Eli Stone: Good, But It's No Ally McBeal

Maybe I'm the only one who isn't in love with the show. I really like Jonny as Eli, but with each episode, I become less attached to the show. First, I watched Ally McBeal from the first episode, so I don't like how similar it is, and the biggest problem with the similarity is that there's no comparison for which one is better.

The other thing that bugs the heck out of me is that there is a very, very unrealistic timetable and portrayal of court and court cases (autism groups were not happy with that pilot episode). It's turned me off how they show a employment discrimination case settling in 2 days. Give me a break! Now, I get that this show isn't completely set in what we think of as reality, but since everything but his visions are supposed to be believable, I have a hard time with this. They could make more time pass instead to make it fit within the constructs of a one hour drama, but instead they make it seem like a serious court matter settles in the same time it takes to get rid of a traffic violation.

This show may be best for those who did not watch Ally McBeal and are too lazy or cheap to buy or rent the DVDs. Ally McBeal was a phenomenal show. I don't see this rising to that level, and in part that is due to this show not being a brainchild of David Kelley, the writing isn't that quality.

At this point, the biggest problem with Eli Stone is that when regular programming resumes in April, this would in no way get me to bump something else from my schedule. But, I will probably continue to watch, though not necessarily on a regular basis, partly because viewing options are limited right now for someone who watches as little reality programming as possible, but also because I definitely enjoy Jonny Lee Miller. I love Dr. Kim and Eli's relationship. I love Eli's relationship with his assistant (Loretta Devine). And I like Eli and his brother. Also, I'm always happy to see Jack Bristow (Victor Garber from Alias) and Dr. Abbott (Tom Amandes from Everwood) gainfully employed.