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Post by Duchess of Lashes on Mar 10, 2008 19:22:08 GMT -5
Speaking of FOX, has anyone else checked out New Amsterdam? I thoroughly enjoyed the Pilot, a nice introduction to a series that promises to be (if FOX gives it a chance that is - something they aren't great at) - a very welcome addition for those of us who do enjoy the supernatural, genre shows. I thought it would be hard to accept a 400 year-old "immortal" without thinking vampire, but I found that to be a nice little oddity too. The leads are very well cast - he brings a certain low key sexiness to the role, is a very sympathetic but sarcastic character. She (his partner) seems perfectly juxtaposed to him, a soft yet strong presence.
Golden Boy was a very mature second episode for such a freshman offering, with several interesting plot twists. So far, there appears to be much promise to build on, IMHO. Monday nights just got a whole bunch more interesting.
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Post by rducasey on Mar 10, 2008 19:34:02 GMT -5
Speaking of FOX, has anyone else checked out New Amsterdam? I thoroughly enjoyed the Pilot, a nice introduction to a series that promises to be (if FOX gives it a chance that is - something they aren't great at) - a very welcome addition for those of us who do enjoy the supernatural, genre shows. I thought it would be hard to accept a 400 year-old "immortal" without thinking vampire, but I found that to be a nice little oddity too. The leads are very well cast - he brings a certain low key sexiness to the role, is a very sympathetic but sarcastic character. She (his partner) seems perfectly juxtaposed to him, a soft yet strong presence. Golden Boy was a very mature second episode for such a freshman offering, with several interesting plot twists. So far, there appears to be much promise to build on, IMHO. Monday nights just got a whole bunch more interesting. Yes, Lori, I did as well enjoy the Pilot and the Golden Boy episode, and plan to watch it tonight. There have been quite a few good twists already. (Omar! What a surprise). I have been checking out the board on imdb and seems to be lots of fans, but they don't think it will make it past the six episodes in the can. The general concensus seems to be that it will just be a mid season filler, and then goodbye.....we have seen that before. But I will watch the six episodes and see what I think then. But at this point, I would like to see it get picked up. |
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Post by Duchess of Lashes on Mar 10, 2008 19:42:42 GMT -5
Yeah, Omar. Who would have thunk it? There are so many clever, original and unique little ideas here (love the dogs and how he has named them!) A Soldier's Heart was another terrific episode - I find myself really drawn to this character of Amsterdam; appreciating how his vast history is woven into the storyline, the effect that history has on his outlook toward crime and criminal. The partnership is strengthening too, and I think she is becoming much more comfortable with him, amazed sometimes by his knowledge...but she is not too young to teach him a thing or two either. The ending....unexpected! I so hope that those who have given this show a death sentence already are proven wrong! Far too many good offerings go by the wayside far too easily these days, to be replaced by way too much trashy reality television. It would be a shame to lose this one. |
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Post by inuvik on Mar 11, 2008 12:05:43 GMT -5
I watched an episode but I'm not sure which one it was. I can't really remember it really well, but I think I'll give it a miss.
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Post by Chris on Mar 11, 2008 17:09:03 GMT -5
The leads are very well cast - he brings a certain low key sexiness to the role, is a very sympathetic but sarcastic character. I just HAVE to point out that the actor playing the lead role is Danish.... ;D I would love for one of our networks to pick this up, if for nothing else then just to watch Nikolaj being 400 years old!!!  - Chris  |
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Post by Duchess of Lashes on Mar 11, 2008 19:31:32 GMT -5
I just HAVE to point out that the actor playing the lead role is Danish.... ;D I would love for one of our networks to pick this up, if for nothing else then just to watch Nikolaj being 400 years old!!! - Chris Ah, yes, 400 years.....I can't remember anyone from any of my favorite genre shows who has worn that age better than he does! My other favorite immortal, Mick St. Johh, is a mere child in comparison at 85! |
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Post by carl1951 on Mar 11, 2008 23:21:41 GMT -5
And the Dr. introduced him to her husband.
I've been enjoying the show. Lucy has described it pretty good.
She said the Indian Medicine women from the past looks like the Dr. who declared him dead. Has anyone noticed it?
I'm interested in it because of the Past Life aspect, Except it's more of a continuation of a past life. Very different and quirky.
