Mercy Street

I love this series....after reading some of the reviews I realized how 'nit-picky' some people are...they should be grateful that there are programs like this on television.......today we have such garbage for a selection of programs....who cares if the dialog is lame or if nurses talk back to doctors and it wasn't customary of the day, but mind you, there have been feisty and independent women throughout history .....enjoy the non-commercial program and take in a little bit of how harsh our ancestors really did have it......or go watch some lame 'reality' show on TLC. We need more period movies and series on television

I'm not sure why any viewer would compare a series set during American revolutionary times (the Civil War) to Downton Abbey. Downton Abbey was simply a remake of the popular (and recently remade) series, Upstairs, Downstairs. It was mostly an entertaining soap about a rich family and their household, but I digress...

First off, all of the actors are well-cast and do suitably good work. It's only been two episodes, so we'll have to wait and see as far as whether any heavy lifting will be required, acting wise. It's safe to say that we should expect to see the transformation of some of the characters, insofar as their beliefs are portrayed. There is a doctor, for example, who has no problem with slavery, but believes that it is his duty to equally treat Union and Confederate soldiers because, "Blood does not run grey or blue, it runs red." The nurse to whom he makes this argument (Nurse Mary/Baroness), is a staunch supporter of the Union and believes that as a Union hospital, Union soldiers can claim priority.

We have familiar faces in this cast - L. Scott Caldwell, Donna Murphy, Gary Cole, Tara Summers, and new ones in Shalita Grant, McKinley Belcher III, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead. While Mercy Street bears some similarity to The Knick due to its setting (a hospital) and a promise of change to come, it is less graphic in its portrayal of the everyday occurrences of the medical world.

With the popularity of Hamilton on today's Broadway stage, Mercy Street is a welcome addition to the TV lineup, as anything that encourages today's American to learn about the past is a boon, indeed.

I'm hopeful that this series marks a start to some quality original PBS programming rather than more transatlantic imports from the BBC or ITV. So far so good. I'm curious about some of the message board complaints about the gory nature of the surgery scenes. I would rather see the good, the bad, and the ugly instead of a watered down, whitewashed, and sanitized presentation. I like my stories with some real grit. The characters have some real depth. I don't like put-on southern accents. Like fake snow it diminishes the realism of the scene. And this series has lots of that. But (at least so far) the people of color have more to do in this story than serve angry white people. The Civil War is a dramatic season in our nation's history. It's not always a pretty story. But as a backdrop for this drama it is told with some dignity and respect for all the players, regardless of their uniform. I think we could use more of that attitude today.

This series began with real promise - an American period drama along the lines and quality of what Masterpiece has imported from across the pond. And for the most part, the first season delivered.

But the second season devolved into a Grey's Anatomy-style soap (complete with the annoying underscore) that treated the horrors and suffering of the Civil War as a backdrop for quirky characters and their high jinks. The psychological drama never reached deeper than a wading pool.

The real mercy in Mercy Street was putting it out of its misery at the end of the second season.

I am greatly enjoying this series. The production has the feel of the period from the mud in the streets, to the period decor of the rooms and costumes, all the way to the amputated limbs being taken away in a wheelbarrow. War is hell, and none was more so than the Civil War, when weaponry had become so efficient as to mow down regiments marching forward in outdated styles of battle. Some viewers might object to bloody surgery scenes. However, one of the most affecting scenes to me was of a Confederate soldier with shell shock who told of the horror of battle, "the smoke and blood and the screaming, you never know where it's coming from."

Soldiers who make it to this hospital are cared for to the best of their abilities by Mary Phinney and Dr. Jedediah Foster, played admirably by Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Josh Radnor. Their own personal dramas are interwoven into the story lines quite well. Applause to the producers and directors!