Edie Falco stars in "Tommy"

CBS's newest addition to its slate of crime procedurals began to take shape when creator and producer Paul Attanasio learned that none of the police forces of the three biggest cities in the United States -- New York, Los Angeles and Chicago -- had ever had a female chief.

It didn't take long for the two-time Academy Award-winning screenwriter and former "House" showrunner to get started on the pilot, and when the queen of prestige TV drama, Edie Falco ("The Sopranos"), signed on to star as the eponymous heroine, "Tommy" was born. You can catch a new episode of the freshman series on Thursday, Feb. 20, on CBS. 

The origin story of this series is worth mentioning because, as you'll already know if you're familiar with the network crime drama landscape, most popular shows of that genre on TV right now are created by the same handful of showrunners, and their franchises dominate the airwaves. This near-monopoly is not necessarily a bad thing, but it does make "Tommy" extra special. It's the first fresh, non-franchised show of its type to address the gender disparity in a vocation that has been covered by procedurals for decades. Not only is it groundbreaking, but "Tommy" is just good crime television.

Falco stars as Abigail "Tommy" Thomas, the (fictional) first woman to front the Los Angeles Police Department. Only a couple of episodes in, the show seems eager to demonstrate that it's able to stay true to the genre while also trying to revolutionize it.

Regarding her character's identity and its relationship with the show, Falco said, "Yes, her sexuality is a part of who she is, but she's not standing on a soapbox about it, and it doesn't have to be her calling card." The pilot for "Tommy" was titled "In Dreams Begin Responsibility," and it opened on Mayor Buddy Gray (Thomas Sadoski, "Life in Pieces") as he made the decision to ask high-ranking officer Tommy to leave her life in New York and take on the responsibilities and full staff of the LAPD.

With a premise that centers so much on Tommy's gender and position, you'd think that the show would allow itself to lean heavily on progressive social commentary, especially during its first episode. However, "Tommy" doesn't seem to want to push its message in that way. If anything, the pilot was more keen on speaking about the jarring nature of a hard-faced, East Coast-bred cop finding her footing in a city that revels in how it's the anti-New York. It also zoomed in on the bureaucratic dance of the police force, the red tape that deputies and politicians need to cut through to get things done. We're even introduced to Tommy's adult daughter, Kate (Olivia Lucy Phillip, "Bull"), and are shown what a taught dynamic they share, one born out of a hard-working mother's lifelong inability to juggle a demanding job and the warm devotion a child often craves.

Thomas Sadoski as seen in "Tommy"

In other words, the show seems to be saying that Tommy's gender and orientation is interesting, not because it's caused her to struggle, but because it's one more nuanced detail in the life of this extremely capable, professional woman. The series premiere introduced us to what seems to be a very grounded show and made a premise that could have come off preachy, idealistic or agenda-driven feel truly understated but important. It's a remarkable tone for a show that executive producer Tom Szentgyorgy has described as being "inspired by the absence of somebody." "Tommy" tries to not only build a realistic, interesting narrative in a genre done a million times over, but to do so while committing to a scenario that has never actually happened in real life.

The benefit of crafting something out of challenging subject matter is that, if the foundation is strong, there is little the show can't address or tackle as it moves forward. The show's supporting cast is a major strength, and most seem to hold their own alongside the iconic Falco. Adelaide Clemens ("Rectify") plays press secretary Blake Sullivan, Russell G. Jones ("The Americans") plays chief of staff Don Cooper and Michael Chernus ("Patriot") plays speechwriter Ken Rosey. With a strong pilot and even stronger cast, it's no wonder that now, barely three episodes into the series, the crime drama is diving into issues like the #MeToo movement. 

In this week's episode, titled "Lifetime Achievement," Tommy investigates the attack of a male Hollywood producer by a woman who claims he was attempting to sexually assault her. Tune in to the third episode of "Tommy" when it airs Thursday, Feb. 20, on CBS.