Hawthorne

Over the years there have been a number of hospital shows whose basic premise goes something like this: Hospitals have very strict rules and protocols about who may do what. These rules and protocols generally make sick people sicker. But once in a while some really daring hospital employee, a renegade doctor, a nurse fresh out of school, breaks the rules and saves people's lives, but he or she has an uphill fight to do it, because the hospital administrator, the chief of surgery, the ethics committee, the mayor, or whoever, does everything to prevent it, even knowing (and not caring) that lives are at stake. I for one don't buy that premise. I have been a hospital patient several times, and real hospitals do a very good job by following their rules and protocols. This is just one more show of the type I described. And to make matters worse, it's just bogged down in the personal lives of the characters. I like a good hospital show, but this is not one.

this show is everything but creative. that alone is not enough to call it bad, but when it also lacks realistic or at least believable tension and interesting main characters you can call it bad in my opinion.

the main character has all character treats of a saint - and i mean that in a bad way: she is the caring mother, the heartbroken widow, the funny and loyal friend, the tough but also caring (again) chief nurse who bends and breaks the rules when it is called for, but only then. she is also nearly always right, makes no mistakes and stands up against the arrogant doctors. all way to perfect to be interesting and really likable.

the story lines also seem to be written only to show her holiness in the right light. even if she makes a mistake, it all turns out OK, everyone forgives her when she apologizes at once and all is well again. that leaves pretty little room for serious character development too, unless you want to destroy this picture of a model citizen.

the only good thing i can say about this show, is that some side characters are made of better material. but even most of them are textbook stereotypes and even solid acting can save little when there is nothing to save to begin with.

And I have to say, I was stuck to the television set throughout the entire marathon this pass weekend. This show is fantastic. What's so great about it is, that nurses really do run hospitals. You think it's the doctors or the administration. BS. You go to a hospital these days and all you are going to find are nurses, and maybe a doctor or two.

Mrs. Smith is great in this role as the Head of the Nurses in this hospital emergency room. She takes on everything thrown at her. Even her mixed up crazy daughter.

I'm glad TNT picked this show up for another season. One of the best shows this summer!

I have steadily tried to watch this show. It seems like something people like me--those who like "Men of a Certain Age" and such--should like. But it's nowhere near that caliber of show. The writing is horrid and the acting leaves a lot to be desired.

I have come to terms with the idea that Pinkett-Smith is just not that strong an actress to carry this kind of show. She was at her best as the sassy around-the-way chick in her films. That was not too much a stretch for her and it worked well for her. Nurse Hawthorne? Not so much. I liked the flirting back and forth between her character and the doctor in the first season, but now they've thrown Marc Anthony in the mix and it's just a jumbled mess. The one saving grace the picture had--the chemistry between Hawthorne and the doc--is now gone. And the daughter--MAJOR casting mistake! Her look is wrong, the script given to her character is wrong, and her acting is just not good! Also, I see now they've thrown in Derek Luke. A decent actor who seems to be falling victim of the horrible script like the rest of the cast. Finally, you have the nurse friend who was previously in the background who's now been thrust up front. Huh? Just the whole plot of this show is going from bad to worse.

Stick a fork in it. Either do a complete overhaul TNT, or just let this one go.

3 out of 10 is all I can muster.

A decent hospital drama for the first 2 seasons, giving the viewer what you expect from hospital drama....a variety of medical situations with a reasonable dose of ensemble character development and interaction intertwined with the medicine.

Then, S3 goes off the rails, heavily concentrating the show's minutes on various romances of sub characters topped off with the weirdest dive into the mental psychoses of Jada Pinckett's character only to be outdone by her romance/cheating with the strange-looking, pained acting of Marc Anthony's un-engaging cop character.

My advice....watch S1 and S2 if you like medical drama, but do not waste your time on S3 unless you are a glutton for terrible tv watching.