A&E’s “The Cleaner” premiered a few weeks ago, and I finally watched the first episode this week on my TiVo.

The tv show is based on real life interventionist, William Banks, played by Benjamin Bratt. Banks has a team full of former addicts who help him locate the person they’ve been hired to essentially kidnap and force into rehab. The cops give them a pass on these extreme tactics, so as long as Banks throws a drug bust their way. Grace Park (”Battlestar Galactica”) plays Akani, the street smart temptress that loves working for Banks but refuses to follow all his rules. Gil Bellows (”Ally McBeal”) plays Banks’ best friend Mickey, a body builder/trainer who used to be addicted to heroin but has since cleaned up for his family. I barely recognized him in character, almost the exact opposite of his bumbling lawyer character on Ally. Last but not least, newcomer Esteban Powell plays Arnie the resident slacker and complainer of the bunch.

By the end of the pilot episode, some pretty serious stuff goes down as they try to locate a 15 year old kid named Zach who’s hooked on oxycontin. This television show is gritty, engaging, and doesn’t soften up the predicament of drug abusers. Think of it as a dramatization of “Intervention” crossed with the crime melodrama of “The Shield”. Banks is a more sympathetic character than Vic Mackey by far. But he still is a former addict, and thus, he still has demons that he struggles with each day. Not to mention, chasing addicts doesn’t leave a lot of time for your family. I think Banks balancing his time between work and home will become a huge story arc in the show.

Watch new episodes on A&E at 10pm on Tuesdays. “The Cleaner” may just have washed away that bad taste in my mouth from Benjamin Bratt’s previous tv show, “E-ring”.