The show is a mishmash of a dozen other properties, especially
New Amsterdam (blatantly so, but then that was very much like a novel called
Forever from 2003 which was similar to a Canadian show called
Forever Night from 1992 about an immortal vampire detective, so the circle of life continues),
Sherlock/
Elementary/
House, and
Unbreakable, but I've enjoyed it nonetheless. Gruffold's personality and delivery does go a long way toward overcoming some of the issues
Dennis mentioned, but I'm a sucker for these immortal fish out of water stories.
Anyone else think Detective Garza's "dead" husband is the 2,000 year old guy stalking Mr. Fantastic? That's my working theory, because they keep focusing on his story and showing his picture, and the guy on the phone sounds about the right age range. I think they're building up the story of Garza overcoming her grief and drinking problem so they can pull the rug out from under her later in the season.
Judd Hirsch is likeable in this, as is the lab assistant guy from
Avatar. I like the unique perspective of the immortal's child growing old alongside him while he remains the same age physically (again, just like
New Amsterdam); it shows how much emphasis we place on physical age as a marker of wisdom. And the lab assistant will be his social translator to the world and audience, essentially.
I agree with the poster above that his immortality does give him a genuine explanation for his extraordinary Holmesian powers of observation, because he's been studying humanity and death for over two centuries. However, one thing that bugs me is that both the pilot and the followup episode have relied on him reexamining the body of a victim in the freezer to discover some piece of evidence which any decent medical examiner should have picked up on their first autopsy. A medical examiner that couldn't find or didn't check for a needle puncture behind the ear and DNA evidence from the perp in the victim's teeth from a bite would probably not be long for the job. I know they withhold that information until later in the episode for the sake of drama and not finding the perp too soon, but it does kind of contradict his super powers of observation if he misses pretty basic and important parts of his job as the M.E.
Anyway, the show is not amazing but has kept my interest over the past two episodes, and I'm invested in the premise and the lead's performance. I hope to see it continue to improve as time goes on, and hopefully stick around as a replacement of sorts for
New Amsterdam, which I loved and was canceled too soon.