Mind Games

I'm afraid I was somewhat underwhelmed by the debut of Mind Games. At first it sounded like a version of "Psych", but the first few minutes of the show made it clear that the two precepts had nothing in common.

I really enjoyed Steve Zahn's performance in Treme, but I found him just a little too frenetic (and loud) as the bipolar brother here. And Christian Slater, who was supposed to be the "normal" brother, came off as a bit unhinged as well - in his case, more sociopathic.

I'm not writing it off after only one episode, but I'm hoping that these portrayals will mellow out just a bit as the series continues. If I want to see erratic behaviour and people bouncing off the walls, I can find something closer to home.

The character of Edward Clark really lets this show down. The concept of him is great but the fact he has to ALWAYS do something wrong and then ALWAYS throw a tantrum and then ALWAYS attempt to fix things and ALWAYS fail but then ALWAYS succeed.

The rest of the characters are not as thought out (maybe that is the good thing!) but I was really intrigued with getting to know more about them. I want to know less about Edward Clark please. He is the one bringing the series down even though the whole thing is focused around him! Christian Slater is great but wouldn't expect anything less. He also manages to give his character quite a bit of depth and mystery.

However, I cannot bear the agony of sitting through a whole episode with the most annoying man on earth so I will give this a miss.

PS I watched 4 episodes in the hopes the formula would change. It did not.

The premise of the show sounded REALLY amazing to me- Leverage with a bit of The Mentalist, House of Lies and a few other elements taken from other TV Shows- I was in for a good ride... I was mistaken.

The pilot was fairly decent. Introduced the brothers and a bit of the back story to get the viewers interested in the characters themselves. It was very loud and chaotic but not too much that it would make the show seem completely unwatchable.... and then I watched the second episode, well, part of it at least; I don't think I can finish it.

There is just TOO much chaos. The eccentric and bipolar brother is just completely out there, very loud and obnoxious to the point where you start to feel embarrassed for the rest of the cast. It's completely ridiculous! So much broken glass, unorganized schemes that go nowhere because one of the brothers completely ruins it and all in all, just a bunch of chaos.

I'd stay away from this one. I'm going to try to finish the second episode but I doubt I'll make it through it.

Like Christian Slater. REALLY like Steve Zahn. So I tried this for about halfway through the pilot, and found Zahn's character especially so manic, so loud, so annoying, I had to shut it off. If I had to watch his character every week, I think I'd start pulling the wings off butterflies, or something. Fairly weak writing, as well. Decent premise, truly annoying execution. There are too many good series on TV right now to make room for this one. I've known bipolar people before, had a close friend for years who was afflicted with it, but never experienced anyone like this. Too manic, and so grating. Sorry to repeat myself, but had to fill up ten lines; in short - PASS ON THIS ONE!

Wow, I just watched the first episode, and most shows typically take about 3-4 shows to really get going and develop the characters and story to a comfortable level. The whole cast is just great, but the chemistry between Christian Slater, Steve Zahn and Wynn Everett is stellar. I did enjoy Slater's last effort (Breaking In), but the show itself wasn't great, but Christian was. This show, "Mind Games" is excellent. The bi-polar issues, the ex-con issues, the exes, t's all in the in a believable, heart-felt and emotional way. You are immediately drawn into the characters and just root for them. Flawed characters are always the best, and the cast will not disappoint. Great job cast and director. The writing is excellent as well... thanks for such an excellent show it, I am already connected to it.