With ER riding high on the gurney into its sixth season and The West Wing beginning its administration to glowing reviews, it’s easy to forget that September 23, 1999 marked the premiere of a third series from über-producer John Wells.  A one-hour ensemble drama like the aforementioned series, Third Watch deviated from its fellow Wells productions in two key arenas:  it was filmed in New York rather than Los Angeles and it centered on the lives of blue collar characters rather than the affluent doctors and politicians of the other series.  One respect in which the series did not differ from its better known siblings was in its dedication to energetic character-based storytelling.

The pilot, scripted by Wells and former Chicago cop Edward Allen Bernero, gets off to a running start with hothead beat cop Maurice “Bosco” Boscarelli (Jason Wiles) pursuing a perp through the streets of Queens for writing “Bosco is a dick” on the former’s patrol car.  With the same economy that established TV icons like Mark Green and Jed Bartlet, Wells and company set about populating the series with a cast of memorable characters.  Reviving a concept that had failed nine years earlier with H.E.L.P. on ABC, Third Watch bridged the perennial cop and medical dramas while adding the less common, but periodically attempted, firefighter element to the mix.  The resulting mélange found three disparate groups forced into high pressure scenarios where they’re forced to overcome personal difficulties to save lives.

Cast with an eclectic mix that included rookie cop Tyrone Davis (Coby Bell) and neophyte paramedic Carlos Nieto (Anthony Ruivivar) as gateways for the audience paired respectively with veteran officer John Sullivan (Skip Sudduth) and accomplished medic “Doc” Parker (ER’s Michael Beach) to show them the ropes, the series elegantly explained the ins and outs of first response while developing character.  The characterizations thrived on contrast with the volatile Bosco paired with the even-tempered Faith Yokas (Molly Price) and the lovelorn medic Kim Zambrano (Kim Raver) teaming up with lothario Bobby Caffey (Bobby Cannavale).  Echoing the ending of Hill Street Blues’ notorious pilot, the series premiere assured the audience that no one who risks their life in emergency services is safe and that uncertainty pervades the rest of the season.

Like Wells’ other series, Third Watch featured top notch production values with the best directors on TV leading a top notch crew to achieve state of the art television drama.  The exteriors of New York City provides a welcome respite from the shot out locales of Los Angeles or the claustrophobic atmosphere of soundstage-bound productions.  Though hardly afforded the same respect on DVD as multiple Emmy winners like ER or The West Wing, Warner Bros. doesn’t disappoint fans of the series a brief, but informative featurette highlights the show’s creation and production and a gag real illuminates the fun on the set.  With 9/11 looming mere years in the distance, Third Watch is a series that could not have been better timed in its effort to draw attention to the men and women who answer when we dial 9-1-1.