Pilot (Grimm)

Last updated
"Pilot"
Grimm episode
Episode no.Season 1
Episode 1
Directed by Marc Buckland
Story byDavid Greenwalt
Jim Kouf
Stephen Carpenter
Teleplay by David Greenwalt
Jim Kouf
Produced by
Featured music Richard Marvin
Cinematography by Clark Mathis
Editing byChris Willingham
Production code101
Original air dateOctober 28, 2011 (2011-10-28)
Running time42 minutes
Guest appearances
Episode chronology
 Previous
Next 
"Bears Will Be Bears"
Grimm season 1
List of episodes

The Pilot episode of the fantasy drama series Grimm originally aired on NBC on October 28, 2011. It was written by David Greenwalt and Jim Kouf, the creators of the series, and directed by Marc Buckland.

Contents

Synopsis

Opening quote: "The wolf thought to himself, what a tender young creature. What a nice plump mouthful..."

After presenting a quote by The Brothers Grimm, the cold open shows a girl in a red sweatshirt running through the woods. She is attacked by a wolf-like creature, after she stops to check out a small figurine lying on the ground.

Later that morning, police officer Nick Burkhardt (portrayed by David Giuntoli), and his partner Hank Griffin (Russell Hornsby), are discussing Nick's plans to propose to his girlfriend. A woman walks by and while looking at Nick, her face changes to that of a non-human creature. Hank appears not to notice anything. They are then called to investigate the murder of the runner.

After visiting the murder scene, Nick and Hank are working at a station of the Portland Police Department. There is a man being processed by another detective, and when Nick looks at him, his face momentarily changes into that of a beast. Nick is again the only one who sees this transformation.

Later that night, Nick comes to his home to find his girlfriend, to whom he is preparing to propose, Juliette Silverton (Bitsie Tulloch), conversing with his aunt, Marie Kessler (portrayed by guest star Kate Burton), [1] who had just come to town with a trailer. Nick finds out that Marie is dying of breast cancer, and she informs him that he is one of the last in a long line of people called Grimms, who can see beasts reminiscent of those about which The Brothers Grimm wrote. She is later attacked by one of those beasts, and Nick manages to shoot the creature who, upon dying, transforms back to a human. Badly injured, Marie gives Nick a key, which he is supposed to protect with his life.

At the hospital, Marie informs Nick more about his family and the Grimms, and she informs him that all he needs to know is in her trailer. He goes in the trailer that night and finds a various assortment of weapons and a book, which details encounters with various creatures and descriptions of what they are. When attempting to inform his aunt that he has previously seen some of the creatures about which he had read, he finds out she had slipped into a coma.

Nick then is informed of a case in which a young girl also wearing a red sweater is abducted on her way to her grandparents house (or school). He connects this to the previous case after finding the young girl's backpack in the woods and a boot print similar to one found at the crime scene of a murdured college student(as well as her shoe with her leg still attached). In the woods, he follows a trail that leads him to the house of a man, Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell), whom he arrests after seeing his face change. Monroe is found to be clean and then released, but Nick, being suspicious, returns to Monroe's house. After a scuffle, he has a conversation with Monroe, who turns out to be a reformed Blutbad, the same type of creature as the one that attacked the girls. Monroe agrees to help Nick solve the case. After following the scent of another Blutbad, Monroe leads Nick to the Blutbad's cabin in the woods. Monroe begins transforming against his own will and, fearing that he might attack either Nick or the girl, retreats.

Nick calls in Hank to investigate the cabin, and the two of them enter the cabin. Hank is initially dismissive of Nick's thoughts, as the Blutbad appears to be a simple postman named Errol Ditmarsch. However, upon exiting the cabin, Hank realizes that Ditmarsch was humming the same song found on the dead girl's iPod: Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) by The Eurythmics. They return to the cabin only to find the lights out, and nobody there. Then Ditmarsch attacks Hank in morphed form, but as he runs out of the cabin, Hank opens fire on him. Nick then tries to interrogate Ditmarsch about the girl's whereabouts, but Ditmarsch only says "Grimm..." before dying from his wounds. Nick and Hank return to the cabin, and Nick finds a secret passage to the cellar room, under the rug. As both of them enter the cellar room, they find the missing girl and return her to her home.

