Blood and Treasure: Premiere

I saw the promos for this show last week and knew I'd enjoy it. I caught the first of two parts last night and this show looks exactly like what it is: a breezy, action/adventure show perfect for the summer.

Premise

I'll admit, the historian in me cringed at what happens in the opening segment.

After an opening narration giving a little history with a map of the Mediterranean Sea region for reference, we cut to 2019 and an American archaeologist and her team find the lost tomb of Marc Antony and Cleopatra. Except the crypt only has his body. Where is Cleopatra?

They have little time to think about it before mercenaries storm the pyramid, capture the archaeologist, and then blow up part of the pyramid! Even though it was fiction, the idea of all that lost history gone gnawed at my gut.

Enter the Two Attractive Leads

The first of the two leads is Danny McNamara (Matt Barr), a former FBI agent who knows art. Again, the historian in me can't not think of Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, and that's probably on purpose. He's hired by rich guy John Larroquette to find the missing archaeologist. Money is no object. But he needs one thing: a partner.

Naturally, the best person for the job is Lexi Vaziri, an attractive cat burglar, played by Sofia Pernas, who just happens to be his former girlfriend. She's just pulled a heist, gotten herself arrested, and is in jail.

But not for long. Danny shows up and they team up.

Flashbacks Give Backstory

Through a series of flashbacks, the characters and situations are fleshed out, including why Danny and Lexi broke up. Hint: it's not good and it's not romantic.

The dynamic is as old as storytelling. One of the pair is the brains and the other is the brawn. In this case, Lexi's the brawn. Yeah, in the age of Lara Croft, this also isn't old. Neither is the guy-as-nerd character type either (Jack Ryan?). But as I told my wife after the first commercial break: there is a wheelhouse of things I enjoy--especially in the summer--and this show checked off every box.

Action: check
Exotic locales: check
Attractive leads: check
Mysterious enemies: check
Backstory that will be revealed as time goes on: check
Knowing the leads will get  together: check

There's a certain mentality that descends on me in the summer. I want a particular kind of show, movie, and music. Blood and Treasure fits that bill perfectly.