“Boston’s Finest,” TNT’s new reality show that airs on Wednesday nights at 9, follows a collection of officers through their daily lives. The show— produced and narrated by Massachusetts native, Donnie Wahlberg— is an homage to the cops that fight to protect and serve the great city of Boston. Wahlberg stated, “These cops think the darkest corners of their city are worth saving and that they were the ones born to do it.” Just like the cops, “Boston’s Finest” does a great job by sincerely showing the officers’ jobs without any scripted parts.
The first epidsode focused on a handful of officers ranging from patrol officers to SWAT officers. For example, one story featured was that of patrol officer Jenn Penton, who is dealing with her twin sister— a recovering drug addict— as well as the issue of sexism while working. However, with each new episode, “Boston’s Finest” will introduce new units and officers as well as stay with officers from past epidsodes. This introduction of many officers will allow viewers to get a great chance to view numerous personalities in the Boston Police Department and the daily tasks that they deal with. What makes this aspect of the series great is that it keeps the show fresh, as there are new storylines each episode.
While the show is an interesting look into the daily lives of the cops protecting Boston’s streets, it does not have the kind of “excitement” that viewers would see in scripted shows like “Southland.” Viewers will not see the same kind of action and drama on “Boston’s Finest” as scripted due to the pure reality of this unscripted show. While this is a refreshing aspect to have an actual show about people’s actual lives, unlike other shows that “depict” Bostonians—see A&E’s “Southie Rules,” which has now become all but irrelevant and has been burned off from its original spot. For some, the series may be too slow and lack the non-stop action or drama that viewers have become so accustommed to. However, this should be no problem, as National Geographic has had success with “Alaska State Troopers—” a show that has the same concept as “Boston’s Finest,” yet it obviously takes place in Alaska. Altogether, with no surprise Donnie Wahlberg looks to have hit the nail on the head with his homage to the BPD with Boston’s Finest making a respectful and entertaining reality show.