1-Adam 12, 1-Adam 12, please respond
by - Written: Jan 15 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Webb's connections to the LAPD showed on-screen
Cons: Scripts tend to be PR "spin" for the LAPD rather than portraying the life of a police officer honestly
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| Kidnykid's Full Review: Adam 12 |
ADAM 12 was a Jack Webb production, and as such, was the subject of much praise due to Webb's reputation as a stickler for accuracy and precision. Evidently, if I remember correctly, he was either a cop or had connections within the LAPD, and even a few LAPD officers who were willing to serve as scriptwriters for his programs. (One of those scriptwriters was Gene Roddenberry, moonlighting as a writer for TV, who named some of the Star Trek characters after LAPD colleagues.)
The problem was that ADAM 12 turned out to be something of a spin doctor's dream, portraying police in the best light possible as an antidote of sorts to the "cops are pigs" attitude prevalent during the period this show aired on the networks. It wasn't that the performances or writing were bad, necessarily; it's just that writers and actors playing parts in any Jack Webb production, ADAM 12 included, were more or less forced into very narrow molds for the simple reason that there was no way that Webb could see cops and the bad guys they chased in any other light except "good (cops) vs. pure evil (criminals)." It makes one wonder what Webb would have done with the information provided by the OJ Simpson trial and the Rodney King videotape; it must be said that neither incident portrays the justice system in LA County in the best light. (I suppose Webb is rolling over in his grave at the thought of what happened to the reputation of his beloved LAPD.)
Recommended:
Yes
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