyline of Vince trying to get home because his son comes across as so devoid of emotion that he might as well be made of cardboard. That neither the son or wife could recognize Vince as the Cape despite not really changing his voice was also laughable.
The introduction of Orwell having feelings for the Cape also came a bit late in the game and, honestly, one has to wonder how it could have gone anywhere when Vince was so steadfastly devoted to his wife.
The series did have bright spots though. James Frain was appropriately slimy and chilling as the villain. Summer Glau offered strong support as Orwell the computer whiz. Why this poor woman seems cursed to appear in TV series that don't last is mind boggling. And, as already stated, Keith David brought a much needed breath of zest and panache to his role as Max. The action scenes were generally well done.
What's all the more unfortunate is that the series was discontinued just when it was starting to find its groove. The two-part episode "The Lich" in which the Cape must rescue Orwell from a disfigured serial killer was genuinely creepy and kept you on the edge of your seat and showcased Vince's skills as a policeman while giving the 'family is strength' speech a rest. The last aired episode was an engaging undercover story with Vince impersonating an Australian criminal in order to access crucial information from the villains.
Alas, it was too little too late, for the series is gone now. An unfortunate waste of a potentially good premise.
This series had a lot of potential that was still untapped at the time of its all too early cancellation. True, there were flaws in the execution, which is sometimes to be expected in a debut season. As the lead, David Lyons was good despite not always having the best material to work with (the episodes that aired often had him going on about trying to get back to his family before going off to fight someone - and then talking about his family again afterwards), but he was often upstaged by the supporting cast; in particular veteran character actor Keith David, that burly, baritone voiced force of nature that he is, often devoured Lyons in their scenes together as his mentor. Another problem was some uneven casting in the Faraday family. Lyons definitely had solid chemistry with Jennifer Ferrin, who played his wife Dana, but Ryan Wynott, the child actor chosen to play their son Trip, was a blank. Surely there must have been better child actors who auditioned, because Wynott is incapable of expressing any genuine emotion, which hurt the storyline of Vince trying to get home because his son comes across as so devoid of emotion that he might as well be made of cardboard. That neither the son or wife could recognize Vince as the Cape despite not really changing his voice was also laughable.
The introduction of Orwell having feelings for the Cape also came a bit late in the game and, honestly, one has to wonder how it could have gone anywhere when Vince was so steadfastly devoted to his wife.
The series did have bright spots though. James Frain was appropriately slimy and chilling as the villain. Summer Glau offered strong support as Orwell the computer whiz. Why this poor woman seems cursed to appear in TV series that don't last is mind boggling. And, as already stated, Keith David brought a much needed breath of zest and panache to his role as Max. The action scenes were generally well done.
What's all the more unfortunate is that the series was discontinued just when it was starting to find its groove. The two-part episode "The Lich" in which the Cape must rescue Orwell from a disfigured serial killer was genuinely creepy and kept you on the edge of your seat and showcased Vince's skills as a policeman while giving the 'family is strength' speech a rest. The last aired episode was an engaging undercover story with Vince impersonating an Australian criminal in order to access crucial information from the villains.
Alas, it was too little too late, for the series is gone now. An unfortunate waste of a potentially good premise.