Later, Carl
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Post by Chris on Mar 12, 2008 17:59:28 GMT -5
Ah, yes, 400 years.....I can't remember anyone from any of my favorite genre shows who has worn that age better than he does! My other favorite immortal, Mick St. Johh, is a mere child in comparison at 85! Just caught a preview of the show on youtube - he certainly does look good for a 400 year-old - Chris |
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Post by Duchess of Lashes on Mar 12, 2008 18:15:35 GMT -5
Lucy has described it pretty good. She said the Indian Medicine women from the past looks like the Dr. who declared him dead. Has anyone noticed it? I'm interested in it because of the Past Life aspect, Except it's more of a continuation of a past life. Very different and quirky. Later, Carl Interesting concept - I didn't notice that but will have to go back and take a look. So many aspects of this show are different and quirky - a crime drama with a bit of a twist, a police procedural with without the procedure. So far, it has been most entertaining. |
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Post by Duchess of Lashes on Mar 12, 2008 19:07:23 GMT -5
One of the best reviews of New Amsterdam I have seen - and clears up the mystery of where I had seen "John Amsterdam" somewhere before (of course a quick check of IMDB would have cleared it up too)- he played one of the two Rangers who volunteered to secure the crash site and ultimately died trying to save Michael Durant's (Ron Eldard) life in Blackhawk Down.
By GLENN GARVIN - The Miami Herald
Edition Date: 03/03/08
Veteran homicide detective John Amsterdam knows every rat-trap bar and hotel back staircase in New York City, not to mention just about every way there is to murder another human being, from decapitation to disembowelment. He isn't impressed.
"Cynicism isn't just a pose," he broods. "It's what gets you through the day ... Everything gets old. Except me."
He isn't kidding. Blessed - or perhaps cursed - by an Indian spell 375 years ago, Amsterdam is immortal. He'll never die or even age until he meets his one true love. And his pursuit of murderers is motivated as least as much by a fascination with their ability to end life as it is any abstract sense of justice. "No one gets to die today," he declares as he disarms one gunman, with something like longing.
If the premise of "New Amsterdam," a Fox drama originally scheduled for last fall that makes its delayed debut Tuesday, sounds a little comic-bookish, the show's execution is anything but. This tale of a lonely cop left behind by everyone - partners, friends, lovers, even the criminals he pursues - has a piercing melancholy that elevates it way above its fantasy trappings.
Amsterdam, deftly played by "Black Hawk Down's" Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, fell under the spell when he saved an Indian maiden from a soldier under his command back when New York was a colonial village. It included a catch - his biological clock would start ticking only when he encountered his one true love. Much of the story that frames "New Amsterdam" is built around his search for that woman, whose presence (if not identity) is presumably signaled by a massive heart attack Amsterdam suffers on a crowded subway platform.
But the motor on which "New Amsterdam" runs is neither superhero caricature nor romantic piffle. It's a haunting mediation on memory and mortality. When, in the course of an investigation, Amsterdam encounters an old lover now settling into the embrace of Alzheimer's, her eyes brighten momentarily as she gazes into his still-young face.
"Do I know you?" she wonders. "Not anymore," he replies so softly you can hear a heart break.
Providing capable support are Zuleikha Robinson ("Rome") as Amsterdam's perplexed police partner, Alexie Gilmore ("Definitely Maybe") as a doctor who's on the trail of his secret, and stage actor Stephen Henderson as a pal who owns a seedy jazz joint.
But the main attraction is Coster-Waldau and his measured, affecting portrayal of an emotionally withered man whose only attachment is to the intellectual challenge of his work and is keenly aware of the irony.
"To die is what makes life worth living," observes Amsterdam. "It's God's joke."
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Post by Duchess of Lashes on Mar 12, 2008 19:14:02 GMT -5
Interesting concept - I didn't notice that but will have to go back and take a look. So many aspects of this show are different and quirky - a crime drama with a bit of a twist, a police procedural with without the procedure. So far, it has been most entertaining. I too am enjoying this show. And the eye candy is very nice too. I am struck though by some huge plot holes....like when he "died " on the subway platform...a cop with a badge and a gun, and I would assume ID. He is brought to the hospital, and declared dead, and wakes up naked in the morgue but manages to find his things, (including his badge and gun) and get dressed and back to the squad without anyone noticing? True! But it's not like we haven't seen plot holes before, right? Maybe that's what took place behind the scenes during the commercial break??  |
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Post by shmeep on Mar 13, 2008 8:22:10 GMT -5
I recorded the first and third episodes (the second was on a Thursday when I was already watching two other shows so I had to miss it) and I caught up last night. Finally! I had been avoiding this thread because I didn't want anything given away.
