Scoundrels

Network: ABC
Episodes: Eight (hour)
Seasons: One

TV show dates: June 20 — August 15, 2010
Series status: Cancelled

Performers include: Virginia Madsen, Patrick John Flueger, Leven Rambin, David James Elliott, Vanessa Marano, Carlos Bernard, Jessica Collins, Jessalyn Wanlim, Greg Serano, Scott Cooper Ryan, Alex Knight, Andy Brooks, Jesus Mayorga, and John Lawlor.

TV show description:
This comedy-drama follows a middle-aged woman and her four children after her husband gets sent to prison for a long time. She’s determined to get her family on the straight and narrow.

After Wolf West (David James Elliott) is sent to prison, his wife and high school sweetheart, Cheryl (Virginia Madsen), realizes the family duties are all on her shoulders now. She runs the West Family Surplus Store and keeps the Palm Springs Police Department at bay while preventing her four kids — Cal, Logan, Heather, and Hope — from following in their father’s footsteps and doing prison time as well. They have it in their blood, though, so it’s not easy. Wolf’s father is a world-famous safe-cracker, making criminal activity truly the family business. Wolf is a criminal but he’s a petty thief, refusing to do anything connected to violence or drugs. He’s doing time after getting caught stealing a shipment of lobsters.

Wolf and Cheryl’s twin sons, Calvin “Cal” West and Logan West (both roles played by Patrick John Flueger), couldn’t be more different. Cal worked next to Wolf in “the family business.” He’s not be as smart as his brother and enjoys the simple things in life such as beer, women, and his buddies, Cruz (Greg Serano) and Billy (Jesus Mayorga). He doesn’t take too kindly to the changes his mom is enforcing on the family, and feels he has to provide for his family the way his dad did. Logan is the black sheep of the family as a lawyer. Wolf sees this vocation as a slap in the face, but Cheryl feels it shows what the family can accomplish.

The middle child in the West family, Heather (Leven Rambin), likes being the center of attention and wants to become a supermodel. All of her spare time is spent taking care of her looks. She has no interest in finding another job, happy to just wait for the modeling job to come around. She’s Daddy’s little princess and believes his motto; “It might not happen overnight, but it will happen.”

Hope (Vanessa Marano) is the baby of the family. Although she’s still in high school, she’s possibly the smartest one in the bunch. She doesn’t have anything in common with her siblings, but as an aspiring filmmaker, they do amuse her. Tad (Scott Cooper Ryan) is her best friend and screenwriting partner.

Sergeant Mack (Carlos Bernard) sees it as his duty to keep Wolf behind bars and would love to see the rest of the family join him. Mack wants Palm Springs to be free of Wolf’s criminal activity and sees his capture and subsequent prison sentence as a highlight of his career in law enforcement.