16 February 2008

Eli Stone Misses

The long description: Eli Stone is a drama series about lawyer who experiences a life-changing moment, when he begins to hallucinate about people, places and situations, causing him to re-examine the choices he makes in life.

The short description: It's the male Ally McBeal.

The series started with a promising pilot, which I thought was fun and fresh. But three episodes down the line...I think it lost me. Like the show's running theme, I lost my faith in it. Although I really, really want to love this.

What happened to Eli Stone? Some story lines just don't mesh well or tie together, it's beyond realistic. The hallucination sequence will probably tell you, realism is far from what this show is betting on. Still, the stories aren't tight enough to hook me in. There are quirky shows; and there are shows that seem to just put stuff in there, call it a crazy TV series, and mess with the viewer. For me, that's what happening to this show. It's like I'm watching it pull tricks from a hat so that it can keep me entertained. But as soon as the trick is done, it doesn't leave that much of an impression.

The saving grace I think would have to be Eli himself (played by Jonny Lee Miller, Angelina Jolie's British ex-husband), who still keeps the show mildly interesting with his comedic timing.

I'd like to stick around and watch its upcoming episodes, but I'm not as excited as before, that I can say.

Reviews for Eli Stone:

Hollywood Reporter
Washington Post
The Watcher Chicago Tribune
San Francisco Gate