The premise of Eli Stone, which premieres Thursday, Jan. 31, 2008 at 10 p.m. on ABC, is that Eli is a lawyer who starts seeing visions, and it's not clear whether they're the result of a prophetic gift or a developing aneurysm. But all anyone writing about this show seems interested in is what Eli sees in his visions. Or rather who, because the figure dominating Eli's hallucinations is veteran pop star George Michael.
That the appearance of Michael, who appears in the show playing himself, is integral to the show's concept is suggested by the episode titles ("Freedom," "Father Figure," etc.), the inclusion of the pop star in the promotion materials, and so on. The coverage has followed accordingly -- the lead quote in the TV Guide feature is from Michael, with quotes from the star and the creator following along rather later.
This is the sort of gimmick that makes a show sound desperate to seem quirky; comparisons have been drawn with Ally McBeal, who also saw strange things (remember the dancing baby?) that made for great promo clips. The real question is, is the ephemeral conceit of getting attention by using a talented but tainted pop star (at least they didn't go with Britney) the center of the show, or is there something deeper there?
Gift or Malady?
"Everything has two explanations, Eli: scientific and the divine," a character explains in the pilot episode. "It's up to us to decide which one to buy into." This character, "Doctor Chen" (James Saito), is emblematic of this divide, a Berkeley-trained philosopher who took up holistic medicine to make money. He suggests to Eli that his visions mean he's a messenger meant to guide people. Eli, whose successful life as an attorney is being turned upside down by hallucinations of low-flying biplanes, sudden thunderstorms, and George Michael performing on his coffee table while he has sex (which, yeah, does come across very Ally McBeal out of context), nonetheless seems willing to be persuaded. Perhaps Eli has seen Phenomenon, or maybe Powder, where the answer turned out to be both, though Eli Stone is far less self-absorbed than these and most other excursions into the mysteries of altered brains.
Eli himself is played by Jonny Lee Miller, a British actor (are all sci-fi/fantasy shows eventually going to star Brits playing Americans? Did Dresden Files start this?) who had the misfortune to co-star in last year's swiftly-canceled Smith (when will Hollywood learn that nobody likes Ray Liotta?), Aeon Flux, Melinda and Melinda, and other ill-fated projects. Some people may know him as Angeline Jolie's ex-husband, which is as helpful as any of his other credits.
The rest of the cast looks pretty strong, with the ace supporting actor Victor Garber (Alias, Titanic, Legally Blonde and much more) leading a cast that includes Natasha Henstridge (the Species trilogy and, uh, She Spies), Loretta Devine (Grey's Anatomy, Crash, Boston Public), Sam Jaeger (Lucky Number Slevin), and Julie Gonzalo (Veronica Mars).
Eli Stone is billed as a legal show with strangeness added in (another reminder of Ally McBeal), and the courtroom plot of the pilot -- involving mercury in a vaccine causing autism -- has generated some controversy, as medical organizations say such a link has been discredited. This plotline is, however, incidental to the basic issue of how Eli relates to his condition and/or mission.
So far Miller seems likable and game enough to play a character that comes to embrace personal embarrassment and inconvenience in the service of helping others. Unfortunately this has the effect of reminding me not of Ally, or Touched By an Angel (another suggested influence), but of the much-missed Journeyman, which also featured a British actor playing a successful American professional who finds meaning in initially unwelcome experiences that help him guide others, and which may have a scientific or a mystical explanation. Sigh.
Eli Stone has all 13 episodes in the can, so at least we'll be able to see all of what the producers had in mind for this first half-season, especially since its lead-in (Lost) should ensure a good audience (but we said that about Journeyman, too). Bottom line: If they can spin the George Michael thing beyond being a gimmick, and chart Miller on a course of discovering himself through these quirky visions, we might have something here worth watching.
