2018–2019 · Based on 2 seasons through August 25, 2019 ·
Instinct follows Dr. Dylan Reinhart, a gifted writer, college teacher, and former CIA agent who returns to police work in New York City. Detective Lizzie Needham brings him into the NYPD after a killer uses Dylan's crime book as a guide. Dylan and Lizzie argue, trade sharp jokes, and learn to trust each other while they solve strange murders. The show has a light, fast crime-drama tone, with a new case in most episodes and a few longer plots about old secrets.
Dylan is an openly gay man, and his husband Andy is a regular part of the story. The show presents their marriage as loving and normal, not as a problem to be fixed or a source of political debate. Their plans to adopt a child return in both seasons, and the final season moves that family story toward a baby. The cases rarely focus on sexuality, gay rights, or identity politics, because most episodes stay centered on murders and criminal psychology.
Community feedback
Was our 52% Woke rating accurate?
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Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for Instinct.
Woke representation / casting
Dylan is a gay man and the central lead, played by openly bisexual Alan Cumming. Andy is his husband, and their marriage is shown across both seasons. CBS and the cast presented the role as the first openly gay lead in an hour-long U.S. network drama. The New York setting supports a broad cast, and no clear quota-like race or gender pattern stands out.
47%
Woke political dialogue
Not present. The characters discuss murders, law enforcement, espionage, corruption, and family problems. The show does not repeatedly use modern activist, identity-politics, or left-wing political speeches.
0%
Identity-driven story themes
Dylan is openly gay and lives in a loving marriage with Andy. Their search to adopt a child recurs in both seasons, and season two ends with a baby on the way. The show treats same-sex marriage and family life as positive and normal. Most episodes remain murder stories, so gay identity is an important side thread rather than the main subject.
55%
Western institutional / cultural critique
Not present. The show includes corrupt police, politicians, spies, rich business owners, and bad family choices as crime plots. It does not turn those stories into a repeated attack on men, traditional families, Christianity, or Western culture.
0%
Woke character or canon changes
Not relevant. The show is based on Murder Games, where Dylan is also gay. The TV version adds and expands home-life scenes, but it does not make an identity-driven change to an established character.
0%
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
One small right-leaning X account called for a boycott because the lead is openly gay. A small fan account repeated an offline comment that the lead should be smart instead of gay. The posts had almost no engagement, and no sustained review-bombing or organized campaign was found.
12%
Creator track record context
Alan Cumming is an executive producer and a longtime LGBTQ-rights advocate who openly connected this show with wider LGBT representation. Alex Kurtzman has described inclusion as part of Star Trek's mission, while Constance M. Burge, Tanya Barfield, and Anthony Johnston have queer or feminist work in the cached records. Michael Rauch and most directors have no strong public activist record. The team context supports a moderate-to-strong creator track record, not a uniformly activist one.
55%
Production
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