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shes_awesome2026-01-27 05:07 pm
ysabetwordsmith) wrote in shes_awesome2026-01-27 05:07 pm
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Meta: High Potential
I wrote a promo introduction for "High Potential" for snowflake_challenge and I'm copying it here so more folks can see it. This show has a good set of awesome female characters. \o/
High Potential
Overview
"High Potential" is a crime dramedy based around Morgan Gillory. She is highly gifted with an IQ of 160, and like many gifted people, most folks refuse to put up with her -- hence "high potential" being a mockery. Average adults don't like smart adults any better than average children like smart children, with predictably bad results. Thus she has wound up working as a cleaning lady at a police station. This leads her to pointing out an error in an investigation, which eventually brings her to work for the police as a civilian consultant.
Characters
Morgan's police partner is Adam Karadec, whose methodical A-B-C approach fits very poorly with Morgan's ability to leap from A to L. Much of the time, he just gets in her way and slows her down, and it takes most of the season for him to develop any real respect for her. The choice reflects television's desire to create tension, but real-life examples like this are exactly why so many gifted people gravitate to jobs where other people have less opportunity to harangue them and hold them back.
Over time, though, the two learn enough about each other's methods to start making a slightly better fit -- and they do get the job done. Plus it's amusing to watch him dealing with how Morgan is almost always right, and a nice reversal on a female cop getting stuck with a male extra. It also helps that he's not heavily pushed as a love interest, although some fans interpret them that way.
Selena Soto is their boss, a Lieutenant and head of the Major Crimes Division. She quickly spots the value in Morgan's genius abilities, and does a pretty good job of supporting her as needed. It's also fun to see a woman of color in a position of power. In many shows, the boss is an adversary, so having one as an ally makes for quite different and interesting plot dynamics.
Morgan has three children. Her older daughter, Ava Gillory, is a teenager whose father Roman disappeared 15 years ago. Her younger daughter Chloe Radovic is still a baby. Her middle son Elliot Radovic, is a genius like his mother. The moments of interaction between them, about how to cope with being that smart in a world run by people who are much less smart, make up a large part of the show's appeal. There are much better ways to raise a super-intellect than the farcical advice "just try to fit in."
Plot
The show does an interesting job of weaving together different plotlines, including but not limited to:
* Each episode typically focuses on a current crime that the police are trying to solve.
* In the background, Morgan is working to solve the mystery of how her first husband Roman disappeared 15 years ago.
* Morgan's genius and the friction it causes get noteworthy moments in most episodes.
* Relationship dynamics with her coworkers and various relatives often provide a counterpoint plot thread.
This kind of plot weaving between short and long elements, professional and personal scope, reminds me a lot of Joss Whedon. If you like his kind of structure, you'll probably enjoy this as well.
The problem-solving approach and the misfit aspects remind me very much of contemporary Sherlock Holmes interpretations such as Sherlock and Elementary. Some other misfit aspects are akin to The Big Bang Theory.
On Dreamwidth
There are no Dreamwidth communities listed for High Potential. Keep an eye on places likefandomcalendar and ![[site community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/comm_staff.png)
dw_community_promo for possible activities featuring this show in the future.
However,tv_talk and tvfanfiction are excellent all-purpose communities for television shows. shes_awesome and hooked_on_heroines both focus on strong female characters, so they would be ideal places to discuss this show. There are also communities that run diverse fests, such as allbingo where anyone can volunteer to host a month with a canon or other topic of their choosing.
