Plot Synopsis

Each season WICKED CITY follows a different case set in a different noteworthy era of LA history. Season 1 focuses on a murder case from 1982 centered on the rock and roll, cocaine-infused revelry of the Sunset Strip, the happening place to be seen and make some connections. Kent Grainger, a tragic soul who craves attention and goes on a murderous rampage to obtain notoriety, is a chameleon who trolls the clubs to pick out his prey and pretends to be a Hollywood VIP who could help hapless young ladies become stars. But if he finds one special enough to call in a personal song dedication to the local radio station, they are as good as dead. Detectives Jack Roth and new partner Paco Contreras are assigned to the case, and they definitely have their work cut out for them. Jack has worked some high-profile cases in his time and has numerous contacts on the street. One such contact is Dianne Kubek, an undercover cop posing as a strip club cocktail waitress/drug dealer. Having an affair with each other also puts a strain on both their working and professional relationship. And Jack still holds a grudge against Paco, who narced on his ex-partner and got him kicked off the force. Jack and Paco get a break when they stumble upon Karen McClaren, a struggling journalist who is trying to write a big story on the Sunset Strip and make a name for herself. Unbeknownst to her at the time, she was approached by Kent in a club and gave him her phone number. She was also a witness to one of the ladies leaving a club who was later murdered. After getting a call from Kent to meet her again at the club, Jack and Paco convince her to be used as bait to try and catch the killer. Meanwhile, Kent has found himself a young woman who may be his 'Bonnie' to his twisted 'Clyde' in the form of Betty Beaumontaine, a nurse and single mother of two with a bit of a sadistic twist. He will find himself tempted to slowly pull her into his perverted world, perhaps joining him in his murderous rampage. Alliances will be formed between detectives, reporters, drug dealers and club-goers to help solve this case and get this nut job off the street. But the clock is ticking as Kent continues to set his sights on the innocent, and Jack and Paco will go to any means necessary to hunt down and capture this scumbag -- dead or alive.