Title: Quantico (2015 TV series)
Creator: Joshua Safran
Genres: Terrorism thriller, Drama, Romance, Action
Rating: 3.8 stars
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Plot
The series follows a group of young FBI recruits; each has a specific (and sometimes dark) reason for joining the academy. Flashbacks detail their previous lives, while the recruits battle their way through training at the academy in Quantico, Virginia. However, the series reveals in a flash forward twist that one of the recruits, Alex, upon graduating from the academy, will be suspected of masterminding the biggest terror attack on New York City since the September 11 attacks in 2001.
Pros
The plot revolves around two settings: the past – in the FBI Academy, and the present – the dystopian yet highly realistic possible ‘future’. After having been watching Criminal Minds, CSI: New York, Castle, and whatnot, for so long, Quantico brought out my secret ambition to become an FBI Agent. Because Quantico is about a group of trainees, instead of working agents, it makes it all even more ‘relatable’. The main characters are supposed to be in their late-twenties to thirties, each from very different backgrounds and lots of experience (and deep dark secrets) in their respective fields. It’s quite idealistic, and that’s what attracted me (and people with similar ambitions) to the show.
All the characters have been or still are troubled by their pasts, and that’s what enables each episode to be unfolded with even more unexpected twists. You have the attractive and exotic protagonist, the basic white blonde bitch, the weird geek everyone ends up hating, etc. Mm. I thought they had finished high school long ago. But it’s also this combination that creates so much drama, action, tasks and betrayals.
Cons
Though the trainees are supposed to be mature adults (that have already finished college and have presumably been working for a few years before being recruited), they act like a bunch of love-crazed college students. It’s so obvious it’s stupid, and that bothered me, because it just took away the credibility of the show. Even if they’re still ‘trainees’, I assumed that their past, their experience, and their age would have shaped them into more mature citizens. But apparently, it’s not quite different to How to Get Away With Murder in that sense.
Oh, and in the present setting, I found the FBI Agents investigating the terror attack to be incredibly stupid and gullible. It reminded me of those action and thriller films that try to dumb down the cops to make the good guys look more intelligent than they already are.
Conclusion
It’s a good show, really, if you don’t focus on its flaws too much. It captivates you and puts you in the scene. Next thing you know, you’re pulling your brains out trying to work out the trainee’s task or attempting to solve the terror attack mystery. When I compare it to other TV shows I’ve watched before, Quantico definitely speaks out to a younger audience, with the save-the-world ambition that Criminal Minds nor CSI can convey.
