Hightown is a Gritty, Compelling Story About Addiction
Chicago Fire alum Monica Raymund returns to our television screens in a role that truly allows her to shine.
Hightown, which premieres tonight on STARZ, is a gritty, compelling story about addiction set in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The series follows Jackie Quiñones (Raymund), a National Marine Fisheries Agent who lives to party and has mastered picking up women by flaunting her gun and badge.
Watching her happily bounce her way through Carnival and enjoy everything that “P-Town” has to offer is part of the fun of the first episode, even though it’s clear that there’s more to Jackie beneath the surface.
This woman is a mess, and though not much is revealed about her backstory at all, we can see the pain she’s covering up with her fast lifestyle.
It’s that lifestyle that leads her right to a dead body, which shakes her to her core, and she quickly becomes obsessed with trying to solve the murder. It’s not just finding the dead body — it’s that she feels a desire for detective work. It sparks a passion in her as much as an obsession.
But this is also a story about addiction, and even as Jackie tries to get clean, it’s her addiction that gets in the way of her desire to do something good. She falters and spirals in the most frustrating ways as she struggles to find purpose, but that’s what ultimately makes her story so fascinating to watch.
Monica Raymund’s performance in this role is something to marvel at. She settles into this role naturally, and even in the most subtle moments, she’s entirely captivating.
It feels like the kind of role the actress was always meant to play. Her confidence and her badassery are contrasted by a deep loneliness and darkness that feels entirely authentic.
It’s even better that she’s in the kind of role that we’d more often see given to a man, from her addiction, her relationships (and lack thereof) with various women, and then the way she becomes sucked into the murder investigation. Instead, the story is led by a lesbian woman of a color who is flawed and complex.
As Jackie simultaneously battles addiction and tries to solve the murder, a whole host of other characters have their own agendas. We meet Ray (James Badge Dale), a Massachusetts State Trooper working in narcotics who is just as focused on the murder investigation — and who stumbles in his own way.
Then there’s Junior (Shane Harper), a Cape Cod fisherman and drug dealer who ultimately just wants to be able to get by, and who even in his worst moments, we can’t help but root for.
One of the most colorful characters of the series, at least in early episodes, is the setting itself. The setting of Cape Cod is meant to draw us in, and we’re immediately told to believe this is the kind of story that wouldn’t take place elsewhere. Jackie even blames her partying lifestyle on her surroundings.
The series does lean heavily on gratuitous sex and violence — nearly to a fault, but rarely in a way that feels like it’s unnecessary to the story the show is trying to tell. In fact, sex is largely part of how we get to know some of these characters.
Hightown is particularly captivating in its first two episodes. As it settles into itself, it’s still fun to watch, but it moves at a slower pace and at times becomes frustrating.
That said, it’s impossible to not want to keep watching, largely because this is less of a murder mystery or procedural and more of a story that’s about character. We’re invested in Jackie’s journey from the start, and she’s what we care about. The murder investigation and the gang storylines are all secondary, and that’s a good thing.
Are you planning to watch Hightown? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Hightown premieres tonight at 8/7c on STARZ.
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Ashley Bissette Sumerel
Ashley Bissette Sumerel is a television and film critic living in Wilmington, North Carolina. She is editor-in-chief of Tell-Tale TV as well as Eulalie Magazine. Ashley has also written for outlets such as Rolling Stone, Paste Magazine, and Insider. Ashley has been a member of the Critics Choice Association since 2017 and is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic. In addition to her work as an editor and critic, Ashley teaches Entertainment Journalism, Composition, and Literature at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.