''17th Precinct'' is a

police procedural The police show, or police crime drama, is a subgenre of procedural drama and detective fiction that emphasizes the investigative procedure of a police officer or department as the protagonist(s), as contrasted with other genres that focus on eith ...

television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, e ...

created by Ronald D. Moore. In a modern world where magic supplanted science, the unaired

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...

featured two non-intersecting stories: the death of a city executive at the hands of a wrongful convict, and the introduction of terrorists who are devoted to the destruction of magic. Moore developed the series with

Sony Pictures Television Sony Pictures Television Inc. (abbreviated as SPT) is an American television production and distribution studio. Based at the Sony Pictures Studios complex in Culver City, it is a division of Sony Entertainment's unit Sony Pictures Entertainm ...

for

NBCUniversal NBCUniversal Media, LLC is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate corporation owned by Comcast and headquartered at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, United States. NBCUniversal is primari ...

, bringing with him several of the stars of his reimagined ''Battlestar Galactica'' franchise as cast members. The series was pitched in September 2010, the pilot was ordered January 2011, NBC passed on the series in May 2011, and the unaired pilot was leaked in December 2011. Reviewers mostly liked ''17th Precinct'', commenting on its innovativeness despite its police procedural roots.

Plot

The series takes place in the American city of Excelsior (shot in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

, modeled on

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

), in a world where science was never "invented", and instead of using "

oil An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturated ...

, electricity, ndcoal", mankind relies on plant- and fire-powered

magic Magic or Magick most commonly refers to: * Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces * Ceremonial magic, encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic * Magical thinking, the belief that unrela ...

to run society. The police of Excelsior's 17th Precinct use spells to collect

evidence Evidence for a proposition is what supports this proposition. It is usually understood as an indication that the supported proposition is true. What role evidence plays and how it is conceived varies from field to field. In epistemology, evidenc ...

and information, they defend themselves with "magic discs", and they

psychic A psychic is a person who claims to use extrasensory perception (ESP) to identify information hidden from the normal senses, particularly involving telepathy or clairvoyance, or who performs acts that are apparently inexplicable by natural laws, ...

ally access "the stream" (a smokey light beam) for information, printouts, and newspapers.

Unaired pilot

Donald Pynchon, Excelsior's executive prophet (a city government official concerned with making and interpreting city-wide prophesies), is murdered in a North Beach back alley on September 23, 2011. Detectives Longstreet and Bosson (Bamber & Callis) are tasked with the case and determine that his murder was intentionally brutal, and it was unobserved due to a magical charm which deadened sound in the alley. It turns out that fifteen years previously, Pynchon was in

Mendocino, California Mendocino (Spanish for "of Mendoza") is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Mendocino County, California, United States. Mendocino is located south of Fort Bragg at an elevation of . The population of the CDP was 932 ...

when, relying on a prophetic vision, testified against Lionel Dixon on charges of rape and murder. Dixon received a

life sentence Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes for ...

of magically reliving his victim's final experiences. After Dixon was acquitted thirteen years later, he was magically given a new life as a child ( Quinn Lord) in an effort to make up for the mistaken identity; Dixon instead was driven to murder both Pynchon and the acquitting judge. Unconnected with the Pynchon case, DCI Wilder Blanks (Walker) begins seeing visions related to the Stoics, "a group dedicated to the destruction of

" in favor of "

reason Reason is the capacity of consciously applying logic by drawing conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is closely associated with such characteristically human activities as philosophy, science, ...

rationality Rationality is the quality of being guided by or based on reasons. In this regard, a person acts rationally if they have a good reason for what they do or a belief is rational if it is based on strong evidence. This quality can apply to an abil ...

, and ..science"—a laughable prospect, but one about which they are deadly serious. Twelve years previously (1999), the Stoics committed a series of murders to further their cause, but have neither been seen nor heard from since. Blanks retrieves DS Mira Barkley (Channing) from her dissatisfying work in another precinct to help with the Stoics; Barkley was his partner during the previous Stoics case. Blanks partners Barkley with rookie detective Jimmy Travers (Long) due to the latter's potential as an intuitive

savant Savant syndrome () is a rare condition in which someone with significant mental disabilities demonstrates certain abilities far in excess of average. The skills that savants excel at are generally related to memory. This may include rapid calcu ...

. Investigating a nuisance case in an apartment building, Barkley and Travers unwittingly allow the Stoics access to murder an otherwise protected tenant, a college professor of "advanced magical engineering and biology with an emphasis on power plant design." In the dénouement, it is revealed that the Stoics use "mechanical, rather than 'true' magic" which nothing in their world can defend against; the professor was killed using the Stoics' means, something called a

bullet A bullet is a kinetic projectile, a component of firearm ammunition that is shot from a gun barrel. Bullets are made of a variety of materials, such as copper, lead, steel, polymer, rubber and even wax. Bullets are made in various shapes and co ...

