At the end of the first episode, there is this twist in the original canon.
Nikita has a partner in crime setup right nicely in Division, which I still mentally label as Section One. It’s an excellent twist having a partner on the inside, because how else can Nikita take down an organization like Division without help. Gee, these people eat death for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They’ve trained Nikita. They know most of Nikita’s moves. Right.
I think Maggie Q should be worried. Why? Alex, her partner in crime is the type of Nikita we fans of the film and original TV show know. She raw, undisciplined, with little sophistication, has a disdain for life. Who she is, it’s reflected in her face. Yet she is pretty. Maggie Q is just too damn gorgeous as a Nikita. It isn’t that Peta Wilson and Anne Parillaud aren’t beautiful. They are earthy, raw, and energetic. They grab life by the hand and twist it to their demands even when they are beaten down. Alex shows that energy. Maggie Q is this beautiful agent that has the moves to survive but should be home somewhere playing the trophy wife to some wealthy man.
Michael as played by Shane West is too emotional. Even when we knew Roy Dupuis’s Michael was in love with Nikita, he maintained a distance. Kept a cold reserve because of the danger in showing his feelings for her. He would’ve told Nikita to go, and not have this discussion of why she came back. Michael was enigmatic. All that reservation kept us on the edge of our seats wondering when Michael would break down.
In the first episode, the chemistry between the new Nikita and Michael isn’t there. Shane West doesn’t have the vulnerability, the edginess. The relationship between them isn’t convincing yet.
I will be watching the show, though. I want to see how the premise will shape up having Alex on board watching Nikita’s back and supplying her with info. Oh yes, I can see fandom slashing Nikita/Alex.
Nikita is building up some harem, Michael, Owen, and now Ryan. You go, Nikita.
