{"id":46618,"date":"2017-09-13T18:55:57","date_gmt":"2017-09-13T18:55:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2017\/09\/13\/small-screen-spec-ops-a-look-at-3-military-themed-dramas-on-network-tv-this-fall\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T03:27:03","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T03:27:03","slug":"small-screen-spec-ops-a-look-at-3-military-themed-dramas-on-network-tv-this-fall","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/off-duty\/military-culture\/2017\/09\/13\/small-screen-spec-ops-a-look-at-3-military-themed-dramas-on-network-tv-this-fall\/","title":{"rendered":"Small-screen spec ops: A look at 3 military-themed dramas on network TV this fall"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A retired Navy SEAL distilled a basic problem with telling special operators\u2019 war stories on TV into a single sentence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIf you\u2019re doing tactics properly, the camera\u2019s not going to be able to see you,\u201d said Mikal Vega, technical adviser to NBC\u2019s \u201cThe Brave\u201d \u2014 one of three hourlong spec ops shows that will debut on network television this fall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Also heading into living rooms: CBS\u2019s \u201cSEAL Team\u201d and The CW\u2019s \u201cValor.\u201d Producers of all three shows outlined their different paths to the same destination: Tell dramatic stories about elite warriors while portraying their service, and their home lives, as accurately and free of Hollywood clich\u00e9 as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIf it feels like completely fantasy, it\u2019s not paying tribute to the people who live this in real life,\u201d said Kyle Jarrow, writer and executive producer on \u201cValor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That means bringing in advisers like Vega, who pulls from his SEAL background as well as his own burgeoning career as an actor and producer in Hollywood. All three shows employ veterans at multiple levels, both within and outside of the spec ops fields.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">(One name may stand out among the group: Matt Bissonnette, the former SEAL whose firsthand account of the Osama bin Laden raid in his memoir, \u201cNo Easy Day,\u201d is one of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/veterans\/2017\/09\/11\/navy-seal-who-wrote-controversial-bin-laden-book-is-advising-on-new-cbs-showbr\/\">several advisers for \u201cSEAL Team.\u201d<\/a> The show even includes a subplot about a former operator whose book could make life tougher for his son, an aspiring SEAL. C. Thomas Howell will play the author; executive producer Christopher Chulack said any relation to Bissonnette\u2019s specific case \u201cwasn\u2019t calculated.\u201d)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Advisers work to ensure the final product is free of mismatched insignia, improper firearm techniques or unlikely word choices. But producers and staff from all three shows made it clear that story comes first.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere are some times where we can\u2019t kind of do it the way it\u2019s done [in the field] because it goes by so quickly,\u201d Chulack said. \u201cIt goes by so fast you can\u2019t photograph it. It\u2019s a fine line.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Dean Georgaris, executive producer of \u201cThe Brave,\u201d praised Vega\u2019s work in not only parsing the details, but in building a self-policing team atmosphere among the actors-turned-operators who are part of an elite unit under the direct guidance of a Defense Intelligence Agency official, played by Anne Heche.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That meant actors were hitting the gym on their off days and monitoring their own behavior in uniform. Still, Georgaris said, there are limits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe ended up using a take of one of our characters walking into his room with his finger on the trigger, and it drives the actor crazy,\u201d said the producer\/writer. \u201cHe\u2019s like, \u2018I know, I know, I shouldn\u2019t have done that.\u2019 But it happened to be his best performance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/off-duty\/movies-video-games\/2017\/06\/27\/poll-3-new-special-operations-dramas-set-for-network-tv-this-fall-which-looks-the-best\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/tv-promo.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Poll: 3 new special operations dramas set for network TV this fall. Which looks the best?<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">CBS, NBC and the CW all break out the camo later this year.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b>SHOW BY SHOW<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Despite similar themes, the programs aren\u2019t carbon copies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe Brave\u201d will take a \u201cmission of the week\u201d approach to its storytelling, Vega said. Georgaris said he hoped to avoid the \u201cartificially inflated\u201d family drama of other military shows, focusing instead on the perseverance of the characters instead of \u201cpersonal struggle.