Home Before Dark

Brooklynn Prince is sensational as a budding young reporter who boasts a vibe somewhere between Veronica Mars and Nancy Drew, except much littler. In an era when the reputation of the press has fallen precipitously -- a shift obliquely and neatly summarized with a clip from All the President's Men that Hilde recites from memory -- Hilde is a proud crusading journalist, advised by her reporter father to seek out and tell the truth. And there's real magic in the scenes in which Hilde sneaks determinedly around gathering facts before retreating to her computer in her living room, typing out copy while the camera pans down to show us that this tough, implacable reporter has legs so short her feet dangle when she sits at an office chair. Surely with such a girl on the job, citizens could rest a little easier knowing she's rooting out trouble.

Not everything about this drama is as good as Prince. The show's central mystery is a little undercooked; there's some wheel spinning, often in the form of flashbacks that inform us, over and over again, that Something Bad drove Hilde's dad from his picturesque hometown. And many viewers may wonder why Home Before Dark's parents seem unconcerned that their grade-school kids are out investigating crimes after bedtime on a school night (though if these kids were locked up like actual ones, they'd probably never get anywhere with their sleuthing). Finally, for a show with a 9-year-old protagonist, storylines about murder, complete with spooky music and dark visuals, may be a little too creepy for viewers the same age as Hilde. But with her furrowed brow and intense gaze, Prince is so very, very good in the central role that many will be tempted to come along for the ride anyway. "I'm a reporter!" she tells her dad during an argument. "You're a fourth grader!" he says back. Both are true, and the trick of this neat show is that it makes you believe it.