'Copper' review: NYPD blue and the gray

In the wake of the Draft Riots, New York is on edge, Corcoran's personal life is in turmoil (his daughter has died) and now he must cope with the betrayal of a murderous ex-colleague, Det. Francis Maguire (Kevin Ryan). Meanwhile, there is literally a new sheriff in Dodge (so to speak) -- Gen. Brendan Donovan (Donal Logue) is now in charge of the cesspool that the 6th Ward has become.

The Fontana stagecraft is here in abundance, notably dialogue that seems about as effortless as breathing, and a fully realized Five Points that is so squalid, so detailed in its destitution that the only touch missing is the rats skittering away into the darkness. But the series also feels like a period drama that's often lukewarm about the period it's set in.

The Civil War is convulsing out there somewhere, but the history part still seems incidental -- or put another way, "Copper's" New York isn't a city riding the crest of a great historic moment so much as one riding the crest of just another wave of cop dramas set there. As a ""copper" with real idealism wearing a very white hat, Weston-Jones' Corcoran may be easy to read, but not all that interesting to read either. At least Logue's Donovan injects intrigue, mystery and a certain degree of malice. The color of his hat is indeterminate.

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