Disney+ Summary:
Based on Karin Slaughter’s New York Times best-selling Will Trent series, Special Agent Will Trent of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) was abandoned at birth and endured a harsh coming of age in Atlanta’s overwhelmed foster care system. But now, determined to use his unique point of view to make sure no one is abandoned like he was, Will Trent has the highest clearance rate in the GBI.
FYA Summary:
Will Trent—sorry, Special Agent Will Trent of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation—is a man with a tortured past. But you’d never know that about him, what with his case closure record, terse demeanor, and penchant for wearing three-piece suits, even in the summer. Underneath the put-together facade, however, is a scared little boy who barely survived his childhood spent in various foster homes around Atlanta. And that scared little boy is the one pushing Will to succeed, to make sure that no one else has to feel like they don’t matter, even when said individuals are deceased.
Together with a found family of other GBI agents and members of the Atlanta Police Force, including his on-again-off-again girlfriend/foster sister Angie Polaski, Will tackles tough cases—and his personal traumas.
Familiar Voices:
Ramón Rodriguez as Will Trent and Iantha Richardson as Faith Mitchell
It took me a while to realize where I knew Rodriguez from, and it wasn’t until I looked him up on IMDB did I realize that he’s Sam Witwicky’s douchey friend Leo from Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. He’s been in a bunch of other things since then, including a Charlie’s Angels remake I do not remember existing, but he really shines as Will.
Will’s equal parts prickly and cold, and in the beginning acts like there’s no one smarter in the room. But as you get to know him, and the show progresses, you learn that much of that is a facade (and he probably is the smartest person in the room in most cases). His banter with his unwitting partner, Faith, is super, and his love of his dog, Betty, is one of the best parts of the show. He’s also an individual with dyslexia, but the show treats the disability carefully and respectfully, in the long run. Rodriguez plays Will with both heart and aloof arrogance but isn’t afraid to take the role into comedy on occasion. (One of my oft-repeated “you need to watch this show” examples is of Will learning Spanish and stumbling through the words with his thick (some might say ridiculous) Georgian accent. In reality, Rodriguez is from Puerto Rico and fluent in the language. Pretending not to know how to speak your native language has got to be hard!)
Faith, on the other hand, is a kind but sarcastic person who’s forced to partner up with Will to bring some humanity to the man’s work. She bristles at the idea, at first, but soon realizes—much like the viewers—that there’s more to Will than he lets on. She still gives him grief as often as she can, but it’s done (mostly) out of love. I hadn’t seen Richardson in anything before this (she had roles in American Soul and This is Us), but she’s impressed me with her physical acting as much as her verbal performance; some of the expressions she wears could kill a lesser man. She also has a penchant for wearing sweater vests, which is such a quirky choice for this character, it makes me laugh.
Erika Christensen as Angie Polaski and Jake McLaughlin as Michael Ormewood
Angie is as equally messed up as Will, but hasn’t developed as thick of a protective layer. She and Will have been inseparable for what seems like decades, and their relationship bears as many scars as they do. They’re not good for each other, but they’re the only people who truly understand. Christensen—who you might know from her iconic role in Swimfan or her long-running role on Parenthood—plays Angie with fragility and a brashness born of trying to hide that fragility that’s impressive. She’s often kind of unlikeable, but that personality is easy to overlook when her truths are revealed. It’s interesting to watch how Will and Angie deal so differently with the same situations. And her relationship with her partner, Ormewood, is hilarious.
Speaking of, Ormewood is the show’s comic relief. He’s a cop’s cop and leans in to a lot of stereotypes without getting offensive. He starts the show as little more than an annoyance, but slowly becomes an invaluable member of the team. (I will always laugh when he does something dumb, though. He’s a doofus.) Much like Sohn (below), McLaughlin’s had a lot of roles playing soldiers and law enforcement, his most familiar of which is his role on Quantico, but there’s nothing wrong with being typecast when you do something so well.
Sonja Sohn as Amanda Wagner
Sohn has made a career of playing badass women in positions of authority and is likely best known for her role as Detective Greggs on The Wire. I know her best as Michael Burnham’s mom from Star Trek Discovery—still a badass—but Amanda is by far the best role I’ve seen her play. As the head of the Atlanta offices of the GBI, she’s a no-nonsense boss who takes no prisoners. She’s also not afraid to get her hands dirty—but getting her clothes dirty is another story. (Her fashion game is spotless.) Lest you think she’s without a softer side, she’s also a surrogate mother to Will and an Auntie to Faith. Don’t ever tell her she’s soft, though, if you value your life.
Gina Rodriguez (Jane the Virgin) joins the cast in the fourth season, which is currently airing on ABC.
Couch-Sharing Capability: Gather the Team
Although I binged the first three seasons of this show in a matter of days and am now keeping up with the fourth season as it airs, all by myself, I attempt to push this show on many people. So it might not be one you watch with a group (the first time), but there’s a period of proselytizing that will most definitely happen once you’ve caught up. You can all join up for a rewatch later.
Recommended Level of Inebriation: We’re On Duty
There are a lot of conversations about sobriety in this show; Angie, particularly, is an addict who has a hard time staying clean and proving herself when she is. So I’d recommend taking it easy while you watch this show out of respect for her struggles. Plus, even though it’s a network procedural, which can sometimes mean formulaic dialogue and repeated plots (looking at you, FBIs), Will Trent is a standout in the field and worth giving all of your attention to.
Use of Your Streaming Subscription: Meet You at the Crime Scene
I recently went looking for a new show to keep me company while I was doing other things and remembered seeing positive things about Will Trent in the stories of an Instagram acquaintance I admire. I didn’t really need another procedural on my list of shows—as someone who believes a certain way about real-life law enforcement, I watch a lot of them—but was drawn in by the promise of great fashion, particularly the sartorial choices of Betty, who’s obviously the star. I’m grateful that I gave it a try, as I quickly fell in love with the delightful cast of characters and the meaty plots behind the monsters of the week. Sure, it’s yet another example of copaganda, but it’s a very entertaining one.
*waves* You can count me as a convert because of Mandy’s proselytizing — I did see an abundance of advertisements recently, as the third season just started, but Mandy’s seal of approval had me turn it on and I, too, am now OBSESSSSSED. The mysteries and how they get resolved are kind of silly sometimes (although the two-parter series opener was VERY fun to watch) but the characters/actors are where this show really shines! Even though Will Trent is the main character he’s actually surrounded mostly by women, and the show gives these women such rich inner lives compared to many other shows of this nature. They are all strong and capable in various ways, and I think that makes all the difference. Even Will himself side-steps so many toxic male–and male cop–stereotypes and it’s a breath of fresh air (also Rodriguez is gorgeous so quite easy to watch. The entire cast is very hot, lol.). I’m surprised you didn’t mention Nico as well! Their character popping up as Betty’s dog-sitter is another little bit that makes the show a delight (<3 Bad Bitch Betty!) Faith is my fave character; I absolutely adore her and her eye rolls.
-- For those who watch: Although I do love their friendship/partnership and would be fine for it to stay that way, I am low-key shipping Faith and Will. I feel like they'd be great for each other. Either the actors just have excellent chemistry or they have given us little hints here and there and I feel like they could grow into something. I'm not caught up yet so I assume Gina is going to double as a love-interest this season, but once that ends... *eyebrow waggles*