Wallpaper & Review: "Person of Interest"

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There's a wonderful feeling of watching a pilot to a new show and thinking "Oh wow! This is going to be my new fave show!!" Well that's exactly what happened when I watched 'Person of Interest'. And not only did each next episode I saw confirm my first suspicions, but they somehow kept getting better and making me more and more of a fan!

There are definite differences between a show being one you just watch and appreciate and being one that becomes a favorite for ever and all time. First off, there's the amount of time you devote to it when you AREN'T in front of the TV watching an episode - you discuss it endlessly with other fans, you read the speculation/spoilers/discussion threads at the forums, you try and predict where the storylines are going to go next, you surf all its sites for promotional photos and screenshots, you cycle those photos as your desktop/mobile wallpaper, you follow its Twitter and leave comments about fave scenes, you count the days til when the next episode is going to air, you search out behind-the-scenes vids and interviews, you dream about it at night, you quote your fave one-liners every time one fits in the conversation (and even when they only sorta fit, lol!), you have the itch to do something creative off of it, you memorize all the episode titles and character names and actors who portray them, you look up the actors on IMDB to see if there's anything else you can watch them in while waiting for next week's episode, you realise that if you were still a kid you'd be playing adventures of the characters inbetween chores and schoolwork (or even during ;P)... And secondly, you want to recommend the show to everybody you know, including linking it into your blog or Facebook or whatever you use to list your top fave things.

Yep, when it comes to POI, I totally have all the symptoms!

This series is a slick-yet-comfortable, sci-fi-ish, could've-made-a-comic-book-or-anime, well-written and acted drama, starring the beautiful, oh-so-intense, masterful Jim Caviezel, the unique, riveting, so-glad-he-gets-to-play-good-this-time Michael Emerson, the awesome, talented, tough-without-it-being-forced Taraji P. Henson, and the fantastic, funny, adorably gruff Kevin Chapman. POI has so many things that I desire in a show and cause me to adore it to pieces:

1. Episodes that contain continuity beyond the obvious over-arching mythology. For example, I loved how in "Blue Code" they referenced an element brought up nine episodes previously in "The Fix".

2. Characters that you can really get behind and call 'Awesome!!'

3. Superb character interaction. The sort that makes you laugh out loud, or gasp, or bring a tear to your eye. The relationship between Finch and Reese is so dynamic and so perfect, it has so many levels to it and the writers can push it in any direction too - they will at times play it for laughs with Reese and Finch poking digs at each other, then put in some 'OMG, where's this going to lead?' interaction, like with Reese snooping out Finch's real past, and then at other times they'll have endearing moments that get the fangirl in me squeeing when one of them will be concerned over the other's safety/well-being. And it's not just their relationship that is kept dynamic, all four of the main stars' characters have interesting dynamics between them, that also keep growing and changing throughout.

4. Quotability. Oh how I love quotable quotes! You know the type :D "I recommend the eggs benedict", "I don't particularly like killing, but I'm very good at it", "THAT is what we do", "So you're saying being hired by a fourteen year old boy to take care of his brother's killers isn't working out as planned?", "I always pictured you in the backseat of my squad car - of course I thought it'd be in handcuffs", smugly: "It worked", "It's still a grenade!", and so many more!

5. Badass heroic action!! I mean, when Reese takes on a gang of bad guys like he was some sort of major superhero dude, or uses a gun so big you can't help but stare to take on a moving vehicle and rescue someone, it's electric! I have to admit that these scenes make me giddy and I find I watch them with more satisfaction sometimes than the scenes devoted to telling the story that week, lol. And I'm not a person who likes violence, not by a long shot!, I just LOVE seeing someone get to do good and save lives while not letting ANY sort of rules and regulations - or anything else that unintentionally impedes justice - get in his way or slow him down. So yeah, I'm kinda addicted to those "Woohoo, go, Reese! Save the day!" moments :D

6. Little nuances that mean so much - things that you might miss and need to watch the episodes over and over to really absorb and notice how it all fits together and bears on elements from both previous and subsequent episodes. POI does this without being all a scene is hinged on however, which is good, cos I hate when a show does do it like that and then if you don't pay close enough attention you're lost!

7. Classy, exciting, and varied settings. Basically anything that can be iconic and that sets scenes apart from other scenes. Finch's abandoned-library headquarters is really cool, and the show is always finding some cool-looking area to stage fights, chases, conversations...

I do hope POI gets a nice long run (though not so long it goes downhill. Three seasons might be just right). I'm quite happy that's it's been picked up for a second season, cos this will mark it as pretty much the first time I was insane about a new show and it didn't get axed in its infancy.