Life: Season One [DVD]

I have run out of words for the utter disgust I feel towards the NBC network. They really, REALLY screwed up by canceling this INCREDIBLE show called Life. The peacock network has a habit of arrogantly canceling shows long before their time. They do away with quality programming for lesser quality shows that cost them pennies to produce. All they care about is the bottom line. If it's too expensive, too smart or high quality, you can forget about it having a long life on this networkk. It started with Surface. Remember the wonderfully creative show about oceanographers back in 2005/2006? If not, it's no wonder. They cancelled that after one season. Just one. They didn't bother to look beyond the numbers. If they had, they would have seen a very large fan base of loyal viewers. Surface went on to be one of the best selling TV series on DVD, still being steadily purchased almost 4 years later. And now we have Life. A show that was so unique, so intelligent, so funny, so high quality, so well scripted and acted that it's unlike any other show I've seen. Damian Lewis, Sarah Shahi & Adam Arkin were unbelievable in bringing deep, sensitive, complex characters to life. Sure, NBC gave Life two seasons, but wasn't fair to it when it was on. Like another reviewer mentioned, they bounced it all around the schedule like a rubber ball. They didn't promote it; I barely saw commercials when it was on. So instead of backing the show, putting their faith behind it, they just canned it like everything else that's good. Didn't even think twice. All for that so-brilliant idea of putting Leno on at 10 (robbing 5 shows a spot in prime time). What a great business move, guys! NBC shouldn't have to look further than their own decisions to figure out why they are failing miserably as a network, and why they don't have one hit show right now. Surface. Life. It's a miracle that Heroes is still on the air. They are so unfair to their shows in a way that's just beyond sad. NBC is chock full of executives who are their own worst enemies, and then scratch their heads as to why they fail. We, the viewers, suffer more than anyone. BRING BACK LIFE!!!!! But, if you are reading this review and haven't seen LIFE, I HIGHLY recommend it. It's amazing. Truly unique.

Like other great shows before it, "Life," (whose poor title is possibly its main liability) is an exceptionally intelligent and creative show that the general public is missing. The centerpiece of the show is the fasinating character Charlie Crews played to perfection by Damian Lewis. As a wrongly convicted cop who survived prison on guts and zen, he now works to solve the mystery of who framed him while continuing on as a detective with the LAPD. There isn't a single moment he's on the screen that doesn't entertain on some level and there's no doubt it's his show. Watch any one episode and tell me Lewis isn't getting screwed by Emmy. Leading the rest of the cast is Sarah Shahi playing Charlie's partner Dani Reese. Her knockout looks are impossible to ignore, even in Dani's dowdy, recovering addict attire. But it's too easy to stop there. I consistently enjoy Shahi's straight-man role to Charlie's quirks and find her portrayal of Dani to be a very real and intregal part of the show. Oh, did I mention, she's great looking. Like I said, it's Charlie's show and comparing others to him is unfair. Adam Arkin also brings good chemistry to the series as Charlie's former prison mate who now serves as his money manager. Arkin's droll sense of humor is always spot-on and he's a fine actor as well. For those who missed season one, or like me, just want to see it again, this DVD collection is a good buy at $20 or less. Watch "Life" for it's great dialogue, interesting plots, original characters and tremendous casting that includes several favorites from another unfinished masterpiece, "Deadwood." I hate to say it but it's probably too good to last.

Once you've seen one episode of CSI or Law and Order, you've seen them all - And that's fine for a lot of people. Those shows are comfort food. They give you the same thing week in and week out, so you can be comfortable knowing that there won't be any huge surprises and that you can miss a week or two or three and not lose any of the continuity - because there isn't any. Life had those characteristics, too. Week to week, the two detectives, Crews and Reese, investigated different cases and solved them within the obligatory one hour time-frame, just like they do it on CSI. Those weekly stories made up 50-60% of the show. The GOOD part of this show (what made it so much more than a normal police procedural) was the other 40-50% of the story that focused on the lives of Crews and Reese. I won't go into details that have already been discussed by other reviewers, but this was a character driven show with VERY interesting and well written/acted characters. That's why it held my interest when all the other police procedurals (OK, except "The Inside", which was also outstanding and should be put on dvd ASAP) bore me to sleep. This show is special. If you like the ordinary police procedurals, there's a good chance you'll also like "Life". If you want more from your characters, look no further (except again, "The Inside" - man, that was awesome) than "Life". This one has something for everybody.