Production

''17th Precinct'' was created by Ronald D. Moore and produced by

. Moore's development of ''17th Precinct'' was part of a two-year deal with Sony Pictures Television to "create and executive produce series projects for broadcast and cable through his production company Tall Ship Prods." When Moore pitched the show to

in September 2010, it carried with it an approximate $2 million price tag for the

and penalties. In January 2011, NBC ordered a pilot for the series from Moore and Sony.

Cast

Moore brought several actors with whom he'd worked before into ''17th Precinct'', particularly from the reimagined ''Battlestar Galactica'' franchise. *

Jamie Bamber Jamie Saint John Bamber Griffith (born 3 April 1973), known professionally as Jamie Bamber, is a British actor, known for his roles as Lee Adama in ''Battlestar Galactica'' and Detective Sergeant Matt Devlin in the ITV series '' Law & Order: ...

as Caolan Longstreet: A detective with the Excelsior Police Department (EX.P.D.), Longstreet is described as determined to succeed and be promoted; his skills allow him great

forensic Forensic science, also known as criminalistics, is the application of science to Criminal law, criminal and Civil law (legal system), civil laws, mainly—on the criminal side—during criminal investigation, as governed by the legal standard ...

insight into a

crime scene A crime scene is any location that may be associated with a committed crime. Crime scenes contain physical evidence that is pertinent to a criminal investigation. This evidence is collected by crime scene investigators (CSI) and law enforcement ...

. Longstreet is married to Susan and has two children. Bamber foregoes his native

British accent Spoken English shows great variation across regions where it is the predominant language. For example, the United Kingdom has the largest variation of accents of any country in the world, and therefore no single "British accent" exists. This a ...

for an American one. *

James Callis James Nicholas Callis (born 4 June 1971) is a British actor. He is known for playing Dr. Gaius Baltar in the re-imagined '' Battlestar Galactica'' miniseries and television series, and Bridget Jones's best friend Tom in '' Bridget Jones's Di ...

as Jeff Bosson: Longstreet's partner on the EX.P.D., Bosson is the counterpart to Longstreet's

straight man The straight man is a stock character in a comedy performance, especially a double act, sketch comedy, or farce. When a comedy partner behaves eccentrically, the straight man is expected to maintain composure. The direct contribution to the ...

and family man persona. In pre-release information on the series, it was said that Bosson is keeping a "big secret" from his partner. Callis retains his native

for ''17th Precinct''. *

Tricia Helfer Tricia Janine Helfer (born April 11, 1974) is a Canadian-American actress and former model. She played the enigmatic Cylon model Number Six in the re-imagined ''Battlestar Galactica'' series (2004–2009). She also voiced Sarah Kerrigan in ''S ...

as Doctor Morgana Kurlansky: As the precinct's "public

necromancer Necromancy () is the practice of magic or black magic involving communication with the dead by summoning their spirits as apparitions or visions, or by resurrection for the purpose of divination; imparting the means to foretell future events ...

", Kurlansky communes with dead victims at crime scenes to gain their

testimony In law and in religion, testimony is a solemn attestation as to the truth of a matter. Etymology The words "testimony" and "testify" both derive from the Latin word ''testis'', referring to the notion of a disinterested third-party witness. La ...

, and coordinates with the police on other forensic evidence derived from the corpse. She has a personal relationship with DCI Blanks, which is not elaborated upon either in the leaked episode or the pre-release information. *

Eamonn Walker Eamonn Roderique Walker (born 12 June 1962) is an English film, television, and theatre actor. In the United States he is known for playing Kareem Saïd in the HBO television series '' Oz'', for which he won a CableACE Award, and (since 2012) Ch ...

as Detective Chief Inspector Wilder Blanks: Blanks is chief inspector at the EX.P.D. 12 years prior to the series' time, he was partnered with DS Barkley during the Stoics' previous series of murders. As an "intuitive savant", Blanks experiences visions and feelings which have tangible connections to events. *

Esai Morales Esai Manuel Morales Jr. (born October 1, 1962) is an American actor. He has had notable roles in the films '' Bad Boys'' with Sean Penn and '' La Bamba'' with Lou Diamond Phillips (1987). His television roles include the PBS 2002 drama series '' ...

as Detective Inspector Liam Butterfield: Working at the EX.P.D., Butterfield has an antagonistic relationship with DS Barkley from her previous stint working in the Homicide Division. The character also was apparently a woman (Lisa) when last associated with Barkley, a change about which he is defensive when she needles him—"I'm not Lisa anymore, inside or out.";

io9 ''io9'' is part of Gizmodo media since 2015, and it began as blog launched in 2008 by Gawker Media. The site initially focused on the subjects of science fiction, fantasy, futurism, science, technology and related areas but over the years has ...