At the hospital, the woman who transformed in front of Nick at the beginning of the episode arrives with a syringe. Realizing who she is, Nick intervenes and gets injected with the syringe instead of Marie. The woman escapes the hospital and meets up with Captain Renard; both of them had conspired to kill Marie. When Renard asks if Marie is dead, the woman says that because Nick was there to save Marie, Marie lived. Renard then tells her that they will have to try the attempt again in the hopes that Nick is not there and Marie is not conscious when they do so. As they drive away, Marie opens her eyes, having fully awakened from the coma.

The episode's plot contains references to Little Red Riding Hood . [2]

Production

Development

David Greenwalt and Jim Kouf, who had worked together before on projects such as Angel , conceived the show. Grimm was pitched to NBC as "The Brothers Grimm in the Modern World." [3] The pilot episode was greenlit by NBC in January 2011, [4] and filming began in Portland, Oregon, in March of the same year. [5] Intending to make the set version of the Portland Police Department look as real as possible, the Grimm crew received permission to utilize actual police uniforms (except for the badges). [6]

Casting

David Giuntoli and Silas Weir Mitchell were the first to be cast, portraying Nick Burkhardt and Monroe, respectively. [7] [8] Russell Hornsby, who portrays Nick's partner, Hank, and Bitsie Tulloch, portraying Nick's girlfriend on the show, were next to be cast. [9] Sasha Roiz was later cast as Captain Renard. [10]

Ratings and reception

Initial response from the Portland film industry was favorable. Grimm was the third TV series to be produced in Portland, and potential success seemed like a way to bring "bigger things" to the area. [6]

Before the episode premiered on television, promotional screenings were held, and the entire episode was released on social media websites. [11] After a screening at Comic-Con, IGN did a preliminary review of the pilot, noting that "the monster effects were much better here than they were in [Angel or Buffy the Vampire Slayer]". [2]

The series premiere of Grimm was viewed by 6.56 million people, earning a 2.1/6 18-49 rating on the Nielson ratings scale. [12] This means that 2.1 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode, while 6 percent of all households watching television at that time watched it. Grimm had the highest non-sports rating on a Friday for any network since New Year's Eve of 2010. [13]

Reviews of the episode ranged from mixed to positive. IGN gave the episode an 8 out of 10, stating that it "is grounded in reality, and no costumes or settings tiptoe into an unbelievable place." [14] Newsday, stating that the pilot "is a well-made, entertaining TV confection," gave the episode a B rating. [15] The Wall Street Journal said Grimm "may be onto something good. It can be genuinely scary (the pilot has a "Lovely Bones" vibe that's not for children). But it has wit too, and avoids camp." [16] In a comparison with the Once Upon A Time, a show similar in genre to Grimm, The Hollywood Reporter gave Grimm the upper hand based on the pilot episode, calling Grimm "more grown-up in its approach than Once Upon a Time because it's more violent and less hokey." [17] However, in a comparison between the two shows by The New York Times, Once Upon a Time was seen as better, being described as "having the richer premise and more interesting characters". [18]

Related Research Articles

Grimm is an American fantasy police procedural drama television series created by Stephen Carpenter, Jim Kouf and David Greenwalt, and produced by Universal Television for NBC. The series aired from October 28, 2011, to March 31, 2017, for 123 episodes, over six seasons. The series' narrative follows Portland homicide detective Nicholas Burkhardt, who discovers he is a Grimm, the latest in a line of guardians who is sworn to keep the balance between humanity and mythological creatures, known as Wesen. The series features a supporting cast with Russell Hornsby, Bitsie Tulloch, Silas Weir Mitchell, Sasha Roiz, Reggie Lee, Bree Turner, and Claire Coffee.

"Let Your Hair Down" is the 7th episode of the supernatural drama television series Grimm of season 1 and the mid-season finale which premiered on December 16, 2011, on NBC. The episode was written by co-executive producer Sarah Goldfinger and executive producer Naren Shankar, and was directed by Holly Dale.

"Three Coins in a Fuchsbau" is the 13th episode of the supernatural drama television series Grimm of season 1, which premiered on March 2, 2012, on NBC. The episode was written by series creators David Greenwalt and Jim Kouf, and was directed by Norberto Barba.

