As you’d probably imagine, a TV show about elite helicopter pilots dealing with drama both in the air and on the ground sounds intriguing.
Valor, The CW’s first attempt at a military show — the channel is known for lighter teen fare like Riverdale, The Vampire Diaries and Gossip Girl — promises all of the soapiness of its usual roster, but ups the seriousness with the military component. (The series airs on W Network in Canada.)
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The CW’s foray into darker, deeper television isn’t new, especially considering the apocalyptic The 100, but the military angle is. Kudos to the channel for making the lead character, Nora Madani, a woman (Christina Ochoa) who goes beyond two dimensions. Valor deals with many themes and current issues, including drug use on the job, PTSD, infidelity (of course) and the keeping of military secrets.
There’s definitely more than meets the eye on Valor. Global News caught up with the cast and executive producers at the Television Critics Association summer session to find out more. Here are four things to know about the drama.
It’s not like the other military shows
A big trend coming out of TCA was the clear dominance of military-themed shows. Perhaps due to worldwide feelings of insecurity, but more likely a result of American upheaval, military shows were a common theme. Additionally, many of the military shows presented featured elite groups or specialists. Valor features an elite squad of helicopter pilots involved in a greater conspiracy, so it’s similar in that way, but from every other angle, the show is a different beast, say the executive producers.
“This is a female-driven military drama, which I think sets it apart and is a story that I think we’re all really excited to tell,” said co-executive producer Anna Fricke.
“We’re also really making an effort to look at the character stories and tell those stories that dig into how military life … not just the action stuff, though we’ll deliver that too … but what the day-to-day life of folks who serve in the military looks like, what that feels like,” agreed co-executive producer Kyle Jarrow.
Valor isn’t afraid to highlight soapy elements
Of course, this wouldn’t be a CW show without at least a little bit of tantalization. That means sex, sweat, cheating, in-fighting and betrayal. The cast and the executive producers were hilariously candid about that aspect of Valor.
“Folks in the military … my brother was in the military, 173rd Airborne, for a bunch of years,” said Jarrow. “And folks in the military, like my brother, like these characters, are human beings. They’re sleeping with people. They’re cheating on people. They’re struggling with questions of personal morality and personal choices, just like we all do. It felt really important to dramatize that in telling a full story of what it’s like to be someone in the military. So in terms of delivering those soapy elements, it feels like it’s also being honest.”
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“Christina and I are in this cockpit together, and to be an effective team, we have to be this little symphony with each other,” said male co-lead Matt Barr, who plays Nora’s colleague, Leland Gallo. “We’re very in sync. So I think it’s a bonding thing, and that can bring people together and unify them. It doesn’t only exist in the cockpit … maybe it travels into an abandoned house…”
Clearly, there’s more going on with the Nora and Gallo, which is revealed as Season 1 progresses. But it’s not all smut and scandal.
It’s a close look at the female experience in a male-dominated military
Let’s be real: most military shows centre on a male character, and while the majority of modern shows attempt to include a female character, they’re a shadow in the proceedings. Valor is exceptional with its casting of a female lead, and it’ll be a nice change of pace to see a woman’s perspective.
Ochoa takes her role very seriously and works hard to ensure authenticity.
Valor even has two female veterans in the writers’ room.
Valor seeks to show the day-to-day experience of military life
Not only does the show focus on the female experience, but it also prides itself on showing the nitty-gritty. While many military shows are big picture, Valor seeks to go deep on character development and day-to-day life. Because Jarrow’s brother is a veteran, he was always inspired to do a military show that didn’t shy away from the real experience.
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“For a long time, I had wanted to write something about military life,” he said. “One thing that always struck me in talking to him about his experience is we have a large military in this country, but we also have a very large country, so the percentage of Americans who have served is relatively low. A lot of people I think, across the political spectrum, there’s a lot of support for our military, but I don’t think there’s always a lot of knowledge about the day‑to‑day of what military life is. So I was very interested in trying to write something exploring that world.”
“The reason I wanted to focus it on a female pilot is that special-ops in real life has just very recently been taking female pilots in combat‑forward positions,” he continued. “It’s really the first special-ops combat position that’s been available to women, and that struck me as really important and a really fascinating story. The ability to merge the desire to tell the story that my brother had lived, and to merge that with the opportunity to tell the story of a badass woman who is really a pioneer in her field … that felt like such a special merging of stories to get to tell.”
The series premiere of ‘Valor’ airs on Monday, Oct. 9 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on W Network.
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