Honestly, the many lists of television’s “best” pilot episodes are boring. The lists are essentially the same, including the same shows repeatedly, and they rarely change. If it’s not “prestige TV” (a concept that’s genuinely becoming a bit tiresome) and it doesn’t become a worldwide sensation, but sometimes even then, it’s completely overlooked. If it aired on one of the “lesser” networks, like The CW, then forget about it. So, I’ve decided to start my own informal column of sorts, highlighting pilots I deem to be the best, focusing specifically on those that have never received any consideration. For this inaugural outing, my focus is The CW’s Nikita.
Sadly, Nikita didn’t receive the attention it deserved even whilst on the air, but it remains arguably the most well-written and highest quality show to come from the network. During its four-season run, the series beautifully developed and explored complex characters, each coping with and slowly recovering from immense trauma in their respective pasts that left brutal scars and, ultimately, led them to become entangled in the messy world of espionage and assassinations. Led by our beloved, charming, and incredibly bold so-called killer with a conscience, Nikita Mears (Maggie Q), nearly every episode features a new mission du jour, forcing the characters to embark on heart-racing, action-packed, and twist-filled quests with life-or-death consequences.
Credit: The CW
Many shows, especially those to come from The CW, need several episodes to find a good rhythm and figure out what works. Nikita, however, hit the ground running, delivering a masterful and near-perfect introduction into this world that required very few tweaks moving forward. As an adaptation of the French film La Femme Nikita, there are similar elements established from the jump. After killing a police officer, Nikita is on death row when a covert, government-sanctioned organization—in this case called Division—fakes her death. Nikita wakes up in Division’s silo, forced to either train to become an operative or be canceled and wiped away as though she never existed. Rather than recount and replay the events of the film, this adaptation begins years after Nikita’s escape from Division, which the organization, specifically its leader Percy (Xander Berkeley), does not take lightly. As such, the pilot begins with a short voiceover from Nikita as she explains her emergence from the shadows, prepared to go to war with Division and ensure she is not the only recruit able to escape its grasp.
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And to see how Nikita’s mission for justice and vengeance begins is quite captivating. Like in any other pilot, so much time must be devoted to exposition — building this world from the ground up, bringing the viewers into the fold. Not many can do so in a way that also elevates the story, but Nikita finds many options to do so. Most interestingly, aside from a quick scene in her loft, the series begins with co-lead Alex (Lyndsy Fonseca) in the spotlight. After a robbery at a pharmaceutical company goes awry and Alex’s masked partner kills a man, Alex is solely blamed for his death and imprisoned. On her way to solitary confinement, she viciously attacks the guards, but is taken down… and then wakes up in Division. Alex is told Division faked her suicide, allowing her an opportunity to be of use to the country. Thus, alongside Alex, the audience not only meets the starting roster of familiar Division faces, including Michael (Shane West) and Amanda (Melinda Clarke), and their roles, but also how Division operates and builds up a recruit and Division’s rules, both explicit and unspoken. Plus, as Alex attempts and fails to escape, it quickly becomes clear that there is no real way out of Division aside from death, upping the curiosity and anticipation for the eventual reveal of how Nikita managed to do so.
Credit: The CW
Concurrently, as Alex learns the lay of the land from the inside, Nikita puts her plan in action on the outside. First, she must resurface on Division’s radar, which leads Nikita to her abusive foster father’s home, where, for the sake of exposition, she confesses everything that had happened in her life after she ran away. She leaves him alive and with a message for Division, as she knows they’re watching and wants them to come. Later, when Division arrives and learns of what unfolded, her foster father is shot in the head, and the man who pulled the trigger remarks that she must not have liked him much because she knew Division would kill him. This alone lends valuable insight into who Nikita is and depicts how dangerous this world is for anyone who comes into contact with Division. And the pilot only continues to showcase Nikita’s boldness with each subsequent move.
In this episode alone, Nikita kidnaps Division’s tech expert, Seymour Birkhoff (Aaron Stanford), trying to get access to Division’s network. She single-handedly takes on multiple Division operatives as she foils one of its infamous kill missions and delivers their foreign target to the embassy, where Division is unable to carry out its plans. Then, she confronts Percy face-to-face at a fundraising event, vowing to destroy Division and tank every mission possible until the entire organization is dismantled. Even when Percy catches her by surprise (due to his eidetic memory) and reveals he anticipated her potential arrival, Nikita proves herself and how prepared she is for this task by setting off her backup plan. Then, as becomes the show’s standard, there’s a complication because Michael catches up to her, but it’s not over. Michael and Nikita’s interaction teases a much deeper, possibly somewhat twisted connection between them as he agrees to let her go, at least with a head start, and Nikita turns the tables and shoots him in the shoulder to bolster his story of her escape (supposedly to protect him).
Credit: The CW
Every aspect of the Nikita pilot is intricately planned and offers an unbelievably well-done glimpse into many of these characters, even those who don’t play much of a part are set up for the future. For instance, there’s Jaden (Tiffany Hines), a fellow recruit and constant thorn in Alex’s side, and Amanda, whose unsettling demeanor in her interactions with Alex points to something more lurking under the surface. Likewise, there’s a great glimpse of Birkhoff and his sass, who, during his capture, doesn’t demonstrate loyalty so much as fear of Division and clearly has much more complicated feelings about Nikita. Additionally, there are great action sequences, something Nikita is never short of, and subtle nods to much bigger stories waiting in the wings, like Percy’s encrypted drives filled with details of every mission Division has ever done. And, of course, who can forget the beautiful and bombshell twist before the pilot winds down to a close with the reveal that Nikita and Alex are working together?
Though it is noticeably made with a lower budget than future episodes, the quality of the Nikita pilot is undeniable — incredible writing, an impeccable cast delivering excellent performances, thrilling action sequences, and eye-catching sets (that only change slightly moving forward). It’s a superb introduction to the two leads, offering everything we need to know about Nikita and her journey while crafting an intriguing mystery around Alex and the connection between the two women. In short, I’d wager Nikita has one of the best pilot episodes out there. The entire show is well above the quality expected from The CW, and the pilot specifically does a remarkable job of building this world and putting the pieces in place for an excellent season and beyond. It’s a shame the series has never been given the consideration it deserves.