The Chicago Code suffered from a pretty bad case of the pilots. Characters mouths were stuffed with dialogue that strained to engage the viewer, lay out their motivations and relationships, set the plot in motion, and establish the tone of the show. When I watched the pilot and suggested to Kevin that he watch it, this was his response: "You think you can change the way things are done? IN CHICAGO??!!?"

Well, this is what Kevin said after last night's third episode: "Okay I am on board."

Indeed. Last night was the realization of everything this show promised it could be: a propulsive hour long crime drama with top notch production values and an engaging cast that is capable of blending overarching story arcs that bring you into the world of the show with stand-alone cases to give each episode its own driving force.

The show comes to us from the team that just finished work on the late and lamented Terriers, the best show of the fall season. Much of the same DNA that made that show great is on display here, but what this show has that Terriers lacked is a great villain.

Delroy Lindo, who plays the corrupt city alderman at the center of the ongoing serialized investigation, has done bad things in the first few episodes, but it had always been with plausible deniability; in fact, his deniability was so plausible that you could make the case the series was setting him up as a red herring. Not after last night.

"Think about it. It must have been someone close to you. And I mean close. REALLY close."