{alltv} Flashpoint Tests the Team - Will It Crack?

The new season of Flashpoint puts family first — both on the job and in the characters' homes.

"The overview theme of the season is about family and how we're all connected," series star Enrico Colantoni tells TVGuide.com. "When there are family situations that we deal with, we actually show how it affects us. The show certainly isn't about that, but you get a stronger sense of how my team reacts to the job and how they take it home, which is probably the most authentic thing about our show."

Colantoni plays Greg Parker, a crisis negotiator and the leader of the Strategic Response Unit. His dedication to his job led to the crumbling of his own family, which he must begin to face again when he's reunited with his estranged son. Meanwhile, Parker's right-hand man, Ed Lane (Hugh Dillon), finds his strained marriage complicated by the fact that his wife is expecting. Dillon says because the team itself is like a family, Ed is able to lean on Parker for advice.

"He's learned to rely on talking about his problems in his life and his family with Parker, so he doesn't keep everything bottled up," Dillon says. "Then he's able to do his job well and balance the home life so it isn't so black and white. You have to learn to really devote enough time to each so you can keep your sanity."

However, later in the season, an outside force will begin to fracture the team. Alias' Victor Garber will guest-star as a military psychologist who beings to dissect each member.

"You'll see a lot more cracks throughout the next few episodes," Colantoni says. "It gets a lot more complex psychologically. What makes drama interesting is to see friends go through difficult times. That's what we're going to do; that's what we're going to show. It's not always a honeymoon. There are difficult moments that might ultimately make them stronger, but it's certainly exciting to watch them struggle through it."

It's those struggles that make the show resonate with viewers, Dillon says. "This show has a lot of heart," he says. "It's an explosive show, but it has a great emotional heart in it."

Flashpoint returns Friday at 8/7c on CBS.

Entertainment Plaza - TV, Movies, Sports, Music
http://members.shaw.ca/almosthuman99

Babe Of The Month
http://members.shaw.ca/almosthuman99/babeofthemonth.html

Hunk Of The Month
http://members.shaw.ca/almosthuman99/babeofthemonthman.html