Critic Reviews

The writing is sharp, the atmosphere thick with tension from, among other things, car and foot chases.

In the show's best moments, this moral pickle (being a mole vs. being a cop) leaves Ryan scrambling to improvise ways to prevent gang crimes without really catching anyone. [26 May 2014, p.40]

It would be giving away too much to get into the specifics of an emotional Episode 3 encounter between Javier and son Carlos. But this is where Gang Related really starts to distinguish and establish itself as a series that might grow into something more than a vividly staged run ’n’ gun hour with little else going for it.

It’s a fast-paced shoot-’em-up/blow-’em-up affair (with the usual ridiculous disregard for actual public safety), but beneath the noise and oozing machismo, it’s not half bad as a deeper emotional story about family and trust.

It’s an action drama about a cop leading a double life and is itself torn in two directions: aspiring to the latitude and sophistication of cable, but still hamstrung by conventional notions of character development, exposition and taste.

The action scenes are impressive, the cast admirably diverse (with Cliff Curtis especially strong as Ryan's demanding surrogate father), and the tone suitably rugged. All Gang Related needs to up the ante is a hero who's a little more "anti-."

Clunky dialogue, clichéd relationships, and an escapist action-flick aesthetic combine to subvert the ambition for gritty realism. It requires stronger vision and voice, as well as more distance; it can't decide whether to be likable or prickly.

With the tension of its premise and the promise of its family-driven drama, Gang Related may eventually work the stiffness out of its joints and become interesting. Or not. It’s that kind of show.

Instead of Ryan being a complex antihero with shades of gray, he’s more like a boring beige.

Pulp hooey with a comic book vitality and earnestness that manages to keep it (usually) on track.