“The Hunting Party” on NBC is a new procedural drama. The series has drawn a lot of comparisons to crime solving and the supernatural types of shows that are familiar to the genre.
The Premise of The Hunting Party
The core of "The Hunting Party" centers on a secret underground prison called “The Pit” that houses notorious criminals. When an unspecified event allows for many criminals to escape the show's journey is put in motion. The team put together will have to get them back into custody while untangling what truly went wrong.
A Familiar Theme
Shows that have been explored with prisons being an integral part include: “Prison Break”, “Heroes”, “Alcatraz” , and anything with “Batman’s Arkham Asylum.” These examples are now the basis of which a newer series like “The Hunting Party” gets created.
Character Dynamics
The main focus of the series revolves around FBI profiler Rebecca "Bex" Henderson who leads the team and is played by Melissa Roxburgh . Her prior issues with her agency force her to rethink what her purpose is now in a lower level security job at a casino until a CIA agent brings her back into the game. This character is described as a Clarice Starling-esque, with a troubled past, a common occurrence for profilers in this style of programming. She gets help from people including: Jacob Hassani an agent from the CIA played by (Patrick Sabongui); a guard of The Pit (Josh McKenzie) who plays Shane Florence; an Army intelligence officer named Jennifer Morales portrayed by Sara GarCIA. All these dynamic individuals are working together for the good or the right.
The Importance of the Lead
Melissa Roxburgh's Bex is highlighted as a character that is brilliant and also observant with gifts in profiling criminals and seeing how their minds operate. A key component is how she connects her emotions and intuition along with all of her analytical capabilities to the work that she has at hand. Her complicated history and issues she deals with, along with motherhood create further understanding of the choices and motivations to help her see every perspective that surrounds her in these complex situations.
The Pit: A Central Location
"The Pit" which is set in a remote underground area with maximum security became a place where these supposed "executed" criminals were taken. However the specifics are kept fairly vague in the show so it does not give all the answers or a full story which also allows many avenues for future character storylines and expansion on the inner workings of this particular location. There is always an additional piece of lore added in all episodes that does provide more mystery but adds to more viewer engagement with a puzzle of understanding how “The Pit” even came to be and what purpose it ultimately is going to serve in this series.
The Inmates of the Pit
These criminals who were held in the high-security complex all seemingly shared some kind of dangerous tendencies however there were a lot of questions raised about the motives and experiments done. Although these "big bads" are noted the focus is less about the serial killers, but more about the "team" catching them each week. One point is about their treatment or study was to become some kind of hook, but did not ever become an integral aspect of their motivations.
Themes of "The Hunting Party"
The show's tone leans more heavily into action. However the underlying themes address trust, corruption, manipulation and accountability in each storyline. Every character in the series seems to be carrying a past of some sort that will be questioned along the way as their path forward becomes a more relevant element.
Unreliable Protagonists
The team members including the leads all possess hidden and murky back stories. Every interaction makes the audience ask what their true motivations may be at the heart of the series' exploration. There are pasts for some of the characters that need to be explored including what happened to the team lead's previous mentor whom now serves as the warden at The Pit which poses several complex questions throughout the season.
Production Elements
The series creates an aesthetic tone which is both grim and stark which creates a specific type of world for the actors to perform within the setting that has been made with purpose for every viewing moment. The environment also plays into the pacing of the story building a constant tension and overall vibe.
Storytelling and Pacing
While there may be good moments in how the visual looks on screen as a total package the series is often said to be repetitive with plots that seem too formulaic to some views. It leans more into the genre with crime, and it does not have many character interactions and is missing some key qualities that other crime procedurals provide to connect viewers more than just a weekly chase. The tone seems to have been over prioritized leaving the narrative aspect not as fully realized as a result.
Early Critical Reviews
Some reviews have focused on the uninteresting style and structure, noting that the concept of The Pit is uninspired along with how the story lines never reach their full potential and that what appears on screen feels more bland than enticing and can even sometimes be nonsensical . In addition even the lead characters have been described as not having strong emotional or intellectual elements for their roles. Some also said there was no unique performance element among the guest characters playing any of the villians.
Lack of Character Connection
Each lead actor and those playing as “bad guys” lack dynamic traits and memorable performances, while relying on very standard dialogue that can sometimes become robotic in execution. These observations come as a negative result to the full viewing process for those watching from home making it hard to form real connection beyond the typical stereotypes of that kind of character that they are portraying.
Key Takeaways
- "The Hunting Party" centers around a black site prison and features a procedural chase of dangerous escaped criminals.
- Melissa Roxburgh is the lead who had previously starred on NBC’s Manifest giving her some connections with many loyal viewers.
- The tone and concept are the strengths yet those areas over shadow key elements for unique development.
- The cast includes some familiar names who add dimension for character but ultimately feel somewhat one-note with actions.
- Although the show is visually interesting some reviews find the concept unoriginal along with the story not being overly unique and has had very minimal emotional connections for viewers.