I absolutely love this show and I really hope enough people do for it to be picked up. Very interesting. The eye candy alone is almost reason enough to watch. That Danish man with the unpronounceable name and the hint of accent is mesmerizing. Even better is the story and how it is all melded together with what he's encountering at the moment.
My favorite thing so far is the way he is constantly telling everyone the truth about his past and accomplishments and how nobody ever believes him. That's a nice twist. You would think such a character would be guarding his secret, but this guy is always blurting out dates and years and past accomplishments that would be seemingly impossible and people just roll their eyes and say "Yeah, right" and that's the end of it. That cracks me up every time.
I couldn't help but notice some Blind Justice similarities while watching. Here's a New York cop...with a twist! Something that can be a vulnerability as well as a strength. A different take on things. He's the one who always gets a different vibe on a case and he generally turns out to be right. Oh, and did I mention that he's distractingly good looking? That's another similarity.
The love story and the the flashbacks are what set this apart from other procedurals for me. Even the cases don't bother me because they're really well done and they evoke a lot of the flashbacks and that adds a poignancy generally missing from run-of-the-mill procedurals.
I love that this is a man who has taken the time given him and has used it to learn and to teach and to create. He's been a doctor and a history professor and an artist (making those tables) and a father however many times and a photographer and now a detective...I'm sure there are many plot holes, but I find myself not minding. I'm intrigued.
There's only six in the can? That really sucks. I want this show to go on.
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Post by rducasey on Mar 13, 2008 15:04:59 GMT -5
I am really loving this show too, and you are sure right about the eye candy. Wow, he is very nice. In case you missed any episodes, I found two sites to download it. One is Fox.com, and the other is seat42f.com/site/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1776&Itemid=214I just checked and all three of them are on there still. I do so love all the flashbacks and seeing his past occupations. How about the Walt Whitman connection in the last one? There always seems to be a surprise at the end. But the biggest surprise was the dr's comment to him at the very end. Don't want to give it away if people have not watched it yet. Oh and thanks for all the birthday wishes....I am having a great birthday, and waiting for the family to arrive with our dinner and a cake.... We call it "portable party." |
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Post by Chris on Mar 13, 2008 17:05:33 GMT -5
The eye candy alone is almost reason enough to watch. That Danish man with the unpronounceable name and the hint of accent is mesmerizing. Karma, Shmeep!!! The comment on the unpronounceable name had me laughing out loud!!!! ;D On the IMDB board they are debating how to pronounce it correctly and not even the Danes agree on how to explain it properly, so you're not the only one wondering, Shmeep. Here's a guide on how to pronounce his name: Nikolaj is pronounced Nik-O-Lie Coster would be like Costa (Rica) And then there is Waldau... Val (as in "Val Kilmer")-dow(as in the stock name "Dow Jones") Here you go, not that hard, eh??? ;D Mary, thank you for the links. I tried downloading the Pilot but it's not possible to download it outside of the US. Bummer!  Guess I have to wait for a Danish network to pick it up... - Chris |
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Post by Duchess of Lashes on Mar 13, 2008 18:21:42 GMT -5
The eye candy alone is almost reason enough to watch. That Danish man with the unpronounceable name and the hint of accent is mesmerizing. Even better is the story and how it is all melded together with what he's encountering at the moment. My favorite thing so far is the way he is constantly telling everyone the truth about his past and accomplishments and how nobody ever believes him. That's a nice twist. You would think such a character would be guarding his secret, but this guy is always blurting out dates and years and past accomplishments that would be seemingly impossible and people just roll their eyes and say "Yeah, right" and that's the end of it. That cracks me up every time. One of my favorite aspects of the show too - and something I didn't want to mention in that initial post as I wasn't sure who was or wasn't or would be tuning in...wouldn't have done to give anything away as I think the discovery of all the little twists and turns in this offering is part of its charm....of course, just part of the charm....afterall, there is that obvious eye candy! And his portrayal of John Amsterdam is for lack of a better term, simply wonderful! It is unfortunate that there are only 6 in the can - not sure what the future holds yet - numbers are pretty good but not great - definite wishful thinking on my part that something I actually enjoy might make it past the first few episodes? Wouldn't that be a switch! |
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Guess I have to wait for a Danish network to pick it up...