Off the Map

After coming down with a pretty bad case of the flu, I logged into my Amazon Prime to find something to watch and this is what i found.

Off the Map comes from the creators of Grey's Anatomy and so from the beginning the expectations are set against the show. whilst it does have an air of cheapness to it (not so great SFX although could be because its a few years old) the acting is pretty good on the whole.

I particularly liked that they deal with "field" treatment in tropical climates. How to save lives without modern technology, using native medicines in conjunction with modern medicines.

i am currently on episode 11 and really disappointed that i won't be seeing much more. It was moving in the right direction and i was hoping to see more of the two worlds meeting each other. BAD MOVE ABC! PLEASE BRING IT BACK!

Various doctors work in a clinic in a non-specific South American country. Mamie Gummer, Caroline Dhavernas, and Jason George portray some of the doctors.

Shonda Rhimes was attempting another doctors show. It's an easy sell to the TV exec suits. Imagine Grey's Anatomy in the jungle. Non-specific is in fact the mantra for the whole show. The jungle in Hawaii just looks too pretty. The tiki bar is pulled out of numerous other shows. The whole show just feels fake. Add on Rachelle Lefevre, and it seem like some kind of Models for Doctors program. Shonda should have spend more time trying to give more realism to the show.

I love this series and it's no different than Greys or ER was. I love the intertwined lives of the doctors and the jungle. The actors are decent and seem to play off of each other well. The location is believable enough, as I think they are supposedly in Peru somewhere. I've seen every episode and hope it continues on!!! It's one of those weekly shows that is totally a mix of McGyver and ER at times, in the way they save people, and their struggles in losing lives too. This week, the episode about a doctor who was doing surgery on black market for a man who needed kidney transplant (man was paying a lady for her kidney and the doctor to do the procedure) brought out the one aspect of this week's episode, which was "take a chance" on things - whether it be life, love, or otherwise. There is always an underlying message with this show.

First, i must say there is something likable about this show, it kept me watching for all 13 episodes and i don't regret it. Maybe it was nature which is beautiful, i don't know. But on the other hand i found it kind of boring, not just because of the stories, true some of the episodes were interesting but there was quite a few boring ones in sense of predictability. After 10 minutes into the episode you knew exactly what is going to happen in the next 30 minutes and not just with medical part of the show, but with personal life of characters which are also very predictable. There is of course their love life and we all know that in this kind of TV series they usually pair up among group and that is also the case here, just enough that it becomes annoying and their life before they came to the clinic to make a fresh start is cliché..so if i summarize, i kind of liked it but if it were less predictable it could actually be a good TV series.

p.s. sorry for my poor English and also this is my first review so bare with me :)

The reason anyone should watch TV is to leave the world of their hectic and stressful life. Its to enjoy an hour or so of entertainment, love, action, and even some horror. Most of the reviews are for the lack of reality and writing in the show; and to an extent I understand, but the average person doesn't have knowledge of what "real" doctors do, and unless the writing is like "how are people getting paid for this crap?" then I'll agree. But as a lover of fun TV I have to say I enjoyed this show, it was funny, sad, suspenseful, and very romantic. Yeah sure its a bit predictable, but if its played out well then I don't mind. I see no problems with the acting. Its not Oscar worthy but it gets the job done. The setting of the show is breathtaking. Yeah its faked to be made out in South America, but I think its well done. So with that I gave the show an 8 because While I scrammed around the day stressed out of my mind, I watched "off the map" for an hour and felt happy and stress free when it was over, which is the point of the show. All I know is i'll watch the show until the end, and my only hope is that it gets steamier,sexier, and doesn't get canceled.