Warehouse 13: Pilot

The Sci-Fi Channel, newly dubbed Syfy, premiered its brand new supernatural drama/comedy Warehouse 13. The show is being called a mix between X-Files and Moonlighting, with a dash of Indiana Jones. The two hour premiere introduced me to Secret Service agents, Myka Bering and Peter Lattimer, two very different individuals who are thrown together on assignment to protect the President of the United States during his visit to a museum. Myka is the “by the book” type and Peter is the “reckless rule bender”, and begrudgingly they must work together to protect the President. Their actions separately executed end up protecting President from an angry goverment agent who appears to have been possessed by an ancient artifact. I learned throughout the show that Myka is top notch a profiler and Peter has an intuition that is spot on. Together they make one solid investigation team. Despite their success in saving the President, the next day they find themselves in desolate South Dakota, reassigned to one Mrs. Fredric, the head of a secret government department in charge of Warehouse 13.

The unwitting pair encounter Artie, who reveals himself as the agent in charge of Warehouse 13, and their mentor for their new roles as gatherers. Artie explains that his previous team members all met with some type of ill fate, and proceeds to show his new team members the secrets of Warehouse 13. He explains their job is to find, bag, and tagsupernatural artifacts for storage in the secret government-run Warehouse 13. The two agents are confused and upset, but are also curious. Their first assignment takes them on an adventure to hunt for an evil, golden, and bejeweled hair comb dating back to the Italian Renaissance. Myka and Peter narrowly escape their demise almost brought upon them by the item. They bag, tag, and bring the item back to Warehouse 13. The show ends with Myka having to decide if she will take a transfer away from Peter and Warehouse 13 or stay on the strangest assignment she will probably ever know.

The Verdict:

Warehouse 13, is the story of an eccentric caretaker named Artie, who is both comedic and mysterious. He balances the “odd couple” like characters of Myka and Peter, and seems to be the thread which binds the group together. Now throw in a warehouse packed full of strange powerful artifacts that vary from a “wishing” kettle to personal items that once belonged Harry Houdini, and you have the basis for a potentially great series. Yet is this enough to keep viewers on the edge of their seat?

I think that Myka and Peter as characters struggled to hold my attention for the first half of the pilot, while Artie had me from the moment he appeared on screen. The warehouse is massive and reminds me of the National Treasure films, and the charm and mystery they portrayed. I do also enjoy the light comedic vibe that hums just under the surface of this supernatural drama, and I hope the writers can keep it fresh. I am for now interested to see what Warehouse 13 holds and what is yet to be discovered throughout this new show’s first season.