UPN’s new ‘Level 9’ hacks at cybercrime > Fast-moving series lacks complexity

With the omnipresence of computers in today’s society, some TV series was bound to target cybercrime (Imagine the pitch: “It’s ‘Mission Impossible’ crossed with ‘Hackers.’). “Level 9,” debuting at 9 tonight on UPN, is that show, although it’s not nearly as complex as its subject matter.

The titular team is a top-secret organization made up of experts drawn from every federal law-enforcement agency as well as the cyber underground. This multiracial force is led by Annie Price (Kate Hodge), a no-nonsense leader who left the FBI to head up this crack group.

Price is haunted by the one that got away – the master hacker who calls himself “CrayZhorse.” He leads “The Great Uprising,” with followers who comprise an angry movement of outsiders with a goal of total anarchy (no sense in aiming small, I guess).

In the premiere episode, a Los Angeles police detective stumbles onto this top-secret organization, and they team up to rescue a woman who has been kidnapped from the federal witness protection program by a disgruntled computer genius-former federal worker (honest, I don’t make this stuff up).

There’s high-pitched action and lots of neat electronic gadgets used in this premiere. It’s like a high-tech episode of “Walker, Texas Ranger,” with just a touch more characterization.

Since it’s created by the usually reliable John Sacret Young (“China Beach,” “VR.5”), “Level 9” is a disappointment. Like most e-mail, it’s fast-paced but ultimately too shallow. There’s no there there.

Leading off the night on UPN is another action-drama, “Freedom,” for which no preview tape was available. That’s usually a bad sign.