NBC premieres Ironside, a remake of the Raymond Burr series that ran from 1967-1975, on Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET/PT. The following are reviews from TV critics around the web, compiled by B&C.
“In the new Ironside, which begins on Wednesday on NBC, Blair Underwood makes the title character an unpleasant combination of macho and brusque. That’s how you get people to go looking for something else to watch.”—Neil Genzlinger, New York Times
“Given that built-in lack of interest, any revival at all would seem to make little sense. An atrociously clunky one that keeps only the rough outline — a wounded detective confined to a wheelchair — while jettisoning whatever wit and intelligence the original possessed makes no sense at all.”
—Robert Bianco, USA Today
“The pilot is typical of most network fare. Ironside doesn’t break any new ground. Underwood’s channeling of the gruff Burr feels like a pale Denzel Washington imitation, reminiscent of his ‘Training Day’ role.”
—Robert Romani, The Wrap
“Despite a committed, angry performance from Underwood, and a very good one from Brent Sexton as Ironside’s grief-stricken ex-partner, a lot of the show plays like a parody of hard-boiled cop show cliches.”
—Alan Sepinwall, HitFix
“What we know about Ironside so far is that Underwood’s wheelchair-bound cop is smart, tough, unconventional and subject to bouts of self-pity that alternate with impulsive acts of steel resolve. (Promos tell you that much.) What’s missing is some twist that will blast this antiquated procedural business into the 21st century.”
—Verne Gay,Newsday
