Question: what’s cooler than a show about clinical pathologists? Answer: a show about clinical pathologists with a Latina lead! But seriously, Fox has announced that its renovated fall primetime lineup will feature a show about “the Beethoven of private pathologists,” which sounds kind of intriguing until you realize that it’s actually just another procedural drama about crime scene investigation. And it takes place in Miami. Hmmm.
What might set Rosewood apart from the pack, however, is the strength of its characters. Indeed, rather than a show about gruesome crimes, it appears this one is really about a brilliant but chronically ill man named Dr. Beaumont Rosewood, Jr., who also happens to investigate gruesome crimes (For anyone in doubt, this might prove that the best part of being a TV writer is coming up with names for your characters). When he’s paired with a prototypical tough, strong-willed, and feisty Latina detective named Annalise Villa, we get a pretty straightforward buddy cop setup with one small caveat: Rosewood isn’t technically a cop.
Yes, this is classic network TV, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. In fact, Rosewood’s trailer actually looks rather promising. Dr. Rosewood is played by TV hunk Morris Chestnut (also a great name) of Nurse Jackie fame, who seems to give his character a healthy dose of playfulness and innocence that’s hard to come by in the typical world of hard-boiled cop leads. The toughness and cynicism do however come in the unlikely form of Villa, who is clearly the alpha of this unlikely duo. Check out actress Jaina Lee Ortiz and Chestnut speaking to Villa’s perfect mix of “brains and brawn” in this short clip from Fox.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cqi3G4677jA
Rosewood premieres Wednesday, September 23 at 8 p.m. on FOX.