PilotWatch: A GIFTED MAN

CBS Fridays @ 8pm

What's it about?
A drama about a brilliant, charismatic surgeon whose life changes forever when his deceased ex-wife begins teaching him the meaning of life from the "hereafter."

So, how was it?
I have been a fan of Patrick Wilson since seeing him in HBO's miniseries ANGELS IN AMERICA.  I've followed his film career with great interest, from HARD CANDY to LITTLE CHILDREN to INSIDIOUS.  He's versatile, always believable, and not at all hard on the eyes.  Imagine my surprise when I found out he would be headlining a new drama on CBS.  I sincerely hoped that only a project of strong quality would be able to divert him from his burgeoning film career.  And thankfully, I was right.

The pilot was an incredibly intriguing and effective blend of genres -- between GREY'S ANATOMY-style cases and GHOST-style otherworldly visitations, this show could best be described as a medical fantasy -- not something you see very often.  But anchored by Mr. Wilson's grounded and believable performance, it succeeds.  Wilson as super-talented neurosurgeon Michael Holt is by turns arrogant, charming, insufferable, charismatic, disingenuous, and sincere.  The juxtaposition of his no-nonsense manner in the operating room with his completely unguarded interactions with his ex-wife (and later her ghost) is remarkable.  Matching him stride for stride is Jennifer Ehle as his ex, Anna.  She radiates an aura of kindness and genuineness that makes you want to listen to her every word.  (She managed the same feat in CONTAGION.)

Oh, and the rest of the cast is incredible, too.  Recent Emmy-winner Margo Martindale is terrific as always as Michael's beleaguered assistant.  Julie Benz lends her at-times-manic energy into a role that gives that energy room to breathe.  It wasn't necessarily always believable in the demure and broken Rita on DEXTER, but as Michael's hippy sister, it works.  Bill Irwin gives a particularly strong turn as a super-rich and ignorantly arrogant patient and friend of Michael's.  If A GIFTED MAN continues to pull in guest stars of such superb talent and pedigree, it could easily start matching THE GOOD WIFE's guest-star-palooza.

The premise of a world-renowned doctor suddenly having visions of his dead ex-wife is intriguing to me, particularly because of all the questions it raises.  Is she actually just a spirit, or will there be other explanations later?  If she is a spirit, can Michael be visited by other dead people?  What exactly is she there for?  How will her presence affect the plot of the show week by week?  These are all unspoken questions that the pilot raises that make me interested in seeing where this show goes next.  And with the quality of all the talent involved, I can't wait to find out.

Rating:
*** Solid. I'm interested and will definitely keep watching.
A unique premise and some very solid acting makes this a must-watch for fans of genre-blending dramas.  Much in the way that CBS's THE GOOD WIFE successfully blended the courtroom procedural with a political scandal story line, A GIFTED MAN succeeds in blending the medical with the fantastic.  Only time will tell if it attracts a similar audience and becomes a hit.  The only thing that worries me is that it's airing on Friday nights.  It is notoriously difficult to build an audience on Fridays, so hopefully CBS hasn't killed a good thing before it's even begun.

Take it away, Fellow Addicts!  What did you think of the genre-bending premise of the show?  Do you think it will draw audiences in or alienate them?  Or did you not even see it because it aired on Friday night?  Vote in the poll below and then hit the comments!

(For a quick glance at the other pilots coming out, check out my Fall TV Preview.)

What did you think of A GIFTED MAN?