New Amsterdam

I really like New Amsterdam. I have watched all the episodes up to March 24th's. The main draw is seeing the transformation from New Amsterdam into New York. I love the flashbacks. I hope they don't cancel this show because I am very picky with what I watch. Because I am busy during the March air times, I hope FOX looks at the amount of people using its on Demand service. That is the way I watch a lot of their shows since my computer screen has high definition unlike my t.v.

It is the one of the only shows I watch every week. I recommend it to anyone who has a brain, which is why I do not recommend CSI and Law and Order. Even though New Amsterdam uses the idea of an immortal similar to Highlander doesn't mean it is a bad show. I mean how many shows right now are like CSI and Law and Order. New Amsterdam has this European flare going, which is what New York is at its core.

I think it's too easy to say NA is similar to "Highlander," simply because its lead character is immortal. While McLeod cannot die unless beheaded, he, and his fellow immortal Nick Knight, are immortal primarily defined by their supernatural natures. The great appeal of John Amsterdam (or York, or Dutch, or any of his other aliases) is that he is a relatively ordinary man who, by virtue of having lived in New York since the 17th century, has learned much and experienced more. None of us is likely to picture ourselves as McLeod or Knight, but practically anyone can imagine that given the right circumstances, we could be John Amsterdam. He is extremely human, not at all superhuman....except for that one thing. He cannot die, not until he finds and commits to The One. It is refreshing to find a sci-fi story framed in a police setting in which the crimes are the least interesting parts of the hour we spend with him. We want to see more of John with his son, Omar. We want to go back into his past. Unfortunately, I at least have no desire to see him further his relationship with the woman he believes is The One.

Well, there's nothing really new here that vigilant couch potatoes haven't seen before. "New Amsterdam" follows the Highlander formula almost to the letter, although the protagonist is a cop instead of a pretentious art dealer.

Good-looking haunted 400 year old hero? Check. Flashback sequences? Check. Supporting cast who is clueless about his history? Check. A mortal confidant? Check. I kept waiting for someone to jump out of the shadows with a sword and shout "There can be only one!!!" Maybe it'll happen in Episode 2.

New Amsterdam has good production values, a strong cast, and likable characters. The plot for the pilot was nothing special -- a standard cop-show plot is all we'll find here. There's a murder and you can bet our hero will solve it by the end of the episode. Pretty standard. The most promising plot hook comes from the what we can see as a possible developing love triangle. Our hero, you see, may have found his soul-mate in a random woman on the subway, the woman he has sought for centuries, whose love will finally allow him to grow old. At the same time, there's a very real chemistry between him and his new female partner.

Again, it's NYPD Highlander. It's not necessarily original, but it is still very watchable. No swords, though.

Today I watched the pilot for this, I am very excited to see if it makes it to prime time television. I think this series carries all of the elements of success, suspense-drama-action-romance-history, I learned a lot while watching the episode as well as being intrigued by the main character "Amsterdam". I'm not going to ruin it for anyone, but I think this show definitely has the potential to make it. A basic explanation of the plot is that Amsterdam is a homicide detective who is brilliant, mysterious, reckless, magnetic, unknowable. And he has a profound secret – he is immortal. That is all the information that I can give without this being a "spoiler". But, the show looks promising and the theme song, by the Decemberists, is also great.

I really hope Fox actually gives this one a chance.

I find the premise for this show really intriguing, and the lead actor Nicolai Coaster-Waldau is just about the best thing on television. He plays this character with depth and the right mix of sadness and wit. The rest of the cast is excellent as well. I hope Fox gives this show another shot next season because I'd love to see more of this story develop. I like the references to the past of New York, a city with some of the most interesting backstory in this country. That alone will give the show plenty to draw on for episodes. I loved the montage of pictures of Times Square...keep the period details accurate though (tee-pees!?)and that the glued beards don't look too cheesy!