Raines

This series has a great deal of potential. When Detective Raines (goldbloom) begins working on a case to solve the death of a young woman he starts having hallucinations. The victim of the murder appears perfectly real to him, and throughout the episode he continues to carry on conversations with her.

Now here is what makes this premise and this series interesting:

1.There is nothing at all supernatural about his hallucinations. In fact they only know what he knows. By talking to these hallucinations he is really reasoning through the crime.

2. In the process this makes the victims of the crime very real to the viewer. Most crime dramas begin by finding a dead body and the rest is a chase to catch the killer, and none of the characters become fully developed. By the end of Raines however, the victim of the murder is a dynamic and unique individual.

3. Because Raines' hallucinations only know what he does, the character of the victim shifts through the episode. This is a very useful tool. Unlike most series that only focus outside events, these hallucinations give the viewer a window into Raines' own mind.

4. The fact that Raines' visions are only hallucinations and that he is aware of that fact makes this show much more interesting a series like Medium, which Raines has unfairly been compared to.

5. The absence of supernatural elements makes the series science-friendly. This is not to say I don't like shows or movies about the supernatural, but there are very few series or movies consider supernaturalism and reject it directly.

This quick comment is based on the first episode only.

I hope the quality of writing and the premise of the series continue to play out along this course. The quickest way to ruin what has all the earmarks of a very good series would be to hint that there may really be something supernatural going on, to move away from character development, or to bring in God, angels, or psychics as explanatory tools.

My vote would have been a 9 or a 10 for this series, but currently it is 8 because only one episode has been broadcast and it is therefore difficult to determine if the quality will remain high from the pilot episode. I have great hopes for this series, but many times series go in a different direction than the pilot episode would suggest, and so I am tempering my response.

At the moment I highly recommend the series---especially for those viewers who have grown tired to typical television clichés.

This could very well be the thinking person's crime drama.

Like another person here commented I was a little worried Jeff might be a little over the top in this. My fears were completely unjustified. I thought it was a wonderful, funny, sensitive performance. Jeff's quirks weren't a distraction here, the made perfect sense and complimented the character wonderfully. It made me a little reminiscent of Tenspeed and Brown Shoe because it was so enjoyable but honestly I don't remember that series very well, I was pretty young. Excellent writing, excellent acting, even excellent choices in music. Very satisfying. As for the commenter that said it had the same shtick as Monk: are you insane? You may need to go back and watch another episode of Monk. If there was any hallucinating happening there it was you not Mr. Monk.

Since I've only seen one episode so far, I can't give the series as a whole a ten rating. but nevertheless, the pilot episode of this program presents a series with great potential, all based on a REALLY clever idea. I was glad that this show wasn't just another supernatural affair, a la 'The Sixth Sense' or something along those lines. Instead, it is a study of one L.A. detective's determination, and even maniac ism, to solve murder cases. The victim's "form" throughout the show as Michael Raines (played perfectly by the always-great Jeff Goldblum!) starts to piece together their personalities from evidence gathered while investigating said crimes. They're not "ghosts" or "unresting dead", but actual figments of Raines' detective mind.

There is a line in the show, a bit of dialog, that sort of describes how this came out: Raines' ex-partner (surprises to come!) reminisces about Raines' method to talk to himself during investigations... to "talk through" his cases to get to know his victims. Well he does that now, except trauma, both emotional and physical (Raines' was shot prior to the pilot episode) has him actually "seeing" the victims and he talks to himself. It's real clever, and interesting. Because it's all in the mind, anything can happen.

Anyway, give this show a shot. It's not one of these over-the-top "what ridiculous shlt is gonna happen next" kinda network show that's been on the last few years. It is written, co-created, and directed by Frank Darabont ('The Shawshank Redemption', 'The Green Mile') and all the acting is excellent. Goldblum always delivers quirky, yet still likable and believable characters, and there's always something new around every story corner. This is the kind of quality show that could be on HBO Sunday nights. GO WATCH!!!

I'm a big fan of Jeff Goldblum's and he was terrific in this. Intelligent writing really sets this apart from much of what is on network television these days. Let's hope this generates a following and maybe it will inspire some other producers to step up their writing a notch. Not to mention originality. So often every viewing choice I've got falls in such a narrow, predictable, repetitive, cookie-cutter slot. It's refreshing to see something original. The characters were wonderful, well defined, intelligent and well acted. It just made for a very fun hour. The pilot has a very touching ending. What a wonderful new project for a great actor.

Having been force fed countless boring shows featuring the supernatural, here is one that grabs you from the beginning. It is not supernatural but the visions or hallucinations of a police detective. Since the vision, as I'll call it, only knows what Raines knows, we get to see the victims character develop over time. I prefer to think that it is Raine's extremely active imagination and the trauma of being shot and losing his partner, that in thinking through the crime and the evidence that brings the victims to life, but after bringing them to life now he has to deal with seeing and talking to the dead and solving the crime. The constantly changing personality of the victims, sometimes in a matter of minutes, shows us the methodical thinking of Raine's as he runs all the possibilities through his head. My fear is that this show will not attract enough viewers to stay on. Most people seem to enjoy the same boring cookie cutter shows that don't require any thought.