Dick Woolf’s FBI franchises have stepped out of the shadows of his other global hits Law & Order and the One Chicago universe to become Emmy-winning shows in their own right, across as many as seven seasons. All three – FBI (28 July at 20:00); FBI: International (29 July at 20:00) and FBI: Most Wanted (30 July 20:00) – return to M-Net this month, with the latter two marking their final seasons.
For six prior seasons, FBI’s elite unit have brought to bear all their talents, intellect and technical expertise on major cases in order to keep New York – and the country – safe. Born into a multigenerational law-enforcement family, Special Agent Maggie Bell (Missy Peregrym) has committed deeply to the people she works with, as well as those she has protected. She and her partner, Special Agent Omar Adom “OA” Zidan (Zeeko Zaki), are overseen by Special Agent in Charge Isobel Castille (Alana de la Garza) who operates under intense pressure and has undeniable command authority.
Season six ended with the team successfully dispatching Hakim and giving Special Agent Tiffany Wallace (Katherine Renee Kane) a bit of emotional closure after she lost her undercover partner in episode 1. Her subsequent departure leaves a big gap in the team that needs to be filled – will Castille be able to find the right person for the job?
As a teaser for the end of what promises to be an epic seventh season – the season has already ended in the US – Ana Dumaraoq on ScreenRant (caution: spoilers in the article) describes how the show has come to eclipse the brilliance of Law & Order. “The FBI season 7 finale progresses into one of the most exciting procedural episodes of recent years. It features a tragic bombing, a fake death and the good guys operating in the shadows. Its main action set piece, in particular, is executed brilliantly, with its backdrop being an abandoned New York subway station and the connecting tunnels a reminder of the show’s setting”.
The fourth and final season of FBI: International sees the Budapest-based Fly Team adapting to the departure of Special Agent Scott Forrester (Luke Kleintank) and the arrival of his replacement, Special Agent Wesley ‘Wes’ Mitchell (Chicago PD’s Jesse Lee Soffer). Kleintank’s departure from the show was for personal reasons, confirmed when he announced that his decision was “driven by my unwavering commitment to my family, whose love and well-being are paramount in my life”.
TVLine describes Wes as “charming and rakish, an agent whose impeccable instincts and unconventional tactics fuel his drive to stop at nothing to achieve justice”. Jay Hayden will also be joining the series in a recurring role as Agent Tyler Booth.
Morgan Cormack wrote for Radio Times that “the final episodes of season 3 revealed that Forrester went on the run with his mother Angela Cassidy, who had been on a Russian prison intake form and was working on a massive mound of evidence to take down the government. The official way of extraditing Angela doesn’t go to plan, and we find out that Forrester went to Norway to rescue his mother, who he believed was captured. The Fly Team also put their careers on the line by heading to Norway without the official say-so of the Norwegian government, but are delivered a surprise when they learn that the Angela that is in Arkhangelsk Oblast Prison is not the real Angela”. Scott and Angela flee to Alaska, incriminating files are deleted and viewers were left wondering what punishment the Fly Team would face for going rogue.
For the final season, Carter Redwood (Special Agent Andre Raines); Vinessa Vidotto (Special Agent Cameron Vo); Eva-Jane Willis (Europol Agent Megan ‘Smitty’ Garretson) and Christina Wolfe (Special Agent Amanda Tate) all return.
FBI: Most Wanted follows the Federal Bureau of Investigation Fugitive Task Force (FTF), who are tasked to track down and capture notorious criminals. The team functions as a mobile undercover unit that is always out in the field, pursuing those who are most desperate to elude justice.
Radio Times reports that “the season 5 finale of FBI: Most Wanted saw wedding preparations get underway for Ray Cannon (Edwin Hodge) and Cora Love (Caroline Harris) – but in typical dramatic fashion, a bomb was uncovered. The series has been known to leave us on a cliffhanger, and that it most certainly did, so we can expect that season 6 will address the fallout from the case and also Ray and Cora’s wedding prep”.
Returning for the final season are Dylan McDermott (team leader SSA Remy Scott) and season 5 newcomer Shantel VanSanten (Special Agent Nina Chase). Edwin Hodge reprises his role as Special Agent Ray Canon, Roxy Sternberg is Special Agent Sheryll Barnes and Keisha Castle-Hughes is Special Agent Hana Gibson.
FBI S7 premieres on M-Net (DStv Channel 101) on Monday 28 July at 20:00, the fourth, final season of FBI: International starts on Tuesday 29 July at 20:00 and the sixth and final season of FBI: Most Wanted starts at 20:00 on Wednesday 30 July. All shows are also available on DStv Stream and DStv Catch Up.
