Network: ABC
Episodes: Eight (hour)
Seasons: One
TV show dates: March 3, 2013 — May 5, 2013
Series status: Cancelled
Performers include: Radha Mitchell, Clifton Collins Jr., Luke Goss, Sterling Beaumon, Suleka Mathew, Erin Moriarty, Jaime Ray Newman, Jakob Salvati, Lee Tergesen, Wil Traval, Rade Serbedzija, and Goran Visnjic.
TV show description:
Marta Walraven (Radha Mitchell) is a stay-at-home mom just north of San Francisco and seems to have an idyllic life. She’s devoted to her husband Evan and their three children; Natalie (Erin Moriarty), Gabriel (Sterling Beaumon), and Boris (Jakob Salvati). Behind this perfect façade however, is a more complicated story. Evan supports the family by exporting marijuana.
Marta is no stranger to the world of organized crime. Her father, Andrei Petrov (Rade Serbedzija), and his loyal bodyguard, Luther (Luke Goss), are Bratva — Russian gangsters — in the City by the Bay. It’s a world that Marta and her sister Kat (Jaime Ray Newman) always wanted to escape, though they never quite did.
When Evan is brutally murdered in their driveway, everything changes. Marta’s first concern is to protect her children. Yet when FBI Agent James Ramos (Clifton Collins Jr.) promises Marta justice in exchange for her cooperation, she refuses his help because she can’t go against the Bratva code.
Slowly, the truth about her husband’s murder begins to emerge. Evan’s business partners -– Marta’s scheming brother, Irwin Petrov (Wil Traval), and their best friend, hapless Mike Tomlin (Lee Tergesen) — were involved in the theft of millions of dollars of cocaine from Nicholae Schiller (Goran Visnjic), a handsome and formidable international crime boss.
Evan paid with his life, but as far as Schiller is concerned, his debt is not clear. It falls to Marta, Evan’s widow, to navigate the criminal underworld in order to repay this debt -– in whatever way Schiller sees fit.
Hounded by both the FBI and by Schiller, while also trying to raise three grieving kids alone, Marta discovers a tenacity she never knew she had. As she hunts for the truth about her husband’s death and struggles to keep her children safe, she relies on her resourcefulness, determination and her Bratva DNA like never before.
How far is Marta willing to go in order to beat her adversaries at their own deadly game?
Episode #May 5, 2013 — The Hit
J.J. Johns is the creepy guy who is buying the guns in the deal going down at the docks. Andrei knows that Marta needs someone to blame for Schiller’s death if she kills him. J.J. Johns will do nicely in what will look like a business deal gone wrong. Marta needs Alexandra on her side. The crime lady wants in on Schiller’s turf, but that’s not going to happen if he has anything to say about it. That’s why Alexandra is open to Marta’s plan to take out Schiller. She’ll get the guns, money and Schiller’s business. Of course, it would be very bad for Marta if she fails in her mission.
After spending the night with Kat, James overhears Irwin rambling about the gun deal. This isn’t something he can un-hear. Nevertheless, the gun deal is going forward. Marta needs help from Irwin. After the deal is done, she wants him to disappear. Kat is also helping out during the exchange. It’s her job to keep up normal appearances with the charter business. Luther gives Marta a crash course on how to kill Schiller during the exchange. He tells her to think of all the reasons why this must work. Marta is ready.
Natalie finds the gun Gabriel was planning to use to kill the man who killed their father. She tells him this isn’t something he needs to do. Their grandfather has assured her that he will take care of Schiller. Marta’s mom, Elena, believes she’s getting back together with Andrei now that Felicity is dead. That’s not going to happen. Andrei wants nothing to do with his ex-wife. This has Elena revealing a secret. Her father overheard Marta and Evan talking about how they were going away forever. That’s something Andrei would never let happen.
Marta refuses to believe that her own father would kill her husband. She shows her mother Patrick’s dead body. The boots match those that Boris saw. Marta then realizes they aren’t Patrick’s boots. They’ve been placed on his dead body to make it look like they were his. The boots actually belong to Luther. If Marta goes through with her plan to kill Schiller, her father gets rewarded for killing her husband. What Marta doesn’t know is that Alexandra is teaming up with J.J. Johns to kill her after she guns down Schiller. Thanks to a wiretap, James overhears the entire plan.
