'Pure,' Jan. 23, WGN America
NEW YORK (CNS) -- The crime drama "Pure," which originally aired on Canada's CBC two years ago, has found new life on the WGN America cable channel. The first season of the fitfully engaging, affecting, if somewhat preposterous limited series debuts Wednesday, Jan. 23, 10-11 p.m. EST. The six-hour program will continue in that time slot through Feb. 27.
Michael Amo created and wrote the series, which Ken Girotti directs. WGN is clearly counting on its success, already having ordered a second season of the show.
Set within an old order, Low German-speaking Mennonite community in the Canadian province of Ontario, the story opens as its leader, Bishop Bergen (Brian Downey), informs congregant Noah Funk (Ryan Robbins) that he's a candidate to become the pastor of his fictional home town of Antioch.
Chosen by lot, the reluctant Noah nonetheless embraces his new role, which, he believes, is to "preach the Gospel, comfort the sick and discouraged, to bring sinners to repentance." As his fellow townsfolk warn him, however, to succeed in his noble aims, Noah will have to stand up to the Epps.
Brothers Gerry (Patrick Garrow) and Joey Epp (Dylan Taylor) are mobster Eli Voss' (Peter Outerbridge) nephews. They run the Canadian operations of Voss' Mexico-based cocaine distribution syndicate.
Antioch detective Bronco Novak (AJ Buckley) is called in to investigate a deadly traffic accident that instead turns out to be a case of murder. When evidence implicates the Voss cartel, Novak turns to El Paso, Texas-based DEA agent Phoebe O'Reilly (Rosie Perez) for direction to bring down "the Menno Mob," as she calls them.
Noah does take on the Epps, which leads to Gerry's arrest. But the results are disastrous. At Voss' bidding, Joey violently blackmails Noah into taking Gerry's place.
Noah's wife, Anna (Alex Paxton-Beesley), proves more adept and resourceful in dealing with the cartel than might be expected. But Noah's brother, Abel (Gord Rand), a recovering addict, grows ever more fragile. In order to save his family, and redeem himself, Noah plunges deeper into Voss' world, angling to bring him down.
The depictions of the narcotics trade and of drug use by themselves indicate that this is mature fare. And the program's strong, often gruesome violence reinforces the point. So, too, does Novak's seamy lifestyle which finds him, in one scene, waking up hung over next to lapsed Mennonite-turned-prostitute Esther Dunkel (Alyson Hannigan).
The directly sexual content, by contrast, is relatively restrained with only a single, fleeting encounter portrayed nongraphically and brief rear nudity. Similarly, characters occasionally employ profane and coarse language, but not to excess.
Mennonites caught up in the world of cocaine trafficking may seem an unlikely premise to many viewers. Yet Canadian Mennonites with ties to Mexico have been connected to such smuggling in real life. Even so, the sight of Noah and Anna carrying on their unseemly business is bound to raise a few skeptical eyebrows.
Still more ludicrous is Perez's southern accent. She sounds more like a white woman from Georgia than a Latina from Texas. Despite her star power, Perez is the weak link in an otherwise strong chain of performances.
Complaints have been raised over the show's portrayal of Mennonites, suggesting that they've been confounded with the Amish. Thus, Mennonites would say "minister," not "pastor," they would be familiar with cell phones, married women wouldn't work outside of the home -- as some do here.
While such objections may be valid, fundamentally "Pure" always treats its religious characters' faith respectfully. Viewers will especially identify with and admire Noah. Despite his trials, he still has the faith to say: "God is real, God is kind, God lives inside all of us."
Overall, the program presents an honest but affirming portrayal of people stubbornly holding fast to their beliefs, despite worldly scourges. By focusing less on the overly familiar world of the drug trade and more on the plot's admirable spiritual dimensions, the folks behind "Pure" could make its future episodes more nuanced, believable and compelling.
- - -
Byrd is a guest reviewer for Catholic News Service.