Last Resort: The Complete Series

After making a pick up of a U.S. Navy Seals team off the coast of Pakistan, a message over a unique channel is sent to the Colorado to open fire on Pakistan using nuclear weapons. Suspecting something fishy is going on Commanding Officer, Captain Marcus Chaplin (Andre Baugher; Men Of A Certain Age) questions the order and asks for confirmation from a known source he can trust. The request leads to the Colorado coming under fire and a mystery as to why the order was sent to attack Pakistan and who wants the Colorado sunk to the bottom of the ocean?

Seeking refuge on a nearby island, the crew of the Colorado make base and begin trying to make contact with their government to figure out what’s going on. The end result is being slapped with a traitor label and the crew being forced to defend the island base against their own until they can negotiate a civil conversation with the right people, both to explain themselves and clear their names as well as figure out what’s happening.

Being in possession of a nuclear submarine eventually draws attention from all corners of the globe and the crew of the Colorado find themselves with enemies at the front door from several different nations. They must hold together and avoid fighting amongst themselves if they plan on standing their own against enemies known and unknown, including an island warlord.

The unfortunate news is that Last Resort was cancelled in its first season, thus this being the complete series. The show had wobbly legs from the get go, and no doubt it was playing with fire when it attempted to go the “Patriots questions their government” route, still, the show had a lot going for it, just not enough time to allow the story to unfold.

What makes the show great is the characters, the location set up, the mystery. What hurt the show is that it did tend to fall back on the excessive use of device isms; patriotism, sexism, agathism, etc. When the show goes patriotic it sometimes feels forced, when it uses sexism as a progressive device the characters don’t always give a believable delivery in dialogue and actions to make it stick. The only thing that’s really delivered with pinpoint accuracy is the ideology of agathism; that all deeds, good and evil, are in confluence with results for good. That aspect is believable, especially when the show doesn’t hold back on tough decisions like sending a missile to Washington or pitting soldier against soldier during crucial points in the main and side story arcs of the show. I have to give props there. The idea behind these actions is not an easy one for people to swallow, especially when so many of us have swallowed the concept that patriotism is waving a flag and saying the pledge and agreeing with the majority rule in such things. Just being honest.

Overall, the show was pretty fantastic. It did have its hiccups, one episode in particular where the suits try and turn Scott Speedman’s wife against him by showing her a video that doesn’t hold much water, but it was exciting, had some genuinely good characters, and treaded some exciting new ground I hope we see the likes of again. Think The Last Castle meets Lebanon and or Das Boot. Pretty good stuff, probably ahead of its time, but ultimately cancelled. Shame.