Maggie Q doesn’t know what the safety net is. The Hawaiian-born actress’ journey into big and small movies began in Hong Kong under the tutelage of Jackie Chan. Chen took Q under his wing and let him do stunt work. She was always meant to be an action star. Q got his first big break when he co-starred with Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible III. But it was her turn as Nikita on the CW series of the same name that changed the game for Q. Donning the villainous assassin’s stilettos, she became the first Asian American series lead on an American television show in nearly 60 years. While her spy thriller work has been strong, Q’s latest role in Prime Video’s “Ballard” (a spin-off of “Bosch”) is a testament to her enduring star power.
In Ballard, which debuted last summer and returns for a second season in July, Q plays Detective Renee Ballard, a no-nonsense, introverted investigator and LAPD pariah. Expelled from the Robbery-Homicide Division for exposing a beloved police officer as a sex offender, Ballard finds himself isolated in an old basement. The Los Angeles Police Department, a good old boys’ club through and through, can’t abandon Ballard completely, but they want her out of sight and stagnant. As punishment, she is appointed commander of the newly formed Cold Case Unit, a pet project of ambitious City Councilman Jake Perlman (Noah Bean).
The cases depicted in “The Ballad” are fascinating, examining how long-forgotten, decades-old murders are shoved into dusty closets or placed on high shelves, never to be seen again. Q is about a woman who cares deeply about the victims of her fight and knows what it means when a loved one unexpectedly disappears. With few resources and no support from upper management, she gathers a ragtag (and mostly unpaid) staff and begins sorting out the paperwork.
Her entire team, including former partner retiree Thomas Lafont (John Carroll Lynch), brash reservist Ted Rawls (Michael Mosley), enthusiastic and centripetal Colleen Hatteras (Rebecca Field), and legal intern Martina Castro (Victoria Morrolls), all have a foothold in the cold case, but Ballard’s bond with former LAPD officer Samira Parker (Courtney Taylor) is what sets her apart. As we know from countless other police procedurals.
Black women and women of color typically work in homogenous professions like law enforcement. In “Ballad,” the microaggressions, pain, and isolation that women endure are part of the narrative fabric. Season 1 tackles stalled and unsolved investigations, including the 2001 strangulation case involving the missing John Doe and City Councilman Perlman. But it’s Q’s quiet determination and brutal determination that makes Ballard a unique character in this world. The detective has no illusions about the smoldering corruption, misogyny, and macabre behavior within the police force. Moreover, she is not even trying to change the situation. Instead, she uses others’ misjudgment of her to find a way forward.
A brilliantly paced and genuinely interesting show that takes a candid look at corrupt police enforcement, “The Ballad” unravels why it’s so dangerous not only to the general public, but also to those trapped within twisted institutions. Q’s ballads are far from immoral, but he has no qualms about keeping clues about his affairs and personal life to himself. With so few resources, this surfing-loving detective isn’t afraid to bend the rules and put his body on the line to get the answers he needs to turn the case into the black. In “Ballad,” Maggie Q reminds viewers that police dramas are still fresh.