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Conversely, \u201cSEAL Team\u201d opens with star David Boreanaz, as team leader Jason Hayes, in a psychiatrist\u2019s office. Action sequences that involve at-sea explosions and tracking potential suicide bombers through a maze of tunnels come later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cUltimately, this is a show about human beings, their psyche,\u201d Chulack said. \u201cWe\u2019ll be very involved in their domestic lives. \u2026 I think that\u2019s the difference. The action is the action, the tactical stuff is the tactical stuff, it\u2019s really about the inner workings of the people, of the guys in the squad.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That doesn\u2019t mean the unit\u2019s missions will be glossed over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI want the audience to feel like they\u2019re walking with them,\u201d Chulack said of the show\u2019s perspective. \u201cThey\u2019re in with them. They\u2019re a fly on the wall on the mission, in the team room, in the bar. \u2026 The audience is always brought in from the point of view, or the purview, of the squad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI didn\u2019t want the audience to know there was a bad guy behind the wall. The good guys will take you there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Chulack, a producer on critically acclaimed dramas \u201cER\u201d and \u201cSouthland,\u201d said he hoped \u201cSEAL Team\u201d would follow a similar path, allowing viewers to get an inside look at characters with, \u201cneedless to say, interesting jobs.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In an earlier interview, Georgaris brought up some of his influences for \u201cThe Brave\u201d: \u201cI\u2019ve always felt that on \u2018ER\u2019 and \u2018Southland\u2019 and great workplace drama, they didn\u2019t have to create stories outside of the show.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"304\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MIL-TV-THE-BRAVE-092517.jpg.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-85342\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MIL-TV-THE-BRAVE-092517.jpg.jpg 500w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MIL-TV-THE-BRAVE-092517.jpg.jpg?resize=300,182 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Natacha Karam as Sgt. Jasmine &#8220;Jaz&#8221; Khan, Hadi Tabbal as Agent Amir Al-Rasani and Mike Vogel as Capt. Adam Dalton are part of an elite unit in NBC&#8217;s &#8220;The Brave.&#8221; (Simon Mein\/NBC)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Vega\u2019s efforts helped the actors form a coherent unit, Georgaris said, one that \u201callowed us [to] do things that are more complicated.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Vega also helped steer the writers away from some less-than-practical approaches. One episode called for the team to engineer a prison break by crashing a Humvee through the wall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMikal happened to be in the room that day,\u201d Georgaris said. \u201cHe just shot me this look, and I was like, \u2018OK, guys, we\u2019re not doing it that way. Let\u2019s talk about how we\u2019re going to actually do it.\u2019 \u2026 We actually came up with a much cooler, realistic scene.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That real-life perspective helped keep the show grounded, avoiding \u201cthe myth \u2026 that these are borderline superheroes,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd what makes them so special is, you know, \u2018A special set of skills.\u2019 And the reality, which I find much more interesting, is that it\u2019s the mindset. It\u2019s the perseverance. It\u2019s the qualities that, frankly, I can emulate, to a small degree. Not to the degree that they have them.\u201c<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Jarrow, of \u201cValor,\u201d took a slightly different tact \u2014 his show will premiere Oct. 9, after \u201cSupergirl.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere\u2019s a logic there,\u201d he said. \u201cCW tells a lot of stories about heroes, and whether those heroes are sometimes fantastical, or they are military heroes who do things that border on fantastical, it does feel like there\u2019s a DNA there that is similar.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MIL-TV-VALOR-092517.jpg.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-85345\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MIL-TV-VALOR-092517.jpg.jpg 400w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MIL-TV-VALOR-092517.jpg.jpg?resize=300,200 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Matt Barr and Christina Ochoa suit up for &#8220;Valor&#8221; on The CW.