'Stumptown' review: Cobie Smulders breathes life into PTSD-ridden alcoholic gambler Dex in a show that is worth calling 'Smulderstown'
Among ABC 's promising shows this season is 'Stumptown' and we are certain all the 'How I Met Your Mother' and 'Avengers' fans are going to want to know if Cobie Smulders gets to be the badass we know her to be. The short answer is, yes, but if you are here for the long answer, read on.
Spoiler alert for Season 1 Episode 1 of 'Stumptown'
One of the most overused phrases to premiere a show is "something you have never seen before," but for once this is true.
The combination of an alcoholic, gambling addict who also happens to be a war veteran-turned-private investigator opens up an avenue within the realm of the television universe that has never been explored before and we are certainly glad it was reserved for 'Stumptown'.
From the costumes to the cinematography, the ABC show manages to maintain the gritty, dark aura of 'Stumptown', while the dialogues and action sequences make room for the fun and funny aspects.
The fact that we following the story of Dex, a woman who has been through hell and back is not lost as we watch the show, primarily because it is brought up a little too much — at least in the first episode.
However, it is also evident in the way Dex goes about her business and smells bullshit from over a mile away!
Not everything about Dex is dark and sad, though, because she has a few people she can count on — people who would protect her no questions asked or die trying.
One of them is her younger brother Ansel (Cole Sibus), who happens to be in the autism spectrum and works at a bar. Despite her staunch belief that she needs to protect him, it is established in the very first episode that he protects her just as much.
Despite being neurotypical, she has quite a few demons haunting her that Ansel may never know about, but give her a respite from.
Her best friend Grey (Jake Johnson) is another one of those people, but unlike Ansel, he fails to see the humor in her self destructive tendencies.
He wants her to be safe, and she refuses to listen, and there is a lot of tension there... potentially sexual tension, but we are yet to explore that.
Her former boss Tookie (Adrian Martinez) also fears for her life, just like Grey, and just like Grey, he knows that his worries yield no results. From how the pilot episode is set up, we see that Detective Miles (Michael Ealy) will also go on to become one of her close associates.
What is refreshing about Dex's story is that she is defined by her moral compass, her willingness to go the extra mile for someone who needs her help, her love for her brother and friends, and her negative qualities such as alcoholism, gambling problem, and even her PTSD.
However, the fact that she is a woman and a bisexual woman at that is never addressed. She is who she is because of her experiences. Her sex or sexual orientation does not make her interesting or unique, and we rarely get to see these attributes be mere facts in the media.
The story of a woman who is forced to do a dangerous job no one else is equipped to do is not new, but how Dex does it, is new, and Smulders does a wonderful job of bringing her to life.
You won't remember the cheerful Robin or the stoic Maria Hill in Dex, only a troubled woman haunted by her past and tied down by her responsibilities. As far as we are concerned, ABC could very well call 'Stumptown', 'Smulderstown'.
This is going the be the show you will brag about having watched from the very beginning five years down the line. so don't forget to tune in to ABC on Wednesday, September 25 night, when Season 1 Episode 1 of 'Stumptown' titled 'Forget It Dex, It's Stumptown' airs.