The Code is an American military drama television series created by Craig Sweeny and Craig Turk. The militarylegal drama was ordered to series on May 11, 2018 by CBS. The series premiered on April 9, 2019. In July 2019, CBS canceled the series after one season.
Premise
The Code takes place as the "United States Military's brightest minds take on America's toughest challenges inside the courtroom and out, where each attorney is trained as a prosecutor, a defense lawyer, an investigator—and a Marine."
Cast
Luke Mitchell as Captain John "Abe" Abraham, a former Marine Infantry Officer who was wounded while serving in Afghanistan and became an attorney after being deemed medically unfit to serve.
Dana Delany as Colonel Glenn Turnbull, who oversees the attorneys and helps them navigate the politics surrounding the legal system.
On February 2, 2018, it was announced that CBS had given the production a pilot order. The pilot script was set to be written by Craig Sweeny who was also set as an executive producer along with Craig Turk, Carl Beverly and Sarah Timberman. Production companies involved with the pilot include CBS Television Studios and Timberman-Beverly Productions. On February 9, 2018, it was reported that Marc Webb would direct the pilot episode. On May 11, 2018, it was announced that CBS had given the production a series order. A few days later, it was announced that the series would premiere in the spring of 2019 as a mid-season replacement. On January 15, 2019, it was announced that the series would be held back from mid-season with a premiere date of April 9, 2019. While the pilot aired on a Tuesday at 9 PM, all subsequent episodes aired weekly on Mondays during the 9 PM time slot. On July 23, 2019, CBS canceled the series after one season.
Casting
In the original pilot, Dave Annable and Mira Sorvino were cast as the series' male lead and a major co-starring role, respectively. When 'The Code' was picked up, Australian actor Luke Mitchell took over the role of Captain John "Abe" Abraham from Annable, while Dana Delany took over Sorvino's role as Colonel Glenn Turnbull.
Episodes
Reception
Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds an approval rating of 30% based on reviews from 10 critics, with an average rating of 6.5/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Despite its pedigree, The Code does little to differentiate itself in a crowded field." On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 56 out of 100, based on reviews from five critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Robert Lloyd of the Los Angeles Times called it "consistently diverting" and described it as : "like JAG but in the Marines with a pleasing hint of The Good Wife". Daniel D'Addario of Variety gave a mixed review and called the show deeply familiar, and said it made NCIS look great by comparison. Dan Fienberg of The Hollywood Reporter called it a "thoroughly average procedural" and compared the show unfavorably to the film A Few Good Men. Others criticized the show for technical inaccuracies.
