Stars: 3.5 out of 5

Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, more famously known as the Brothers Grimm, are the eerie inspirations for NBC’s new fantasy-drama series Grimm.

Based on a red-riding hood themed pilot, director Marc Buckland wants to keep the show as near to the original stories as possible.

Police officer Nick Burckhardt (David Guintoli) is a monster hunter by birth, called a Grimm, a fact which he discovers in this episode. The case he is working on with his partner Hank Griffin (Russell Hornsby) involves two girls in red hoodies disappearing, and a mysterious animal attack.

Turns out, a blutbad (werewolf) is committing the crimes. He lives in a forest in the woods, both victims were wearing bright red hooded sweat shirts and the second girl he kidnaps was going to her grandparent’s house. I love hokey shows as much as the next person, but this is pushing it. Give the audience some credit — they realize they’re tuning into a series based on Grimm’s fairy tales. The allusions don’t need to be in-your-face obvious.

Other than the overly noticeable connections, though, this isn’t a half-bad addition to the new fall lineup. A blutbad gone good, Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell), brings comedic relief and is a wonderful foil character to Guintoli’s serious role. The cast was actually a decent group of actors, and the reactions to situations were realistic.
If you don’t love goofy TV, don’t tune in. But, if you adore guilty pleasure television and scary monsters, maybe you’ll like this hour-long show.

Grimm runs Fridays at 8 p.m. on NBC.