Tuesday 8 May 2018

Warehouse 13, Season 1 (2009)



When relaxed, "vibe"-driven Secret Service Agent Pete Lattimer and his much more controlled, by-the-book colleague Myra Bering thwart an apparent attack on the President, the last thing they expect is to be ordered to the wilds of South Dakota.  Once there, however, they discover the closely-guarded secret of Warehouse 13.  You see, items that are important to particularly noteworthy people can develop seemingly supernatural powers (though as their new boss notes, "Radio would seem like magic" to those that don't understand it).  These powers make the items - known as "artefacts" to the Warehouse 13 crew - dangerous to leave out in the world, and it is now Myka and Pete's job to get out there, find the dangerous objects, and bring them back for safe-keeping.

Of course, it's hard to completely conceal the existence of artefacts, and there are plenty of people out there who would go to considerable lengths to own a sword that can make you invisible, or a cloak that lets you walk through walls.  And if those people knew of the warehouse itself ... well, a whole building full of artefacts would have to make a very tempting target!

Warehouse 13 is a light, science fiction-themed investigative drama about the wacky hijinks that inevitably result of chasing objects with weird powers, and tangling with the people who own (or want) them.  Whether it's Edgar Allen Poe's pen, Lucretia Borgia's hair pin, or a goblet belonging to an ancient Roman emperor, every item comes with its own (often deadly) challenges to recovery.

So now you know what it is, is in any good?  Well, to be honest, the show's scripts - at least in this opening season - are workmanlike but not exceptional.  Fortunately, the cast are all strong, and make even the more mediocre plots into entertaining diversions.  If you're in the market for something that's tonally similar to Castle, Eureka (with which it actually has a crossover in a later season) or Leverage, then you should probably at least give it a shot.

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