"Nobody Knows the Trubel I've Seen" is the 19th episode of season 3 of the supernatural drama television series Grimm and the 62nd episode overall, which premiered on April 25, 2014, on the cable network NBC. The episode was written by series creators David Greenwalt and Jim Kouf, and was directed by Norberto Barba.

"Bears Will Be Bears" is the 2nd episode of the supernatural drama television series Grimm of season 1, which premiered on November 4, 2011, on NBC. The episode was written by series creators David Greenwalt and Jim Kouf, and was directed by Norberto Barba.

"Danse Macabre" is the 5th episode of the supernatural drama television series Grimm of season 1, which premiered on December 8, 2011, on NBC. The episode was written by series creators David Greenwalt and Jim Kouf, and was directed by David Solomon. The episode was named for the symphonic poem Danse macabre, a piece of music played at several places in the episode by both the Reinigen Roddy Geiger and others.

"Woman in Black" is the 22nd episode and the first-season finale of the supernatural drama television series Grimm, which premiered on May 18, 2012, on NBC. The episode was written by series creators David Greenwalt and Jim Kouf, and was directed by Norberto Barba.

"Bad Teeth" is the first episode and season premiere of the supernatural drama television series Grimm of season 2 and the 23rd overall, which premiered on August 13, 2012, on NBC. The episode was written by series creators David Greenwalt and Jim Kouf, and was directed by Norberto Barba. The season premiered a month earlier than most primetime shows on Monday night, instead of Friday.

"The Kiss" is the 2nd episode of the supernatural drama television series Grimm of season 2 and the 24th overall, which premiered on August 20, 2012, on NBC. The episode was written by series creators Jim Kouf and David Greenwalt, and was directed by Terrence O'Hara.

"Season of the Hexenbiest" is the 12th episode and mid-season finale of the supernatural drama television series Grimm of season 2 and the 34th overall, which premiered on November 16, 2012, on NBC. The episode was written by series creators Jim Kouf and David Greenwalt from a story by Kouf, and was directed by Karen Gaviola.

"Volcanalis" is the 18th episode and of the supernatural drama television series Grimm of season 2 and the 40th overall, which premiered on April 26, 2013, on NBC. The episode was originally scheduled to air on April 19, but it was preempted for coverage related to the Boston Marathon bombing. The episode was written by series creators Jim Kouf and David Greenwalt, and was directed by David Grossman.

"Kiss of the Muse" is the 20th episode of season 2 of the supernatural drama television series Grimm and the 42nd episode overall, which premiered on May 7, 2013, on NBC. The episode was written by Sean Calder, and was directed by Tawnia McKiernan.

"The Waking Dead" is the 21st episode of season 2 of supernatural drama television series Grimm and the 43rd episode overall, which premiered on May 14, 2013, on the cable network NBC. The episode was written by series creators Jim Kouf and David Greenwalt, and was directed by Steven DePaul.

"Goodnight, Sweet Grimm" is the 22nd episode of season 2, the 44th overall, and season finale of the supernatural drama television series Grimm which premiered on May 21, 2013, on the cable network NBC. The episode was written by series creators Jim Kouf and David Greenwalt, and was directed by Norberto Barba.

"The Ungrateful Dead" is the 1st episode and season premiere of the supernatural drama television series Grimm of season 3 and the 45th overall, which premiered on October 25, 2013, on the cable network NBC. The episode was written by series creators Jim Kouf and David Greenwalt, and was directed by Norberto Barba.

"The Beginning of the End" is the 21st and 22nd episodes and two-part season finale of season 5 of the supernatural drama television series Grimm and the 109th and 110th episodes overall, which premiered on May 20, 2016, on the cable network NBC. Part I was written by series creators David Greenwalt and Jim Kouf and was directed by Greenwalt, in his Grimm directional debut. Part II was written by Thomas Ian Griffith and directed by executive producer Norberto Barba. The finale was originally going to be just an episode, titled "The Beginning of the End" while the first part was titled "Set Up". However, on April 30, 2016, NBC announced that the two episodes would be merged to broadcast a two-hour season finale. In the episode, Black Claw prepares to make its move now that Renard was named the mayor of Portland. Hank is arrested when two bodies appear in his house, part of the strategy taken by Black Claw. Meanwhile, Nick, Meisner and Trubel continue looking for any information regarding Conrad Bonaparte so they can stop the threat that will pose Portland forever.