(Mark Hill\/The CW)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b>A YOUNGER DEMO<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cValor\u201d not only differs by featuring Army helicopter pilots in the main roles, but by putting spotlight on its characters attempting to unravel a botched mission, not on new deployments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The show also skews younger, in keeping with its network\u2019s target audience. Jarrow, the executive producer, sees that as an advantage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe military, people are young,\u201d he said. \u201cPeople are retiring when they\u2019re in their early 40s or before. In terms of characters, it\u2019s realistic. Special Forces is a little older than conventional forces, but in terms of The CW, the core demographic, that\u2019s the age of most of the folks in the military. And to me, it\u2019s really interesting. \u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhat does it mean to be 28 and going into combat? Risking their life? How different is that from an \u2018average\u2019 28-year-old? But also, you are still 28. You are still trying to figure out your life, in some ways. \u2026 I think that\u2019s something that The CW audience is going to relate to.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"apester-media\" data-media-id=\"594d2d3ff03c53313d6ee480\" height=\"408\"><\/div><script async src=\"\/\/static.apester.com\/js\/sdk\/v2.0\/apester-javascript-sdk.min.js\"><\/script>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">From their respective pilots, all shows put their characters into various moral quandaries: \u201cSEAL Team\u201d and \u201cThe Brave\u201d weigh the value of a civilian hostage against that of a military objective, for instance. \u201cValor\u201d takes its lead characters into an internal struggle, separating the official version of events from what really happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cYou really get into this theme of duty versus morality,\u201d said Jarrow, whose brother served in Afghanistan. \u201cAnd, how do you reconcile those things in your life? And I think, certainly for my brother and for others that I know, that theme does kind of sit at the center of life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">All three shows will tackle serious themes, the producers said, but all hope to do so without heavy-handed treatment of service member suicide, post-traumatic stress or other issues that have received attention from the entertainment industry \u2014 not all of it beneficial to troops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Military members who\u2019ve seen \u201cThe Brave\u201d have offered \u201cappreciation that none of our characters seem to be harboring some terrible flaw that feels unrealistic to them,\u201d Georgaris said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe\u2019re not going to exploit it in the negative,\u201d said Chulack, of \u201cSEAL Team.\u201d \u201cThis is not a \u2018message\u2019 show. \u2026 This is a show about people.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b>ON THE AIR&nbsp;<\/b>(all times Eastern\/Pacific): \u201dThe Brave,\u201d NBC, 10 p.m. Mondays starting Sept. 25; \u201cSEAL Team,\u201d CBS, 9 p.m. Wednesdays starting Sept. 27. \u201dValor,\u201d The CW, 9 p.m. Mondays starting Oct. 9<br><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Producers, advisers on what makes &#8220;The Brave,&#8221; &#8220;Valor&#8221; and &#8220;SEAL Team&#8221; tick.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":26282,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":73,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":{"2":{"categories":["military-culture","off-duty"],"primary_category":"military-culture"},"4":{"categories":["military-culture","off-duty","daily-news-roundup","newsletters"],"primary_category":"military-culture"},"6":{"categories":["military-culture","off-duty","daily-news-roundup","newsletters"],"primary_category":"military-culture"},"7":{"categories":["military-culture","off-duty","daily-news-roundup","newsletters"],"primary_category":"military-culture"}}},"categories":[100,73,25,13],"tags":[],"coauthors":[787],"class_list":["post-46618","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-military-culture","category-newsletters","category-off-duty"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"YHSB5N56FNDH5B2KG2DKDYPZ4E","arc_canonical_url":"\/off-duty\/military-culture\/2017\/09\/13\/small-screen-spec-ops-a-look-at-3-military-themed-dramas-on-network-tv-this-fall\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Small-screen spec ops: A look at 3 military-themed dramas on network TV this fall - Army Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Producers, advisers on what makes &quot;The Brave,&quot; &quot;Valor&quot; and &quot;SEAL Team&quot; tick.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Small-screen spec ops: A look at 3 military-themed dramas on network TV this fall\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Producers, advisers on what makes &quot;The Brave,&quot; &quot;Valor&quot; and &quot;SEAL Team&quot; tick.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" 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