described Butterfield as " herwise, he's pretty much a total hard-ass." *

Stockard Channing Stockard Channing (born Susan Antonia Williams Stockard; February 13, 1944) is an American actress. She is known for playing Betty Rizzo in the film '' Grease'' (1978) and First Lady Abbey Bartlet in the NBC television series ''The West Wing'' ( ...

as Detective Sergeant Mira Barkley: After dissatisfied years working in the Robbery Division, Barkley is brought back at the request of DCI Blanks because of her expertise from working the Stoics' murders in

Alameda An alameda is a Avenue (landscape), street or path lined with trees () and may refer to: Places Canada *Alameda, Saskatchewan, town in Saskatchewan **Grant Devine Dam, formerly ''Alameda Dam'', a dam and reservoir in southern Saskatchewan Chile ...

12 years previously. She was partnered with Blanks when he was just a rookie. *

Matt Long Matthew Clayton Long (born May 18, 1980) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Ezekiel Landon in the NBC/Netflix sci fi drama ''Manifest'' (2019–Present), and his roles in the television series ''Jack & Bobby'' (2004–2005), and ...

as Detective James "Jimmy" Travers: As a rookie officer, Travers is partnered with Barkley because of his potential as an "intuitive savant". *

Kristin Kreuk Kristin Laura Kreuk (; born December 30, 1982) is a Canadian actress. Debuting on teen drama '' Edgemont'', she became most known for her roles as Lana Lang in the superhero television series ''Smallville'' (2001–2011), also as Catherine Chand ...

as Susan: Longstreet's wife did not appear in the unaired pilot, but was said to run a declining antiques store and have a "huge dark secret."

Release

On May 12, 2011,

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

announced that they had passed on ''17th Precinct'' for their fall 2011 season of shows. NBC instead ordered a full season of another program featuring a supernatural angle on the traditional

genre,

Universal Television Universal Television LLC (abbreviated as UTV) is an American television production company that is a subsidiary of Universal Studio Group, a division of Comcast's NBCUniversal. It serves as the network television production arm of NBC; a predeces ...

's ''Grimm''. The unnamed

pilot episode A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television network or other distri ...

of ''17th Precinct'' was leaked online at

Vimeo Vimeo, Inc. () is an American video hosting, sharing, and services platform provider headquartered in New York City. Vimeo focuses on the delivery of high-definition video across a range of devices. Vimeo's business model is through software as ...

in the last days of December 2011.

Reception

Charlie Jane Anders Charlie Jane Anders is an American writer and commentator. She has written several novels, published magazines and websites, and hosted podcasts. In 2005, she received the Lambda Literary Award for work in the transgender category, and in 2009, t ...

with the science-fiction blog

called Moore a "master of world-building", describing Excelsior as a richly described setting. They lauded its freshness in spite of its

genre, saying that it was "bursting with new ideas" and " juvenated a whole new genre". Airlock Alpha also commended ''17th Precinct'' for incorporating a fresh take on the police procedural genre, though also felt the pilot introduced too many characters and concepts. TG Daily thought the concept was cool, though they felt "the execution could use a little polish". They also specifically lauded Bamber, Helfer, and Callis, while not being overly impressed by the supporting cast. In the end, they would have preferred ''17th Precinct'' over ''Grimm''.

References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite web , url=https://www.deadline.com/2010/05/battlestar-galactica-creator-ron-moore-signs-with-sony-pictures-tv/ , title='Battlestar Galactica' Creator Ron Moore Signs With Sony Pictures TV , last=Andreeva , first=Nellie , date=2010-05-03 , website=

Deadline Hollywood ''Deadline Hollywood'', commonly known as ''Deadline'' and also referred to as ''Deadline.com'', is an online news site founded as the news blog ''Deadline Hollywood Daily'' by Nikki Finke in 2006. The site is updated several times a day, with ...

, language=en , access-date=2021-12-03 , url-status=live , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120302225709/http://www.deadline.com/2010/05/battlestar-galactica-creator-ron-moore-signs-with-sony-pictures-tv/ , archive-date=2012-03-02 {{cite web , url=https://www.deadline.com/2010/09/nbc-nabs-magic-drama-from-ron-moore/ , title=NBC Nabs Magic Drama From Ron Moore , last=Andreeva , first=Nellie , date=2010-09-01 , website=

, language=en , access-date=2021-12-03 , url-status=live , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111109080532/http://www.deadline.com/2010/09/nbc-nabs-magic-drama-from-ron-moore/ , archive-date=2011-11-09 {{cite magazine , last1=Goldberg , first1=Lesley , last2=Rose , first2=Lacey , date=2011-05-12 , title=NBC Adds to Series Orders With 'Awake,' 'Playboy,' 'Grimm'; Rejects 'Wonder Woman,' 'A Mann's World,' More , url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/nbc-adds-pilot-orders-awake-187564 , url-status=live , magazine=

