UC: Undercover

UC: Undercover is an American procedural drama television series created by Shane Salerno and Don Winslow. The series premiered on the NBC network on September 30, 2001. The series ran for one season of 13 episodes, finishing its run on March 23, 2002. It focused on the secret lives and private demons of an elite Justice Department crime-fighting unit that confronted the United States' deadliest, most untouchable lawbreakers by going undercover to bust them.
The screenplays were either solely written or co-written by Salerno. The main title theme song was written by English composer David Arnold who also scored the pilot episode. Salerno said the show was a "very music driven series."

Plot

The unit is headed by authoritative Frank Donovan, with undercover agents Jake Shaw and Alex Cross, psychological profiler Monica Davis, and young techno-wizard Cody, who runs all of the high-tech surveillance operations.
As a federal team, the group responds to emergencies all over the country: taking down elite bank robbers, drug kingpins, domestic terrorists, spies, jewel thieves, and corrupt cops. The drama's character-driven storylines emphasize the taut, cat-and-mouse game played by the undercover agents as they attempt to infiltrate the lives of a gallery of criminals, including murderous master thief Jack "Sonny" Walker and imprisoned drug lord Carlos Cortez.
The series also explores the psychological toll undercover work takes on the agents who play this deadly game of false identities and who commit treachery as a daily profession for the greater good. The team often butts heads with Paul Bloom, their obstructive and fiercely ambitious Justice Department boss.

Cast

Main

Oded Fehr as Frank Donovan
Jon Seda as Jake Shaw
Vera Farmiga as Alex Cross
Bruklin Harris as Monica Davis
Jarrad Paul as Cody
William Forsythe as Sonny Walker

Recurring

Angie Everhart as Carly, Sonny Walker's girlfriend
Steven Bauer as Carlos Cortez
Ving Rhames as Quito Real
James Handy as Priest
Bill Mondy as Scott Charles
N'Bushe Wright as Keisha
Grant Show as John Keller
Brian Markinson as Paul Bloom
Gabrielle Miller as Vanessa

Reception

Critical response

The New York Times called it a "fast paced, good-looking series," and Variety wrote that series lead Oded Fehr is a "commanding and interesting addition to television." Variety added that "technical credits are comparable to theatrical quality" which led the series winning awards for cinematography and sound. The show received a high 7.3 out of 10 from viewers on TV.com. However, USA Today Robert Bianco disliked it, awarding it one star and labeling it "pretentious, incoherent and so visually hyper it borders on nauseating."