The Company You Keep

Read TVLine's recap of 'The Company You Keep,' then grade the new ABC drama starring Milo Ventimiglia as a con man who falls for a CIA agent.

So Charlie visits Emma’s home to tell her the truth: He hasn’t stopped thinking about her and he wants to take her out. The FBI captures the drug leader, but his cohort Daphne (Dynasty‘s Felisha Terrell), aka the real brains behind the operation, gets away as Emma chases after her. Charlie approaches her for a dance, but after Birdie accuses him of being distracted on the job, he turns down Emma’s dinner date invitation. They got a photo of the leader during his meetup with Charlie, whose back is to the camera. But the next day, they get down to business, spending a blissful 36 hours in bed, frolicking in the pool and raiding the hotel bar. Even though she can’t say she loves him, she still goes to drown her sorrows at a hotel bar, where she handily dresses down a married man who tries to hit on her.

Milo Ventimiglia plays a con artist and Catherine Haena Kim a CIA agent in ABC's new frothy romantic drama 'The Company You Keep.'

I think some of it is Baltimore and some of it is Washington, DC, and none of it has any connection to the way the real Baltimore and DC look or feel. The paralleling of the two families, and therefore the paralleling of legitimate and illegitimate con artistry, is interesting. It remains to be seen if the show The Company You Keep eases into by its second episode is sustainable. But the show that this settles into being is decent or, as I keep saying, has the potential to be decent, since I’ve only seen 20 minutes of it. And I like the seeds of performances and characterizations, especially the warmth from the older generation of actors, all gifted enough to contribute nuance well beyond what was on the page. These are things that the show has to present and move past in order to move forward, a bit like the laughably flimsy efforts to establish where, exactly, this show is taking place. Why does she keep her profession secret even from her family, and why is her job/skillset so unique that she has to work in a mysterious and hidden office? My earlier suggestion was that it takes too long for The Company You Keep to settle into what its actual structure and rhythms will be, but it could just as easily be that it doesn’t take enough time. I know this, because in the second episode, a character says that Emma’s mother (Freda Foh Shen) wants them to be the Asian American Kennedys. But if nobody at ABC is going to have the institutional memory to remember that they already made this show, who am I to bring it up? Wade through two episodes of belabored exposition and The Company You Keep becomes a promising rom-com with thriller trappings and an interesting family backdrop — not a series fully realized but a series with some potential. The show became what it aspired to be in a hurry.

Charlie and Emma spend a whirlwind night together, not realizing their lives are on an inevitable collision course on The Company You...

But now it's time to sustain that level of interest, and if the pilot is anything to go by, we should be in for something special this season. The Company You Keep comes in very hot, and it's a fun time. - Ollie is adorable, and I'm curious how much they shield her from the criminal parts of their family. It'll be interesting to see how they fare and what kind of plans they make to get out from underneath someone else's thumb. It's the one where the ragtag group must come back together to pay back the money they stole in the original flick, all while in a picturesque European city. Ventimiglia is a fabulous actor and a perfect lead, giving Charlie all the charm in the world to make you believe he's a master con man. Without Birdie, it's safe to say the high-tech aspects of their operation would be in serious jeopardy. Eventually, you have to close the door to the penthouse suite, get into your truck, and amble your way back to your everyday life. For Charlie and Emma, their lives are the complete opposite. This series has never heard of it, as both parties seem willing to throw all caution to the wind when starting a relationship. And even though we're aware these two are on a collision course, you want to root for them. Here, these families aren't feuding (yet), but their children are undoubtedly embarking on a clandestine relationship that has all the makings for a tragic end.

Ventimiglia is not only the star of this new show, alongside Catherine Haena Kim, William Fichtner, Polly Draper and Sarah Wayne Callies, but he's also an ...

Milo Ventimiglia plays a suave con-man in The Company You Keep, while Cara Delevingne donates her orgasm to science in Planet Sex.

Stars David Harbour, Anthony Mackie and newcomer Jahi Di’Allo Winston. [Netflix](https://www.netflix.com/ca/) “Tournament of Champions is the most intense culinary competition ever created. Stars Adam Scott, Jennifer Garner and Jane Lynch. [Netflix](https://www.netflix.com/ca/) [We Have a Ghost](https://www.netflix.com/ca/title/80230619) It is more romantic, more emotional,” showrunner Eric Guggenheim says. [WWE Rivals](https://www.aetv.com/shows/wwe-rivals) “This season is sexier. [Crave](https://www.crave.ca/en) [Prime Video](https://www.primevideo.com/) [The Rookie](https://abc.com/shows/the-rookie) [Grey’s Anatomy](https://abc.com/shows/greys-anatomy)

Milo Ventimiglia stars in his first series since This Is Us. The series also stars Catherine Haena Kim, Sarah Wayne Callies, Polly Draper, William Fichtner, ...

Layered in the “family business” aspect of it is the fact that Leo is in the early stages of Alzheimer’s, but he and Fran don’t want to burden their kids with carrying on the business. One of the problems is that the least effective and interesting part of the story is the romance between Charlie and Emma. But what we’re hoping is that things will get better as its first season goes along, and there’s enough there to keep us interested while hoping it gets better. Our Take: The Company You Keep, created by Julia Cohen and Phil Klemmer based on a Korean series, is a show that we actively wanted to see get better over the two episodes ABC provided for critics. The first two episodes feel like a missed opportunity, given the cast. Either way, watching the quartet play different roles during their jobs is a lot of fun, as we saw in episode 2 where Leo pulls out an old photographer character he seems to revel in playing. They get drunk together, go up to his unused honeymoon suite and spend the night together — but not in the way you’d expect. The two even reveal what their real professions are, but they both find it as ridiculous as the lies they told. But the first two episodes just couldn’t get there, as far as its storytelling was concerned. They both have fun with the outrageous lies they make up about their lives, and the chemistry is palpable. Only, it’s not the FBI; it’s the rest of Charlie’s family, who completed a con selling a warehouse they don’t own. Charlie convinces the kingpin to sign; right after he transfers $10 million in crytpocurrency to Charlie, the FBI show up.