The remade Ironside was grittier and considerably more violent than the original, and the setting was changed from San Francisco to New York City.

[4] According to various news outlets, the plot of the show revolved around "a tough, sexy but acerbic police detective using a wheelchair after a shooting" who "is hardly limited by his disability as he pushes and prods his hand-picked team to solve the most difficult cases in the city.

It’s just manipulative drama that hopes to make you stand up and cheer by reminding you over and over again how tough its title character remains.

[18] Controversy arose over the decision to cast non-disabled actor Blair Underwood in the role of paraplegic Robert Ironside.

[19] Auti Angel, a paralyzed actress who appears in the Sundance Channel's reality series Push Girls, was quoted as saying: "What are they afraid of?

[21] However, fellow Push Girls star Angela Rockwood says she is not opposed to Ironside because the drama, like her show, challenges perceptions of how those in wheelchairs should look and act.