You’ve seen the commercials. You’ve heard the hype. Now there’s only one thing you want to know: Which of the new fall shows are worth watching and which should be avoided at all costs? In this continuing series, we give you the scoop on some of the most highly-anticipated shows of the season, with today’s subject being ABC’s LAST RESORT.
The Boilerplate: Since these pilot presentations may go through numerous rewrites and casting changes prior to premiere, this by no means should be considered an official review. Rather a preview of what one can expect come Fall.
The Plot: After failing to follow “fishy” orders to fire nuclear weapons at Pakistan, the U.S. ballistic missile submarine Colorado, led by Captain Marcus Chaplin, have little choice but to find refuge on an exotic island in an attempt to clear their sullied names and return home safely.
The Cast: LAST RESORT stars Andrew Braugher (HOMICIDE) as Captain Marcus Chaplin, Scott Speedman (FELICITY) as XO Sam Kendal, Robert Patrick (THE UNICE) as Master Chief Joseph Prosser, Daisy Betts (PERSONS UNKNOWN) as Lt. Grace Shepard, Autumn Reeser (NO ORDINARY FAMILY) as Kylie Sinclair and DIchen Lachman (DOLLHOUSE) as Tani Tumrenjak.
The Snap Judgment: Is surprisingly mixed. On the one hand, there’s absolutely no denying that LAST RESORT co-creator Shawn Ryan ultimately succeeds where it counts in terms of crafting a tension-filled character-driven adventure that all but guarantees audiences will be dying to discover what happens next. On the other, we expected a bit more when the team propelling this project both in front and behind the camera includes the brains behind THE SHIELD (Ryan) and a roster of TV Addict favorites such as Andre Braugher, Scott Speedman, Autumn Reeser, Jessy Schram, Dichen Lachman among others. And while we don’t pretend to know whether our lack of unabashed love for this series premiere is a result of co-creators Karl Gajdusek and Shawn Ryan attempt to set-up a season’s worth of storylines littered with government conspiracies and gunplay within the span of a mere forty-four minutes, or a side effect of introducing one too many characters into the fold, we’re sorry to report that LAST RESORT’s pilot failed to live up to our admittedly incredibly lofty expectations. That said…
The Conclusion: Has us more than ready and willing to support the show, if for no other reason than a Network going ahead and green-lighting an original and unique series that doesn’t involve yet another doctor, lawyer or cop is an increasingly rare occurrence. That and the show’s Crimson Tide meets Lord of the Flies conceit is pretty bad ass. 
LAST RESORT premieres Thursday September 27th at 8PM on ABC (Global TV in Canada).