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

, language=en , issn=0018-3660 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120101120953/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/nbc-adds-pilot-orders-awake-187564 , archive-date=2012-01-01 , access-date=2021-12-03 , quote=The network adds to its four pickups on Wednesday, renews "Parenthood" and "Harry's Law." {{cite news , last1=Kelly , first1=Suzanne , date=2011-06-29 , title=The uncharted journey of Ronald D. Moore , url=http://articles.cnn.com/2011-06-29/entertainment/ron.moore_1_executives-show-runners-detectives?_s=PM:SHOWBIZ , url-status=dead , language=en , publisher=

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120808155924/http://articles.cnn.com/2011-06-29/entertainment/ron.moore_1_executives-show-runners-detectives?_s=PM:SHOWBIZ , archive-date=2012-08-08 , access-date=2019-04-11 {{cite web , url=https://www.deadline.com/2011/01/nbc-picks-up-ron-moore-drama-pilot/ , title=NBC Picks Up Ron Moore Drama Pilot , last=Andreeva , first=Nellie , date=2011-01-19 , website=

, language=en , access-date=2021-12-03 , url-status=live , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110815194424/http://www.deadline.com/2011/01/nbc-picks-up-ron-moore-drama-pilot/ , archive-date=2011-08-15 {{cite web , url=http://io9.com/5795884/whats-ron-moores-new-magical-procedural-show-really-about , title=What's Ron Moore's new magic procedural show really about? , last=Anders , first=Charlie Jane , author-link=Charlie Jane Anders , date=2011-04-26 , website=

, publisher=

Gawker Media Gawker Media LLC (formerly Blogwire, Inc. and Gawker Media, Inc.) was an American Online and offline, online Mass media, media company and Link farm#Blog network, blog network. It was founded by Nick Denton in October 2003 as Blogwire, and was ba ...

, language=en , access-date=2021-12-03 , url-status=live , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120111220055/http://io9.com/5795884/whats-ron-moores-new-magical-procedural-show-really-about , archive-date=2012-01-11 {{cite magazine , last1=Goldberg , first1=Lesley , date=2011-12-29 , title='Battlestar Galactica' Reunion '17th Precinct' Pilot Surfaces Online (Video) , url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/battlestar-galactica-reunion-17th-precinct-276701 , url-status=live , magazine=

, language=en , publisher= Janice Min , issn=0018-3660 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160903150641/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/battlestar-galactica-reunion-17th-precinct-276701 , archive-date=2016-09-03 , access-date=2019-09-07 , quote=The mystical pilot from Ron Moore and starring Jamie Bamber and Tricia Helfer that NBC passed on in May has popped up online. {{cite web , url=https://io9.gizmodo.com/watch-ron-moores-fantasy-cop-show-17th-precinct-and-se-5872010 , title=Watch Ron Moore's fantasy cop show ''17th Precinct'', and see what we missed out on , last=Woerner , first=Meredith , date=2011-12-29 , website=

, publisher=

, language=en , access-date=2019-04-11 , url-status=live , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411161943/https://io9.gizmodo.com/watch-ron-moores-fantasy-cop-show-17th-precinct-and-se-5872010 , archive-date=2019-04-11 {{cite news , last1=Potts , first1=Kimberly , date=2011-12-30 , title='17th Precinct' pilot - 'Battlestar' reunion - pops up online , url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/sns-rt-us-17thprecincttre7bt0tf-20111230,0,1510866.story , url-status=dead , work=

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

, language=en , location=

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, issn=2165-171X , oclc=60639020 , archive-url=https://archive.today/20111231232542/http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/sns-rt-us-17thprecincttre7bt0tf-20111230,0,1510866.story , archive-date=2011-12-31 , access-date=2019-04-13 {{cite web , url=http://www.airlockalpha.com/node/8853/broken-pilot-17th-precinct.html , title=Broken Pilot: 17th Precinct , last=Hinman , first=Michael , date=2011-12-29 , website= Airlock Alpha , access-date=2021-12-03 , url-status=dead , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120109062422/http://www.airlockalpha.com/node/8853/broken-pilot-17th-precinct.html , archive-date=2012-01-09 , quote=Could the 'Battlestar Galactica' reunion actually pulled it off? {{cite web , url=https://www.tgdaily.com/entertainment/60512-the-end-of-17th-precinct , title=The end of 17th Precinct , last=Droege , first=CB , date=2011-12-31 , publisher=TG Daily , language=en , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304110917/https://www.tgdaily.com/entertainment/60512-the-end-of-17th-precinct , archive-date=2016-03-04 , url-status=live , access-date=2019-04-11 {{cite episode , title=Unnamed , series=17th Precinct , season=1 , number=1 2011 American television series debuts American fantasy television series American police procedural television series television pilots not picked up as a series television shows set in the United States