Today's Entertainment

2 • January 22 - 28, 2017 • Brainerd Dispatch By Kyla Brewer TV Media I n the early days of television, strong female roles were few and far between, with some ex- ceptions of course. Women were primarily cast as love interests or victims, damsels in need of rescue. Now, they're the ones doing the rescuing. In fact, FBI recruit Alex Parrish (Priyanka Chopra, "Don," 2006) saved millions of lives in the first season of "Quantico," and she's on track to save even more when the series returns Monday, Jan. 23, on ABC. In the first season, Parrish was falsely accused of a terrorist at- tack, but managed not only to clear her name, but also to bring those responsible to justice. Unfor- tunately, the FBI still fired her at the end of season 1, and in season 2 she finds herself working for the U.S.'s top clandestine intelligence agency, the CIA. In season 1, the show employed a unique format involving dual timelines — one in the past in which Parrish and her fellow re- cruits trained at an FBI facility, and one in the future in which Parrish had been framed for a horrific ter- rorist attack. The trend continues in season 2 as Parrish is seen train- ing at a CIA facility known as The Farm, and later dealing with ter- rorists. She's in good company, as most of last season's intriguing charac- ters are back for a second round of drama. Yasmine Al Massri ("Cara- mel," 2007) once again does dou- ble duty in the role of twins Nimah and Raina Amin, and Johanna Braddy ("The Grudge 3," 2009) re- prises the role of Shelby Wyatt, Al- ex's best friend. Jake McLaughlin ("In the Valley of Elah," 2007) is back as Alex's beau, Ryan Booth, and Aunjanue Ellis ("The Help," 2011) is Miranda Saw, assistant director of the FBI Academy at Quantico who never lost faith in Alex last season. Blair Underwood ("L.A. Law") joined the cast of season 2 as Owen Hall, an instructor at the CIA training facility. There, Parrish's classmates include an eclectic mix of recruits, including thief Harry Doyle (Russell Tovey, "Being Hu- man"), lawyer Dayna Mampasi (Pearl Thusi, "Tremors 5: Blood- lines," 2015) and photojournalist Léon Velez (Aaron Diaz, "Teresa"). When it returns for the second half of season 2, the show moves from Sundays to Mondays, pre- sumably in an attempt to improve flagging ratings, and fans are hop- ing the thriller can withstand its recent ratings dip. While "Quanti- co" ranked among the top per- formers in its time-slot in its first season with an average of about eight million viewers per episode, season 2 isn't faring quite so well. The mid-season finale — which aired Sunday, Nov. 27 — attracted a little more than two million viewers. Attracting such small numbers doesn't bode well for Parrish and her associates, but that may be the logic behind the move to Monday nights. Ratings juggernaut "The Bachelor" should serve as a good lead-in for "Quantico," and has the potential to improve ratings by bringing a whole new fan base into the fold. Season 2 still has plenty of in- trigue in store to keep new view- ers interested. Before the holiday break, Parrish was shocked to dis- cover that beau and fellow under- cover agent Booth was actually a terrorist. At least, that's how it seems so far. Also, in a clip of the future, Alex and her cohorts must find a way to destroy a biological weapon. Fans must wait to see what happens next, but rumor has it the terrorist attack will resolve itself soon. Alex's recent revelation is in line with a comment creator and showrunner Joshua Safran ("Smash") made to the Hollywood Reporter earlier in the season. "We decided we're not going to hold the answers to questions un- til the end, and that we're going to look at it more like a character study," explained Safran. "It's less about 'Who is it?' and more about 'How can you stop it?'" Few actresses are as well equipped to handle such a charac- ter study as Chopra. While many western TV viewers may see her as a rookie in her role as Alex Parrish, the actress is actually a huge star in her native India, where she is among the highest paid and most popular celebrities. The brainy beauty originally intended to study aeronautical engineering, but decided to enter the film in- dustry after some high-profile pageant wins, including the Miss World title in 2000. She followed up her beauty queen wins with her debut in the Bollywood film "The Hero" (2003), the hit musical "Andaaz" (2003) and the thriller "Aitraaz" (2004). Her other notable film credits in- clude "Krrish" (2006), "Don" (2006), "Fashion" (2008) and "Ba- jirao Mastani" (2015). A woman of many talents, Chopra is also known as a recording artist and for her charitable work with or- ganizations such as UNICEF. Her work in "Quantico" is not only a first or her, but for South Asian women in gen- eral. Her role as Alex Parrish marked her first starring role in U.S. television and also made her the first South Asian woman to headline an American net- work TV series. Viewers can follow the recruits through their training and see how they apply it in the future timeline at the same time in this unique drama. Find out how Parrish and her col- leagues deal with the latest threat to na- tional security as the second sea- son of "Quan- tico" contin- ues, begin- ning Mon- day, Jan. 23, on ABC. Rookie no more Priyanka Chopra tackles prime time in 'Quantico' Cover Story this week Priyanka Chopra stars in "Quantico" 001520621r1 001520621r1 S E A M L E S S "EXPERIENCE THE ADVANTAGE" Advantage Seamless, Inc. 218-270-2663 or 888-570-5778 WWW.ADVANTAGESEAMLESSGUTTERS.COM THE BEST DEFENSE IN GUTTER PROTECTION AMERICA'S FIRST HIGH FLOW SYSTEM™ S E A M L E S S COUPON 10% OFF *** Must do entire home. Must book project by 12/31/16 *** Call: 218-270-2663 Must present coupon at the time of consultation. Valor Gutter Guard System 001520570r1 Kinship Partners OFFICES IN: Brainerd, Pequot Lakes, Crosby & Staples 218.829.4606 Toll Free 877.730.5437

• Cover