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SunshineStateGirl
Reviews
Limitless (2015)
Excellent show - combines drama with warmth, wit and cleverness
I love this show. I was initially concerned because of the movie of the same title but this series has a totally different tone, reveals characters with greater depth and utilizes some clever scripting techniques. Bradley Cooper does have a recurring role, playing the same character from the movie but the main character, Brian Finch, is played (very well) by Jake McDorman. Jake, now in his late twenties, is a bit of an underachiever with greater dreams than ambitions. Through a series of bad choices and bad timing he ends up in a difficult situation working with both the FBI and unbeknown to them, a more sinister controller in the wings. The show uses a variety side bars to illustrate Jake's decision making process and conflict between his two masters. These sidebars also highlight that as an ordinary guy - Brian is neither trained nor prepared to deal with the serious issues of FBI cases. Brian has a father that is stern but concerned that he admires; a handler that is serious and dedicated that he doesn't want to hurt her or her career and additional agents that provide some of the running humor lines in the story. Go, watch from the beginning and get hooked.
Signed, Sealed, Delivered (2013)
Heartwarming show
I really love this show; I will say if you're looking for a realistic portrayal of life in a post office - that's not the purpose of this show. What the post office does offer is a creative backdrop; the characters are slightly quirky - not quirky in a scary, or disrespectful way but quirky in that they seem almost from another time; a time when gentleness, decency and respect were commonplace - not quirky.
The episode involving the bank vault and the love letters was IMO a work of art. First it highlighted the lost art of letter writing; the words in this episode conveyed as much emotion as any canvas I've seen. And then there's the developing relationship between Oliver and Shane; it was amazing the feelings that are demonstrated by restraint.
And that is one reason I enjoy this show; it shows true and pure emotion. I hate to resort to describing a show by what it is not but where so many series rely on visual cues to stimulate us with lust, passion, and sex, Signed, Sealed, Delivered relies on words and acting to remind us of the human capacity for love, compassion and concern.
There are accents of humor, enough to enhance flavor; but the meat of the show is our characters' weekly foray into finding the right thing to do; relying an man's innate ability to know right, even when it isn't in the rules.