I just finished viewing the pilot episode of CW/s "Nikita" and here are my thoughts on it.
1. Despite it being loosely based on the French film "La Femme Nikita" I thought the pilot was good. It had a nice balance between action and character development, but with a lot of teasing moments that are sure to raise to exciting results. I would've liked more exposition and interaction between characters, something that the previous entries in the series had, but the introduction to the main character was good.
2. The action scenes are a lot brutal and violent, showing the dark side of being an assassin and the toll it takes on the human mind and those around to witness such horrific acts. If the violence is any indication of what's in store for Nikita and her world, I can only imagine how dark and disturbing the actions taken by both good and evil will be.
3. It's not a reboot, or sequel to the '90s series, which is a plus(though I also loved that show dearly) and has it's own vibe going for it. The coolness factor is there and has it's own thing as well. I was tense throughout the whole running time, not sure of what's next. And that's a good thing. A real good thing.
4. There's no patriotic cheese being introduced. Doing so would damper the overall dark tone of the story. I love the dark humor. Suits the atmosphere well.
5. It moves at a fast pace, but pauses long enough in order to include some character development and concentrate on the story.
So from the looks of things, Nikita is shaping up to be an awesome series with everything starting to become established so far. Hopefully the show will grow as it's own and be something really special. I'm sure some will say it's not as good as the '90s series, but I for one am looking forward to how this plays out.