Even a few years after having been (indefensibly) nixed this continues to be one of the best balanced Police/Drama series ever produced. Not only is the premise interesting and intriguing, the characters themselves have been very richly fleshed and there is not one bit of over-acting during the two seasons the show lasted. Every episode was self contained and extremely entertaining; additionally each episode would add bits of pieces to the puzzle of why such calamity had befallen Charley Crews and who had betrayed him and why. I watched this show after it was cancelled on HULU +. No other series I have watched and enjoyed in the past even comes close to the entertainment quality this one imbued with. I found NBCs decision to cancel this show after a mere 2 seasons (a shorter first and a regular second) baffling. Even though I found this series head and shoulders above good shows like "The wire" or "Lost" , NBC saw its way clear to extinguish it just as things were white hot with the series. To their credit at least they did not just cancel it w/o some measure of closure ( the Canadian series INTELLIGENCE comes to mind here). Though forced it was at least a feeble attempt at an organized flipping of the off switch. This is one series well worth watching.

It's a great series. The writing is good, and the casting is excellent! While is seems to be a 'police procedural', don't expect any of the processing at crime scenes to be realistic. The series is about the underlying story, and the relationships of the characters. I enjoyed both seasons.

This is a wry and dry entertainment that is quite good and enjoyable to watch. The only quarrel I have with it is that 43 minutes (give or take) is too little to tell a story that doesn't rely entirely on bang-bang with guns or words. The star, Damian Lewis, is just right for the part, (or the part was written to be just right for him), carrying off the role of the police officer who served a wrongful dozen years in prison, with a proper mix of the fey and the aggressive in pursuit of the real killer in that case, as well as the cases now assigned to him. As his new partner on the police force, Sarah Shahi, nicely fills the role of the more aggressive of the two, without descending into the current curse for policewomen (and other females in authority positions) on television: over aggressiveness, arrogance, a constant in your face attitude and superwoman command of every means of physical aggression. They are tiresome; her trimmed down version makes a good counterpart to the completely laid back Lewis. Adam Arkin, makes and excellent but not obtrusive ex-con buddy fo Lewis. He hits the special demands of that buddy role, present but never over-shadowing the star, just right. So, season one, a good start for what could be a long lasting show.

This show was amazing and I'm still bummed it was ended so early. Synopsis: Damian Lewis plays Charlie Crews, an LAPD cop, who was convicted of murder for the deaths of his good friend, the friend's wife and their young son. He was sentenced to life in prison but after 12 years he was released due to DNA evidence proving his innocence. Because of his false imprisonment the city of LA settled out of court with Charlie for $50 million, the return of his badge and a guarantee from Charlie that he won't investigate his own case. Now with a new lease on life and a new partner (the beautiful Sarah Shahi) with a troubled past Charlie is determined to be the best cop he can be using the Zen techniques he learned in prison and at the same time secretly find out who really killed his friends and sent him to prison for life. Season 1 is amazing and so well written it had me going to pick up my own Zen CD. Sarah Shahi and Damian Lewis have this great on-sceen chemistry that makes this a great buddy cop show without being hokey. Because it was in the middle of the writer's strike Season 2 just didn't have the same impact but it's still worth a watch

This series is about a cop who goes to prison for 12 years for a crime he does not commit and is finally exonerated because his DNA doesn't match anything in the crime scene. Part of his settlement is that he can go back to work as a detective, and his experiences give him a unique perspective when investigating crimes. All he wants is to get on with his life, get past what has happened, and just be a happy person, however, knowing that the person who did the crime he was sent away for will not let him go until he finds out what happened. The series is excellent... I can't say enough good about it, I just love it. It is very intelligent, funny, serious, and just plain good. Unfortunately, this series is another victim of the writers strike and was cancelled in it's second season, but is still worth watching. Just watch it... you won't regret it.