Fanworks
Adam Karadec x Fem!reader by Fluentmoviequoter on Tumblr
High Potential Masterlist by Jerzwriter on Tumblr
Morgadec tag on Tumblr
Further Resources
19 Reasons High Potential Is Must-Watch TV
Guest Stars on High Potential -- IMDb
High Potential -- LezWatchTV
‘High Potential’ Fans Think They’ve Found Major Wagner & Roman Connection -- YardBarker
‘High Potential’ Is an Even Bigger Success in Sophomore Season as Ratings Soar
High Potential: Where to Stream and Watch
See also my extensive Meta: "Why We Need Fanifestos." Part 6 covers "How to Write a Fanifesto."
snowflake_challenge and I'm copying it here so more folks can see it. This show has a good set of awesome female characters. \o/High Potential
Overview
"High Potential" is a crime dramedy based around Morgan Gillory. She is highly gifted with an IQ of 160, and like many gifted people, most folks refuse to put up with her -- hence "high potential" being a mockery. Average adults don't like smart adults any better than average children like smart children, with predictably bad results. Thus she has wound up working as a cleaning lady at a police station. This leads her to pointing out an error in an investigation, which eventually brings her to work for the police as a civilian consultant.
Characters
Morgan's police partner is Adam Karadec, whose methodical A-B-C approach fits very poorly with Morgan's ability to leap from A to L. Much of the time, he just gets in her way and slows her down, and it takes most of the season for him to develop any real respect for her. The choice reflects television's desire to create tension, but real-life examples like this are exactly why so many gifted people gravitate to jobs where other people have less opportunity to harangue them and hold them back.
Over time, though, the two learn enough about each other's methods to start making a slightly better fit -- and they do get the job done. Plus it's amusing to watch him dealing with how Morgan is almost always right, and a nice reversal on a female cop getting stuck with a male extra. It also helps that he's not heavily pushed as a love interest, although some fans interpret them that way.
Selena Soto is their boss, a Lieutenant and head of the Major Crimes Division. She quickly spots the value in Morgan's genius abilities, and does a pretty good job of supporting her as needed. It's also fun to see a woman of color in a position of power. In many shows, the boss is an adversary, so having one as an ally makes for quite different and interesting plot dynamics.
Morgan has three children. Her older daughter, Ava Gillory, is a teenager whose father Roman disappeared 15 years ago. Her younger daughter Chloe Radovic is still a baby. Her middle son Elliot Radovic, is a genius like his mother. The moments of interaction between them, about how to cope with being that smart in a world run by people who are much less smart, make up a large part of the show's appeal. There are much better ways to raise a super-intellect than the farcical advice "just try to fit in."
Plot
The show does an interesting job of weaving together different plotlines, including but not limited to:
* Each episode typically focuses on a current crime that the police are trying to solve.
* In the background, Morgan is working to solve the mystery of how her first husband Roman disappeared 15 years ago.
* Morgan's genius and the friction it causes get noteworthy moments in most episodes.
* Relationship dynamics with her coworkers and various relatives often provide a counterpoint plot thread.
This kind of plot weaving between short and long elements, professional and personal scope, reminds me a lot of Joss Whedon. If you like his kind of structure, you'll probably enjoy this as well.
The problem-solving approach and the misfit aspects remind me very much of contemporary Sherlock Holmes interpretations such as Sherlock and Elementary. Some other misfit aspects are akin to The Big Bang Theory.
On Dreamwidth
There are no Dreamwidth communities listed for High Potential. Keep an eye on places like
fandomcalendar and dw_community_promo for possible activities featuring this show in the future. However,
tv_talk and tvfanfiction are excellent all-purpose communities for television shows. shes_awesome and hooked_on_heroines both focus on strong female characters, so they would be ideal places to discuss this show. There are also communities that run diverse fests, such as allbingo where anyone can volunteer to host a month with a canon or other topic of their choosing.Fanworks
Adam Karadec x Fem!reader by Fluentmoviequoter on Tumblr
High Potential Masterlist by Jerzwriter on Tumblr
Morgadec tag on Tumblr
Further Resources
19 Reasons High Potential Is Must-Watch TV
Guest Stars on High Potential -- IMDb
High Potential -- LezWatchTV
‘High Potential’ Fans Think They’ve Found Major Wagner & Roman Connection -- YardBarker
‘High Potential’ Is an Even Bigger Success in Sophomore Season as Ratings Soar
High Potential: Where to Stream and Watch
See also my extensive Meta: "Why We Need Fanifestos." Part 6 covers "How to Write a Fanifesto."