Marta finds out about Alexandra’s plan from James. She reveals to the details to Schiller while also telling her about her original plan to kill him. She also lets him know that her father killed her husband. Elsewhere, Luther tells Andrei that he’s leaving him after the exchange. This gives Irwin an opening to convince his dad to trust him for a plan to go to the gun exchange together. This way Andrei can negotiate with Alexandra himself. As for Marta, she’s furious with Luther for killing Evan. She doesn’t want him at the gun exchange.
The deal is going down, though not as everyone expects. J.J. Johns sees Andrei walk into the exchange area. Both men are looking for Schiller, who is actually at Alexandra’s hotel room. Her security detail is nowhere to be found. At the dock, J.J. Johns realizes this is a setup. Andrei shoots him dead. Marta grabs a key from the criminal’s pocket. Another gunman takes aim at her, but Luther takes the bullet. He dies as the FBI raids the place. Back at the hotel, Schiller confronts Alexandra about her plan to kill him. Then she shoots her dead.
Andrei is placed under arrest. Marta confronts her father about all that he’s done. She lets him know that she hopes he burns in hell. Andrei is taken away in the back of a police car. James is commended for taking down the head of the Petrov crime family. The feds got the guns, but not the money. That’s because Marta swiped the storage unit key where the id=”mce_marker”1 million is being kept. She turns it over to Schiller, who lets her know that their business together is done. Marta is free and clear.
Natalie notices that her mom seems happy as she makes pancakes for the family. She’s shocked to learn that Schiller isn’t dead. Marta tells her not to worry about him. That’s not something her daughter is able to accept. Natalie skips out of the house. She waits outside Schiller’s building to pull a gun on him as he exits. Natalie says, “You killed my father.” She takes aim at Schiller unaware that one of his men is standing in the background with a gun pointed at her, too.
First aired: May 5, 2013
What do you think? Do you like the Red Widow TV series? Do you think it should have been cancelled or renewed for a second season?
DO NOT CANCEL!!! LOVE THIS SHOW!
LOVE THIS SHOW!!! ESPECIALLY Goran Visnjic
I love this show!!!!! Watch it every week. PLEASE DO NOT CANCEL !!!!!!
PLEASE KEEP RED WIDOW!!! It’s an intriguing and intelligent drama. Shiller and Marta have excellent chemistry and depth in their character development. They are more alike than polarizing opposites. Give the show another season to expand on this!
I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE this show!!! This is the only show this season that I actually stop what I am doing and sit down to watch. Actually, this is the only show that I have been watching this year!!! And, I cannot believe that it may bet cancelled… Please please renew the show for the Fall!!!!
Save this show! It is one of a slim few my husband and I like together! The only one on standard channels! It is wonderfully crafted, intelligent and classy while still being a guilty pleasure to watch!
Love this show. The drama is awesome, and the plot excellent. If they can continue in this line, this show is a definite continue.
I’ve never watched a series that grabbed me from the first episode like Red Widow has. DON’T CANCEL!
I love RED WIDOW! What’s happened to the days when shows could remain longer. Nowadays, shows are cancelled; esp. the great ones, after just a few episodes. Maybe rules, regulations, guidelines, etc. should be changed. Just when a plot thickens or a person gets used to expecting the show to air, it gets taken off. It’s terrible. I plan around the show(s) just so I can watch it and I watch Red Widow every week and watch repeats of it. I never ever get tired of watching. Please don’t let this great show be cancelled ever! At least let it… Read more »
Red Widow is so exciting and suspenseful. It’s so worth it to watch every week. The show is current and unpredictable. Red Widow gives a person having a boring or not-so-good week, something to look forward to. The show is fantastic
Love the chemistry between Marta and Schiller.
I love this show – never miss an episode. Keep this show on the air. Excitement from beginning to end. DO NOT CANCELL PLEASE.
Rarely does any network drama reach it’s stride in the first season; particularly when the network (ABC) jerks the show schedule around. This series has the potential to be a winner for ABC if they improve the writing staff. The actors are doing their part – time for the network executives to their job and KEEP THE SHOW FOR ANOTHER SEASON!!!
Please do not cancel this Show!!!!!!! One of my favorites, even better
than so many others. SAVE MARTA!!!!
This show is exciting and full of suspense and action , it should not be cancelled, please don’t cancel it, I love the actors in this series