Spike TV busts out its new six-episode crime series, DEA, tonight (Wednesday, April 2) at 10 PM Central. Cops set the bar for police reality shows years ago and a lot of shows have followed, so DEA is going to have to stand out to bring in the viewers even for a limited series.

When I first heard about the series, I thought the scope would be international. After all, the term “cocaine cowboys” came out in the 1980s with guys like Pablo Escobar. At that point, the primary opponent in the Drug Wars was the Medellin Cartel in Colombia. That sounded exciting to me, kind of a cops meets military in the brush franchise.

But I was wrong in my thinking. DEA is set in Detroit, Michigan, and at first I thought it might not be interesting. After viewing an advance screener of the first episode, I’ve come to the conclusion I was wrong. The show is going to pull in the strong male audience it’s targeting, and it’s going to do it the old fashioned way for guys — offer violence and man code fueled on adrenaline and fear.

To begin with, Detroit, Michigan is one of the most dangerous cities in the country. In the past, it’s been known as the Murder Capital of the USA. The different racial and economic segments also guarantee further friction as the different factions bump together.

The series pulls another rabbit out of the hat with its production as well. The group of DEA agents they’re working with, designated Group 14, appear to be a bunch of good guys. Men’s men, buddies and brave, and willing to admit they get both afraid and jazzed right before a raid.

I have a feeling the series is going to be more about how the caseload affects the individual members than the crimes themselves. If this first episode is any indication, these agents constantly stay on the go. They don’t have eight-to-five jobs, and they’re up battling crime at the crack of dawn and until the midnight hour.

The focus in this first episode is on the men but not their families. Wives and children are mentioned, but it’s more as an acknowledgment at this point. The action, and the tension, stays on Group 14.