Ironside was better than I expected. My worst fears were only half realized. The plot is predictable but with a gritty edge. Is gritty predictable a thing? (CSI: Miami says yes.) The show works much the same as every other cop show: murder, investigating, false leads, investigating, lucky break, moment of inspiration, resolution. That being the case, we turn to the characters for a reason to keep watching (not that I have much choice).

Detective Robert Ironside was your normal detective with a lovely gal and a tendency to dangle suspects off of buildings. He and his partner were chasing down a criminal when his partner shoots him with friendly fire, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down. Pretty dark and twisty stuff, especially for the partner, whom Ironside treats to an ample dose of tough love to wrench said partner from his pit of self-loathing. Well, it at least gets him to a support group. Personally, I think the partner’s struggle is more compelling.

I want to like Ironside, but the constant bitter stream of remarks used very pointedly to get suspects to cooperate and superiors to back off makes me cringe. Am I going to get a whole season of “I see the world differently from down here” and “ .” I mean, from the flashbacks, we see that he was a rough, procedure-out-the-window, devil-may-care cop. Post-accident, he’s the same cop but he gets away with more because he plays the wheelchair card. It’s simple and not very sympathetic.

So far, there is nothing to like. Yes, Ironside’s story is a tragic one, and while I understand that cerebrally, I don’t have an emotional connection. The character has all the elements of a good one but fails to engage me on any kind of deeper level.

I already care more about two side character on his team than I do about him. The girl, Holly, my biggest doubt from the preview, was well-balanced. She didn’t play into the gender roles, a girl proving she’s better than the guys; she was a good cop that did her job well. I got a sense of her character--hardworking, willing to see the world in greys, loyal but questioning--and I liked her character.

Virgil was less developed, although I suspect he’s an adrenaline junkie who butts heads with his wife over his career choice. No doubt, she thinks his boss pushes him to take unnecessary risks. I bet the marriage is in trough before the mid-season break. Virgil has a developing bromance with Teddy, my personal favorite.

Teddy is teeming with contradiction, but he is well written and honestly a breath of fresh air in a mostly predictable show. He is a former investment banker, a trust fund kid, who walked away from a lucrative career with a huge chip on his shoulder to become a detective. Don’t know why yet, but I want to. He’s also the funniest character, supplying timely quips much more effectively than our lead.

I want Ironside to catch up to his sidekicks. Also, I need a better reason for why he is still employed after pulling crap like shooting a hostage and beating the crap out of a suspect while Virgil shouts his Miranda Rights from outside of the car. Okay, that last one was pretty funny, but no way would Ironside still be employed in the real world. Suspended belief only gets to so far.

Interest Rate: Conflicted, to say the least.

Oh, no. No, no, no, no, no. This is bad.

I have a distinct one-sided love for tough-as-nails, devil-may-care, the-world-be-damned, other-cliche-tough-guy-sayings characters. I have a huge blind spot. I don't know if I can trust myself to be objective.

There is something so seductive and intriguing about the authority figure who's personal tragedy has launched his controlling, likely addictive, difficult personality from prickly to compulsive. It happens all of the time. (Looking at you, House, Lie to Me, Sherlock, Leverage, M*A*S*H*, Scrubs, and infinite variations of CSI.) Ironside knows exactly what its public wants in a gritty crime show.

While I think the airwaves are plenty saturated with procedural crime dramas, I remain on the fence about Ironside. Crime shows can be entertaining and fun and different while the building blocks remain unchanged. I'm not worried about the plot lines; crime dramas tend to stick to the tried-and-true method of storytelling, leaving their audience highly entertained if unchallenged.

What remains is how well the show handles the supporting cast.  It's the integrity of the characters--how believable they are in their roles, how well their dynamics are written, how original their roles are--that will make or break this show.

More than anything, I'm trying to look past the obligatory female character's placement on the team and hope she develops as an interesting and new take on the "strong female character." Trying.