All you need to survive in the world are two tires, a shotgun, and hot babes
Over the past couple of days, I've watched five episodes of the 90s classic tv show, Renegade. An over-the-top action-centered melodrama that can only be put into words using the show's intro:
He was a cop, and good at his job, but he committed the ultimate sin—and testified against other cops gone bad. Cops that tried to kill him, but got the woman he loved instead. Framed for murder, now he prowls the badlands... an outlaw hunting outlaws... a bounty hunter... a renegade.
I remember it as being background noise at my home. Usually in the evening when there wasn't much on, and my dad would stop on it before he fell asleep on his recliner. The image of a biker traveling the road and seeking vengeance always stayed in my brain. If for anything from the oddness of it.
I was too young to appreciate that at the time, but now I love it. I fully embrace the sky-scraping dialogue and eye-rolling situations. But also the earnestness of it all. It was there to have fun and not be perfect. And it was going to succeed whether you liked it or not.
This show lasted five seasons, and I can see why just from the first few episodes. This was a time of Baywatch, American Gladiators, action flicks, and boomer midlife crises across America.
Something a little dirty, dangerous, and mean, but also cozy like Murder She Wrote was the perfect fit. You knew the good guy was going to win in the end, and he was going to do it by somersaulting into a glass door with a sawed off shotgun.
We need more of this. More intense action tv. Something with heart where the good guy gave the citizens a pat on the back and villains a sock to the chin. Dudes who led with their heart and not with their brain all the time but weren't afraid to be smart when needed. Where they accepted you until you did something wrong, and even then they tried to treat you fairly until you pushed them past the limit.
It was really surprising to see how critical it was of cops and the justice system. Nearly every cop on the show was corrupt, weak, or ineffective. There were good ones but even they aren't perfect.
It was telling viewers to always keep an eye open for the system that was here to protect you. That it could go sidewise at any time, for any reason, and then you might find yourself on the bad side of the law, and possibly...a renegade.
