Previewing Deception

I am sure a lot of people will write off Deception as a cheap Revenge knock off. Even the names have the same ominous sounding title. That was what I originally thought when I saw the first promo except Emily was a black cop (my second though was when was the last time there was a black lead on NBC; certainly they have had one since The Fresh Prince of Bel Air but I cannot think of one). But those who would will be selling the show short because it also rips off Veronica Mars also in the process.

Such much like Emily infiltrating the Grayson family on Revenge, Meagan Goode (Californication), who may rival Rachael Leigh Cook as the least believable law enforcement agent on television, is recruited by Laz Alonso (Breakout Kings) to infiltrate the Bowers clan when the daughter of the family dies of a drug overdose that may very well be murder. Goode just so happens to be a good friend of the victim (Goode’s mother was the help) despite being on separate rungs on the economic ladder just like Veronica Mars.

The Bowers clan makes the Graysons look like The Waltons with each family member skeevier and holding a deeper darker secret from the next. Victor Garber (Legally Blonde) is the patriarch and the head of a drug company that may be developing drugs that do more harm than good and may not be as nice as his public persona would suggest. Katherine LaNasa (The Campaign) is the ice queen of a second wife who seems more irritated than saddened that her step daughter is dead. Tate Donovan (Hercules) is the ruthless heir to the drug company. Wes Brown (Glory Road) is essentially the male Paris Hilton. While the baby of the family Ella Rae Peck (Bachelorette) is probably the most level headed so of course she has the deepest darkest secret in what is the premieres most shocking reveal.

Much like when Revenge premiered, you have to wonder how long they can stretch a singular purpose, and in this case of a murder mystery, as The Killing showed, it is not more than ten episodes. At least Veronica Mars solved other crimes while finding out who killed her best friend. But between Deception, Revenge, and the recently rebooted Dallas (which will air an hour before Deception on Mondays over on TNT starting later this month) we may be entering the Silver Age of salacious rich people television. Either that or Deception will be canceled and replaced with Betty White by Valentine’s Day.

Deception airs Mondays at 10:00 on NBC. You can stream episodes on Hulu. You can also download Deception on iTunes where you can currently download the Pilot for free before it even airs.