"Into the Schwarzwald" is the 12th episode of season 5 of the supernatural drama television series Grimm and the 100th episode overall, which premiered on March 11, 2016, on the cable network NBC. The episode was written by series creators David Greenwalt and Jim Kouf and was directed by Norberto Barba. In the episode, Nick and Monroe survive the fall and find that they are in the church they were looking for and start searching the treasure. Meanwhile, chaos emerges in Portland following Dixon's assassination while Renard is given an offer.

"Zerstörer Shrugged" is the 12th episode of season 6 of the supernatural drama television series Grimm and the 122nd episode overall, which premiered on March 24, 2017, on the cable network NBC. The episode was written by Brenna Kouf from a story by the series co-creators David Greenwalt and Jim Kouf and was directed by Aaron Lipstadt. In the episode, Nick and Eve struggle to fight against Zerstörer, who is also wanting to leave the other place and go to the real world to retrieve Diana for his own purposes. For her own protection, Adalind and Renard take her to the house where Nick had his first Grimm case but there are consequences along the way. The episode is the conclusion of a two-parter with the previous episode as the first part.

"The End" is the series finale of the supernatural drama television series Grimm, consisting of the 13th episode of season 6 and the 123rd episode overall, which premiered on March 31, 2017, on the cable network NBC. The episode was written by series co-creators David Greenwalt and Jim Kouf and was directed by Greenwalt.

References

  1. "Kate Burton Joins NBC's Grimm". dreadcentral.com. March 12, 2011. Retrieved January 20, 2013.
  2. 1 2 "Comic-Con: Grimm Looks Grim". IGN. July 23, 2011. Retrieved January 20, 2013.
  3. "Jim Kouf and David Greenwalt GRIMM Interview". collider.com. October 28, 2011. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
  4. "'Buffy' writers sell Grimm's Fairy Tales pilot to NBC". Entertainment Weekly. January 28, 2011. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
  5. "NBC pilot, 'Grimm,' to shoot in Portland in March". oregonlive.com. March 1, 2011. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
  6. 1 2 "NBC filming new show, 'Grimm' in Portland". kgw.com. March 3, 2011. Archived from the original on January 26, 2012. Retrieved June 11, 2013.
  7. "Casting Begins for NBC's Grimm". dreadcentral.com. February 22, 2011. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
  8. "Silas Weir Mitchell Joins NBC's 'Grimm', Malcolm Barrett To ABC's 'Kids'". deadline.com. February 22, 2011. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
  9. "NBC's 'Grimm' And 'Smash' Add To Casts". deadline.com. February 25, 2011. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
  10. "GRIMM ADDS AN ADAMA TO THE CAST – SASHA ROIZ SNAGS LAST REGULAR ROLE". scifimafia.com. March 11, 2011. Archived from the original on August 20, 2011. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
  11. "NBC Offering Full 'Grimm' Pilot Before Premiere". The Hollywood Reporter . October 14, 2011. Retrieved January 20, 2013.
  12. "Friday Final TV Ratings: No Adjustments for 'Chuck,' 'Grimm,' Nikita or Any Original + World Series". tvbythenumbers.com. October 31, 2011. Archived from the original on November 2, 2011. Retrieved January 20, 2013.
  13. "Updated TV Ratings Friday: World Series Dominates; 'Chuck' Returns At Series Low, 'Grimm' Surprises, 'Supernatural' Down, 'Nikita' Steady". tvbythenumbers.com. October 29, 2011. Archived from the original on October 31, 2011. Retrieved January 20, 2013.
  14. "Grimm: "Pilot" Review". IGN. October 27, 2011. Retrieved January 20, 2013.
  15. "Grimm tales emerge amid the dark gloom". Newsday. October 27, 2011. Retrieved January 20, 2013.
  16. "Real Monsters and Fairy Tales". Wall Street Journal. October 21, 2011. Retrieved January 20, 2013.
  17. "'Grimm': TV Review". The Hollywood Reporter . October 23, 2011. Retrieved January 20, 2013.
  18. "The Enchanted Forest, in Sunshine and Shadow". The New York Times . October 21, 2011. Retrieved June 11, 2013.