USA’s new original series Covert Affairs is finally here! This much anticipated drama comes to you tonight from co-executive producers and writers, Chris Ord and Matt Corman (Deck the Halls) and it’s a winner!

In COVERT AFFAIRS, we meet Annie Walker (Perabo), a young CIA trainee who is suddenly thrust into the inner sanctum of the agency after being promoted to field operative. While it appears that she has been hand-picked for her exceptional linguistic skills, it may be something from her past that her CIA bosses are really after. Gorham plays Auggie Anderson, a CIA military intelligence agent, blinded while on assignment, and Annie’s guide in this world of bureaucracy, excitement and intrigue. Gallagher is Arthur Campbell, the formidable director of Clandestine Services for the CIA. Dudek plays Danielle, a married mother of two and Annie’s older sister who knows nothing of her life as a spy. Matchett plays Joan, head of the CIA’s Domestic Protection Division…and Arthur’s wife. In episode two, Ramamurthy joins the show as Jai Wilcox, an agent with a rich family history within the walls of the CIA.

Annie: You need blend in. You need to sell this. Talking doesn’t help!

Covert Affairs is a dangerously fun and fast paced action drama that you won’t want to miss this summer. The writing is fantastic, much more engaging than I had anticipated. There is an incredibly strong lead and quite a solid supporting cast. I must admit, while Piper Perabo is great, I didn’t think she could carry a show. I was so wrong and I am so glad that I was because Perabo sells it completely as rookie CIA agent, Annie Walker. Because Annie was thrown into her first mission a month before her training was complete, she makes mistakes. But Annie is so tough and confident that she is able to cleverly make her wrongs right.

Though tough, Annie is vulnerable and while we don’t get too much of that in the Pilot, the groundwork is set. Her lost love and her overbearing sister are just two of the prime examples of what makes her so vulnerabile. I am looking forward to more personal character development since the professional side has clearly been shaped. What has also been crafted well is the relationship between Annie and Auggie. Christopher Gorham is charming as usual, but he has range and his chemistry with Perabo is just fantastic. As far as relationships go, this is my favorite so far. Joan and Arthur (Peter Gallagher) seem to have quite an interesting work dynamic since they were once a couple.

Because Peter Gallagher is a guest star, I am unsure of how much more we will get out of this relationship. Another guest star was Emmanuelle Vaugier, as a reporter and she is always a pleasure to see. Now the guest stars were great but it really was more fun watching Perabo kick some serious butt in this episode. She rocked on her first mission in the CIA. It all involved a car chase, posing as a call girl, and getting caught breaking into a morgue. This was just the right amount of excitement anyone could ask for in a series premiere. Talk about humor.

You know, I really like the tone of this show. There is just enough humor, just enough action, and the pace of story telling is steady. What really intrigued me was why exactly Annie was called in to work so early. Unbeknown to her, the CIA is using her to get to her lost love. This makes for an interesting reveal and will make you wonder about the warning Annie gets from her professor about not joining the CIA. No, the CIA hasn’t exploited Annie’s talents just yet but this is just the beginning. I am anticipating how she will react when she finds out the real reason why she was needed a month before her training was complete. Hopefully she finds out soon, because this show is incredibly engaging and has a lot going for it so long as it doesn’t stretch out the mystery and has plenty more to tell. This show has longevity if it plays its cards right. This show is the must watch for the summer, so set your DVRs and Tivos.

Note: While Sendhil Ramamurthy appears in the cast promotional poster for this show, he does not appear in the Pilot episode.

Covert Affairs premieres Tuesday, July 13 at 10/9c on USA.