Looking to get off the island?

With the show Lost having killed off another major character this week, a number of my work colleagues have joined me by jumping off the Lost caravan.

If you want a show to gain your interest, my I suggest Criminal Minds with Mandy Patinkan and . This is the second season in a row that Criminal Minds has been up against Lost and two weeks ago was the first time it is starting to regularly win that timeslot. Even people in the media like the LA Times critic Scott Collins are starting to recognize Criminal Minds as better television over Lost.

Admittedly, I find the show pretty gruesome as it is about a group of FBI profilers who attempt to solve ongoing serial killer cases around the United States. Patinkin is the reason to watch the show. He has been a terrific actor both on stage and on screen for years. He is probably best known for his role as Inigo Montoya in the Princess Bride. Why his line, "My name is Inigo Montoya! You killed my father prepare to die!" is so famous is beyond me. However, that is a pretty good swordfight scene.

Than he starred in Chicago Hope. A tv show I wanted to watch but since it started the same year as ER, I only had room for one hospital drama, I decided on the more successful ER.

Top 5 George Clooney films
1. Ocean's Eleven
2. Out Of Sight
3. Good Night, And Good Luck
4. Three Kings
5. The Peacemaker

Just before Criminal Minds, Patinkin was in a little known cable show on Showtime called Dead Like Me. It only lasted two seasons, but was a really funny show about a group of grim reapers whose responsibility is to live on earth like humans but have a job where they must reap souls who die in horrible accidents getting them ready for the other side. Admittedly, it was pretty dark subject matter. But I liked the way they treated it like any other job.

Patinkin is also a reknowned Broadway actor and when in New York, he had a running gag on The Late Show with David Letterman. He and the late Tony Randall would run on stage in the middle of the show, Patinkin would give Letterman's bandleader Paul Shaffer some sheet music and he would then sing a song backed by Shaffer and the band. All the while, Randall would be standing in the background looking completely annoyed. Patinkin would just belt out a song (he has a great voice) and he and Randall would then run off stage. And no further mention would be made. It was both hilarious and ridiculous.



Anyway, getting back to Criminal Minds...wow, did I go off track...the show looks like a CSI copy but for one thing, they are helping solve ongoing cases and actually save people as opposed to all the CSI shows which are more after-the-fact type cases. Plus, they have two ongoing "schticks" that make the show stand out over all the others. First, when discussing cases, the background behind the actor often disappears and then the character finds himself in the middle of the scene in which he is talking about. As well, since the characters often have to go to small towns to help the police catch the killer, there is always a scene in which all the members of the team talk to the police. The camera whips around in a circle as each member of the team explains the type of killer they are actually looking for. These scenes are among the best directed things on television right now.

The only problem with the show is the rest of the team. Just filled with cliches. The tough black guy, the rookie genius, the hot blonde, the hot brunette, the quirky computer tech and the straight laced guy. Though these characters are well written so, once you watch the show, you do get to like all the members of the team. It is just a matter of getting people TO watch this show. But as Lost continues to go downhill...this is clearly becoming less and less of a problem.