Covert Affairs: 1.1 "Pilot"

Series summary (from Amazon): New jobs are tough—especially when your new employer is the CIA. Annie Walker (Piper Perabo) is fluent in six languages, has traveled the world and is besting her fellow CIA trainees in every test. But that doesn't explain why she's suddenly summoned by CIA headquarters to report for active duty as a field operative one month before her training is over. She doesn't know there may be something—or someone—from her past that her CIA bosses are really after.

I'm watching this because: I'm a big fan of Christopher Gorham. Loved him in My Girlfriend's Boyfriend. (And if you have yet to watch My Girlfriend's Boyfriend, go read my review, and then go stream the movie.) I've not traditionally liked Piper Perabo, but when this popped up as a recommendation on Amazon, I decided to check it out.

Recap: Following a horrible breakup, Annie decides to join the CIA. She still has a month of training left when she's called to Langley. They need someone with her language skills (she speaks six languages fluently) to work with a Russian spy who has agreed to sell intel to the US. She immediately meets Auggie (Gorham), a tech agent who was blinded in Iraq, and they quickly bond. But Annie doesn't realize that her bosses might want her at Langley for reasons that have nothing to do with her skills as an agent ...

Reactions: My sister mocks me for watching this show, calling it a poor man's Alias. And there is definitely some truth to that ... I'd call it Alias-lite. But I love spy shows, I love Christopher Gorham, and I was so happily surprised to see Peter Gallagher in a supporting role ... after years of not particularly caring for him due to his role in While You Were Sleeping, I completely fell for him as Sandy Cohen on The O.C. Also, I love having a couple to root for, and I know they're going to go in the Annie-Auggie direction eventually.

The next Dawson's? Most likely. I just realized that I started Dawson's Creek at this time last year—and without any "homework" to bring home from work during the summer, I should have plenty of free evenings to watch!

I wrote the preceding paragraphs last month, prior to blowing through all three seasons in a few weeks. I think I averaged about two episodes per night, so Covert Affairs certainly has become 2013's Dawson's Creek. As I predicted, they have gone for an Annie-Auggie romance, with the first kiss coming in the Season 3 finale. And I actually find myself torn about it, because there's another character, Eyal (played by guest star Oded Fehr), who I would love to see Annie with. Season 4 premiered last night, and it's going to be hard for me to wait a whole week between episodes when I'm so used to watching them on demand!

Watch it on Amazon Instant Video.