NBC's new crime drama The Endgame functions as a two-handed cat-and-mouse game between master criminal Elena Federova (Morena Baccarin) and Val Turner (Ryan Michelle Bathe), the FBI agent dedicated to bringing the brazen bank robber to justice. As the two work to manipulate and outwit each other for their own personal and professional gain, a supreme battle of will ensues that often requires assistance from the other main characters, including their loved ones and coworkers.
Aside from the moral standing, loyalty to the law, and ability to do what's right in the face of overwhelming odds, what makes the characters so compelling in The Endgame is the way in which their humanity shines through in the toughest of circumstances.
Jonathan Doak
While U.S. Attorney General Reed Doblin (Kelly AuCoin) is even pricklier, the superior FBI officer that Val has to answer to has even more detestable screen time on the show. Indeed, Jonathan Doak (Noah Bean) is ignorant at best and negligent at worst, demonstrated when he repeatedly brushes Val off after she rightly suspects Elena of being responsible for the newest string of heists in New York.
Whether or not Doak deliberately meant to keep Val in the dark by failing to follow up on her accurate lead, he acts rudely and dismissively and calls to mind the hurdles Val must overcome inside her own agency to uncover the truth on the highly-anticipated 2022 TV show.
Rogelio Real
With far more attentive professionalism and level of understanding than Doak, Rogelio Real (Mark D. Espinoza) comports himself as the head of the FBI with the requisite dignity and grace one might expect for such a reputable position. He's also fair but firm, rarely cracking a smile on the job, yet gives Val the she needs most of the time.
Alas, Director Real rarely shows up onscreen, making his personality a bit harder to decipher than some of the other main characters. His likability derives from having integrity and less of a temper in pressing Elena for info about the Snow White heists in New York.
Sergey Vodianov
Long-thought to be dead, Sergey Vodianov (Costa Ronin) is easily the most mysterious main character on the show. Currently stuck in prison, Sergey is Elena's husband who she was accused of poisoning to death years prior. While unconfirmed, hearts further go out to Sergey when his beloved friends and family are blown up during he and Elena's wedding ceremony.
However, sympathies begin to shift when Sergey meets Val's husband Owen (Kamal Angelo Bolden) in prison and begins to manipulate him for his own criminal benefit. While it's clear Sergey still loves Elena and will do anything for her, his vast criminal record is hard to ignore and his personality a bit too icy and impenetrable to really adore.
Anthony Flowers
With kind eyes, a beaming smile, and a willingness to do right by Val, Anthony Flowers (Jordan Johnson-Hinds) is easily among the most enjoyable characters to watch. The junior partner has a wide-eyed naivety that keeps him eager and anxious to take on each investigation with unwavering professionalism.
Aside from his unbending loyalty to Val, Anthony will make the occasional wisecrack that offers much-needed levity in an otherwise violent crime drama. Moreover, without spoiling too much, Anthony's relation to the mole inside the FBI makes his character even more compelling.
Owen Turner
As one of the top couples from crime shows, the marriage between Val and her husband Owen is the heart and soul of the show. Currently incarcerated for accepting dirty drug money, Owen was arrested and put away by Val, whose loyalties to the law trumped her love of Owen. As such, it's really hard not to feel bad for Owen and sympathize with his desire to get a divorce when Val visits him in jail.
As Val begins to work to clear Owen's name and Owen is consigned by Sergey in jail, he becomes an even more sympathetic pawn in a larger scheme. It isn't so much a pleasant personality as it is the unfortunate circumstances that make Owen so easy to root for.
Elena Federova
Played with cartoonish campiness and sumptuous style by Morena Baccarin, Elena Federova is one of the most enjoyable villainesses to hit a primetime cable show in some time. Despite being a brash bank robber who deems herself as The (Wicked) Queen for the seven coordinated heists she has conducted from her prison cell as Snow White, Elena oozes delicious guile and insatiable cunning on the popular heist thriller.
Of course, when it turns out Elena is plotting such elaborate crimes as a means of avenging Val Turner for nearly killing her years prior, Elena becomes the clear-cut love-to-hate and hate-to-love antagonist of the show. Viewers, despite their best efforts and desires to the contrary, need to root against for the narrative to succeed.
Val Turner
If Elena is the cat in The Endgame, then Val Turner is certainly the mouse who viewers are asked to identify with and hope to see safely through to the end of the show. With an unwavering dedication to upholding the law, Val is professional, responsible, full of integrity and moral comion. As such, she's one of the toughest female detectives on television.