"Standoff": As bad as they say?

One TV critic has already said “Standoff” will be the first new fall show to be cancelled. So I expected the pilot to be horrible.

Imagine my surprise when I realized it’s not that bad.

The real problem with the show is where it goes from here. I’m not sure how it plans to go an entire season without each episode just repeating the pilot.

I guess that explains the prediction.

“Standoff” tells the story of partners Matt (Ron Livingston) and Emily (Rosemarie DeWitt), two of the FBI’s top crisis negotiators. During a tense hostage standoff with a distraught father (Tom Wopat, of all people), Matt admits he’s been sleeping with Emily for the past three months. This, of course, gets them in trouble with their boss (and Matt’s former partner), Cheryl (the wonderful Gina Torres), and Emily tries to end the relationship. But it’s clear to the audience (whether it’s clear to them or not) that Matt and Emily actually care about each other. But before they can explore that any further, a college student takes a coffee shop hostage and Emily is forced to put her life at risk to save the hostages.

The hostage situations are sufficiently tense, especially as the negotiators try to hold off the tactical squad, led by Frank (the beautifully cast Michael Cudlitz). Torres (“Alias”) is excellent as the boss and Livingston and DeWitt have real chemistry.

But the story of partners struggling with a personal relationship is bound to get old no matter how good the cast is or how tense the drama is.

There’s one other problem with the show that could crop up later. Based on their performance on the Emmy red carpet, Livingston and DeWitt are a real-life couple.

And that generally always spells trouble…

“Standoff” premieres Tuesday, September 5th at 9 p.m. on FOX.