Last Hurrah for ABC’s Last Resort

Last updated on: January 23, 2013 at 10:00 am by Geoffrey Reiter

Last Hurrah for ABC’s Last Resort 2013-01-23T09:09:44-07:00 Geoffrey Reiter

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

I will confess that I have a tendency to form attachments to television shows doomed to premature cancellation: Firefly, of course, Jericho, Kings, Terra Nova, Missing (does anyone else remember Push, Nevada?). The latest addition to this list is Last Resort, an ABC series from The Shield creator Shawn Ryan that, unfortunately, will air its final episode this Thursday, January 24.

The series follows Captain Marcus Chaplin (an outstanding Andre Braugher) and his crew aboard the powerful nuclear submarine USS Colorado. In the premiere, Chaplin is ordered via an unorthodox channel to decimate Pakistan with a nuclear warhead. Refusing the order, Chaplin and his crew find themselves the target of U.S. forces. As a response, they batten down the hatches on the isolated island of Sainte Marina, where Chaplin tries to hold out while under siege from the United States, other international players, the island’s inhabitants, and his own increasingly disaffected crew.

Last Resort is more than just a taut military thriller; it was looked on by many critics as the best show entering the freshman class of the 2012–2013 season. Besides being a delightfully intense hour of television, it also serves as a thought-provoking exploration of a very American—and perhaps very Christian—dilemma. If we live in a country that has been founded on philosophical and ethical ideals at least as much as geopolitical realities, what happens if the governing authorities so thoroughly dismiss these principles that they forfeit the right to be obeyed? At what point do we cross from the civic obedience enjoined in Romans 13 and into the realm of defiance practiced by David or Elijah or eventually the apostles? And who has the authority—legally or morally—to make that call?

Overall, the sympathies of Last Resort seem to fall on the side of Marcus Chaplin in his resistance to a corrupt government and his idealistic declaration, “Do not confuse my country with the current administration.” The apparently unstable U.S. president is a faceless nonentity in the series, and when his representatives arrive at the island, they are callous and calculating. As the depths of Washington’s complicity in ethically dubious actions play out, Chaplin’s resistance can certainly be viewed as noble.

And yet. Ryan and his writing staff never let us forget the dangers of a single man, however principled and well-intentioned, going rogue. Chaplin threatens his country and the soldiers sent against him with the same annihilation he refused to unleash upon Pakistan. As the situation on the island deteriorates, his measures can at times become draconian, even dictatorial. He keeps his crew from surrendering so that they can return home, holding onto a desperate hope that the far-reaching conspiracy can be exposed and dealt with stateside. He is psychologically unstable, wounded emotionally by the death of his son in combat. Last Resort thus forces its viewers to ask, Is this the man we want leading a resistance, however corrupt the government? But if not him, then whom?

It is an intriguing premise to say the least, both in terms of plot and the ethical questions it develops. Moreover, the premise allows the series to remain unpredictable throughout its run. Thankfully, the writers of Last Resort had enough notice of the show’s cancellation to tie up some loose ends in the finale. Thus, the series should provide at least some amount of satisfaction for those who, like me, have followed it throughout its 13-episode run, and perhaps to attract some latecomers whenever it arrives on DVD.

Previous Post

January 23, 2013

Is It Time to Forgive Lance Armstrong?

Next Post

January 23, 2013 Mark Driscoll, I really, really need an iPad.

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Asides Elsewhere Featured Film Games General Culture Headline Literature Music Of the Moment Podcast Politics RetroPost Sports Technology Television Uncategorized Viral

Select a Month February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz