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MEDIUM Is Big!! And Good!!
SPOILER ALERT !!
Despite launching against CBS ratings pillar “CSI: Miami,” Monday’s premiere of Glenn Gordon Caron’s “Medium” was NBC’s highest-rated drama debut since the arrival of “Ed” way back in 2000.
A number of reviews we surveyed early in the week painted the pilot as a weak thing, but I liked the pilot pretty much as much as I liked the pilot script – which is to say I liked it quite a bit.
(The most off-putting element, to my eyes, was the show’s X-Files-y title sequence, which seems out of step with the show’s otherwise straightforward tone.)
The Los Angeles Times noted “Arquette's spiky, sparring scenes with [the skeptical sheriff character] are the show's best, not surprising given that the pride of creator Glenn Gordon Caron's résumé is spiky, sparring "Moonlighting." It’s a valid point, but what the Times forgot to mention is the sheriff (Arliss Howard) pretty much spars with Arquette for the whole pilot. And I liked the way Arquette’s character dealt with her colleagues in the district attorney’s office as well.
Other critics, meanwhile, took issue with Arquette’s performance. I thought it compelling! (It’s possible much of the media was thrown by the authentic Southwestern accent Arquette adopted for the role.)
But what matters Herc’s opinion? Here’s what AICN readers who saw the pilot had to say:
(The most off-putting element, to my eyes, was the show’s X-Files-y title sequence, which seems out of step with the show’s otherwise straightforward tone.)
The Los Angeles Times noted “Arquette's spiky, sparring scenes with [the skeptical sheriff character] are the show's best, not surprising given that the pride of creator Glenn Gordon Caron's résumé is spiky, sparring "Moonlighting." It’s a valid point, but what the Times forgot to mention is the sheriff (Arliss Howard) pretty much spars with Arquette for the whole pilot. And I liked the way Arquette’s character dealt with her colleagues in the district attorney’s office as well.
Other critics, meanwhile, took issue with Arquette’s performance. I thought it compelling! (It’s possible much of the media was thrown by the authentic Southwestern accent Arquette adopted for the role.)
But what matters Herc’s opinion? Here’s what AICN readers who saw the pilot had to say:
Other critics, meanwhile, took issue with Arquette’s performance. I thought it compelling! (It’s possible much of the media was thrown by the authentic Southwestern accent Arquette adopted for the role.)
But what matters Herc’s opinion? Here’s what AICN readers who saw the pilot had to say:
“The show is good. I dug the pilot, I'll stick with it. Arquette's performance is nicely grounded, I like that her home life is normal and she is trying to come to terms with her power that apparently she has had all along she just tries to hide it. The Texas Ranger was cool, too bad he probably won't be a recurring character.” - “Jack Burton”
“I liked it.... I didn't love it though. I'll probably watch it as long as they keep it on Monday nights. I think Patricia Arquette is a believable lead, but some of the dialogue was kind of stiff. She actually said "effin" which made me laugh in a moment where she was supposed to be upset. I'll watch the next few eps to see where they are heading with this series. I will say it's the best thing NBC has had to offer recently, with "Hawaii" being a boring, unwatchable mess and "Father of the Pride" being basically unfunny.” – “baj24”
“Actually good. I liked it. It has a 6th sense feel to it, which is what they were going for.” – “topdeck”
“I liked it. It was entertaining. What are these critics complaining about?” – “Russman” If you want to see what the fuss is about, NBC just decided to repeat the pilot Thursday night in the “ER” timeslot (before the ratings came out, NBC was going to show the second episode).
10 p.m. Thursday. NBC.
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I need a drink...
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and a combo Lost/Alias one is nowhere in sight? Something is wrong here. And it pisses me off because I can't scream OH MY GOD, IS SHANNON GOING TO BE THE MONSTERS NEXT MEAL?!
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Oops.
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And look what happened to ED.
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besides, in modern times, we dont have memories.
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I missed the first half of the pilot, so I'm glad I'll get to catch what I missed. I've had pretty low expectations for this show- Patricia Arquette is a decent actress, and she will always be Alabama Worley to me. But Stigmata was unwatchable and I've managed to miss a surprising amount of her other movies.
I guess I'm pulling for this show to work. -
The opening sequence was titles are one of the worst I have ever seen created and the show itself was virtually unwatchable. Every single character is a one sided paradoy of human nature and the acting takes them even further nowhere. I understand that pilots are going to be a little more stiff since no one has had time to grow into their roles but this was just plain bad. Unfortunately, CSI:Miami is also totally unwatchable so Monday nights remain free for movie watching and catching up on tivo. Which, really, isn't so unfortunate at all.
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not was.
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I thought they were going to show a new ep of Medium tonight, and now it looks like they are repeating the premiere. Oh well, at least they didn't put this show on Wednesday, which is crowded enough even before Point Pleasant premieres. And while I'm bitching about schedules, what the Hell is wrong with ABC? They've moved Life As We Know It to a timeslot competing with The OC. Are they just trying to kill LAWKI? It's a pretty decent show, but I don't think it's target audience is going to leave Seth and company for it.
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So much as overly medicated.
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...or Arquette's performance. ESPECIALLY the show though. But ESPECIALLY her performance.
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Herc..
They (nbc)have been saying all week that tonights show (of medium)Is new..
Thats what NBC have been advertising..soooo has that changed..???
But thats ok if it is..because we are close to four hours of 24..2 hours on sunday..2 hours on monday.
thats what Keifer said last night on letterman..
As far as medieum..it should have been a two hour,,,I felt it was rushed and had that new show feeling (as in no budget yet)
Peace -
I'm quoted. :)
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I'm surprised no one's mentioned this yet, but I was glad to see Jack Weber.
And I like his chemistry with Arquette.
I hope he has more to do in the series. -
Looked like it. Wish I had been.
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...it's terrible. and mostly because of patricia arquette. she slides by with that cute little voice and blue eyes, but the only movie i've seen her in where she had any spark was True Romance. Every other movie, she looks like she's doped up on painkillers and reading cue cards. watching her try to get worked up into an "i'm kinda angry tone" was downright laughable. fuck Medium. I'd rather have LAX back.
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I enjoyed Medium very much. Funnier in spots than I expected a crime drama to be, surprised they anchored it to "true life adventures of a real actual psychic, really" instead of going completely supernatural to fill the X-Files/Buffyverse void. Patty Arquette seems very real in both appearance and character. If Lynette Scavo had a more supportive husband, less monsterous children, and super-powers, she'd be Allison. Some great moments in the piot. I was very disappointed not to get the promised second ep on Thursday. What was the logic: "a lot of people already saw this, let's show it to them again"? Twenty million is a lot. if I had a dollar for everyone who watched this show I'd be a millionaire twenty times over. My favorite line: Allison to the child killer: "When I try to read your soul all I hear is the screams of small tortured animals... and lost children."
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Jan 11, 2005 10:41:25 AM CST
Hell, I'll watch it for a while, but will it go the way of Haunt
by drath
Seriously, this genre is cursed...which I think may have been the title of another series. Anyway, there were some silly moments in the pilot--if only the criminals knew that every Texas Ranger in the state was escorting some psychic around for a whole afternoon--but overall I found it engaging. What I think works best is the stuff between her and her husband (and kids). The second episode however seemed to backtrack. Suddenly her boss had to be convinced again? What happened at the interview with the guy from her dream? I like that the show admits she can make mistakes, and even shows her being uncertain a little. But I am not sure they can sustain this for long. I mean how long before the husband has a terrible secret or suddenly becomes less supportive? How long before it gets repetative? I'll hang in there for now.
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Got high ratings yesterday.
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I liked last nights medium. I still think it's lacking something, maybe it could use a little more humor and I think Patricia Arquette needs someone to play off of. Someone to play Scully to her Mulder so to speak. It would make it more interesting.
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