Matrix

I thought this show was quite good for a forgettable Canadian-made/Foreign-sold tv show, but I was surprised to hear the show's premise word for word on an episode of the US show "The Equalizer". In the episode called "Trial By Fire" Robert McCall (Edward Woodward) is hired by a New York school to rid it off gang violence. He takes them to the city morgue to scare them straight and at the morgue he introduces them to a former hitman who had his own near death experience. The hitman's monologue (standing by an ocean of fire, surrounded by all the people he killed, watching God walk past him) is exactly what happens in the pilot episode of "Matrix". Did one of the crew work on both shows or did they just steal the idea?

A short lived series comprising of only 13 episodes no longer shown anywhere! Some solid performances by veteran Canadian actor Nick Mancuso right from the start as lead actor playing a hit-man who's blown away by a.22 calibre but given a second chance to live. The former hitter is now a saver of lost souls on earth and in each episode he's given an assignment from a messenger from beyond and is expected to do whatever is necessary to complete the job. He's helped along by his mob partner and friend Billy who has the job of researcher, clean up man, and bodyguard. Series criticized by media based on its kooky premise but some more current programs with similar story lines where the main character has a near death experience include Brimstone, and more recently The Dead Zone with Anthony Michael Hall, though Steven Matrix doesn't have any real special power other than he's able to go back and forth between two worlds, usually not by choice. Small supporting cast that includes popular Matrix film star Carrie Anne Moss as Matrix's business partner in a fitness club. And now that both Matrix film sequels are coming out later this year, it'd be nice to see this TV series reair.

The Matrix can currently be seen on the Mystery Channel in Canada. I started watching it because I like Carrie-Ann Moss (Matrix movies). She was a definite asset to the show because she added life and humor to a series which was sometimes too 'dry'.

I think the ratings probably suffered because she (the female element) was greatly underutilized, especially at the beginning. In some episodes she did little more than answer the phone, and it seemed as if she had only been added to the series for her looks. She was very good in the episodes where she got to do real acting.

I also enjoyed Nick Mancuso's portrayal of Stephen Matrix. He can sometimes be cranky and harsh, but he definitely grows on you. The writing is imperfect, but the show is fun to watch.

The way the program was filmed has now given rise to programs such as "24" to be filmed in the same way. When comparing The Matrix to a program such as "24", you have to think about how times have changed in the past 10 years and yet how they have virtually remained the same. Stephen Matrix would fight evil to save the person who needed help and himself from an eternity in hell. Jack Bauer has to fight evil in order to save his family yet do it within his own letter of the law. It was enjoyable and I had a great time watching it. The many different actors turned directors who worked both before and behind the cameras was immense and now even more actors are getting the chance to actually film their own programs more often. The Matrix took me out of the more boring simple life that I lead and let my mind think about how my life was not as bad as it was for some of the characters on the program. I look forward to it coming out on DVD.

I was inspired to watch this only through the poking and prodding of an old friend of mine. He had just gotten his boxes of stuff from his cousin in the south. Besides piles of frowned-upon literature he had tapes of rare shows that NO ONE AT ALL HAS SEEN!!! This ranged from the short (Mission Impossible was brought back a long time ago...rather unsuccessful) to the crazy. Some of these tapes were marked "Matrix" curious as to why he would copy one of my favorite movies onto tape (he already had it on DVD) we popped it in. WOW!!! What a ride. I was surprised to see Carrie-Ann Moss's name (couldn't really recognize her) in the credits. That's interesting. The show wasn't the best I've ever seen but it was an enjoyable diversion. Probably would've been better if I had seen it when it was on the air. I wasn't that old then so I might've been more inclined to enjoy the weird plot line.