Series premiere review: 'The Mob Doctor' - 'Pilot': Dumb debt
What did everybody think of the new FOX drama?
Jordana Spiro and Zach Gilford in "The Mob Doctor."
As I've said, I won't be writing reviews of every new fall series, but Dan and I did discuss "The Mob Doctor" at length on last week's podcast. The short version is that while I like Jordana Spiro in general, this is a combination of watered-down hospital drama and watered-down mob drama, and the combination not only doesn't make either half better, it makes both sillier. And even if I'd been more engaged by the pilot, the Spiro character's decision at the end felt so contrived and premise-sustaining that I likely would have bailed after that.
For those of you who watched tonight, what did you think? Were you just happy to have QB1 and Zeljko Ivanek back on TV, even in these roles? Did you prefer one half of the show to the other? Did you believe Spiro would make the decision she made? And will you watch again?
Have at it.
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Login or create a HitFix account Login SignupWar Chief Shake Zula
September 17, 2012 at 10:30PM EST Reply to CommentI went thru pretty much the same train of thought, as evidenced by my stream-of-consciousness tweets while watching the show. (for those interested, @TV_In_The_Shade) And no, I will not watch again.
MRichard04
September 17, 2012 at 10:30PM EST Reply to CommentShort answer: No, will not watch again. Decent premise but poor execution.
SlackerInc This.
September 23, 2012 at 7:13AM ESTMatt
September 17, 2012 at 10:36PM EST Reply to CommentI didn't watch it, but now I want to check it out. Even if you say it isn't good it has Zach Gilford(didn't know that before), and Zeljko Ivanek(once again didn't know that before today), I'm going to have to check it out just for them.
The weird thing though is in the promos for it I saw a lot of Ian Rappaport, yet Wiki(I know, not trustworthy) doesn't have him as a main character. Seems weird to have him all over the commercials, but not any, or barely any of Gilford or Ivanek.
Smigglesby Michael Rappaport, not Ian. And he's featured only in the pilot.
September 17, 2012 at 11:40PM ESTMike
September 17, 2012 at 10:38PM EST Reply to Commentwhat did she do at the end? spare me the hour and somebody just tell me.
War Chief Shake Zula I got as far as her agreeing to be indebted to the older mobster who took on the debt originally owed to the younger mobster who he shot dead in the yard. He literally offered to waive the debt and give her a new life right before she said yes.
September 17, 2012 at 10:44PM ESTWar Chief Shake Zula Point of reference, that was about three minutes before the end of the episode.
September 17, 2012 at 10:45PM ESTMoreTears
September 17, 2012 at 11:59PM EST Reply to CommentAll of the hospital stuff was horrible, and even the mob material that didn't involve William Forsythe was uninteresting. Forsythe brought the show alive, but he was hardly in the pilot, and that in and of itself was a big mistake when the pilot was being planned. I am going to have to give this one more episode to see what the show is like when Forsythe isn't so marginalized. But in all honestly I doubt I will be watching past episode 2.
CinemaPsycho
September 18, 2012 at 1:26AM EST Reply to CommentI'm calling it now - first cancellation of the season. Place your bets now!
Here's the pitch: "let's do a mob doctor show, that way we can use mafia cliches AND medical cliches!" Just bland and awful. I give it 6 episodes.
Andrew I think it will get canceled soon but neighbors is definitely the first to go
September 18, 2012 at 7:34AM ESTBob7
September 18, 2012 at 3:57AM EST Reply to CommentThe Newsroom is bad in interesting ways. The Mob Doctor is bad simply because it's uninteresting.
Bob7 And if I have this right, the head don gave her a choice: either leave the city or become the mob doctor. And she chose to be the latter, invalidating the whole conflict that's the premise of the show. Now she will get more orders to kill patients and other soul destroying work. Between helping the mob commit crime and leaving a city, what decent human being picks the mob?
September 18, 2012 at 4:02AM ESTSlackerInc Although I found the show lackluster, anodyne, and boring, I do have a kind of devil's advocate response on this point.
September 23, 2012 at 7:18AM ESTIf she continued to serve the mob just to keep her brother alive, she's sort of a hostage. That I guess could be interesting in its own way, but I think the idea is a little like Breaking Bad where they decided to give the main character a non-criminal "out" early in the first season so he would have to "own" his actions from there out. And I can respect that. She also knows she is dealing with a don who is more honourable than the one he replaced, so she can hope he won't ask her to kill people but only to treat injured mobsters.
Bob7 @SLACKERINC: If I remember correctly, her brother was taken off the hook. That debt was paid. Even if he is "honourable," I have a feeling he is going to ask her to do nasty work in the future--maybe even kill other people. Otherwise there wouldn't be a series.
September 24, 2012 at 3:11AM ESTSlackerInc @BOB7: The debt was omly paid if she left town.
September 24, 2012 at 11:08AM ESTWhy wouldn't there still be a series if she were not asked to kill anyone? Part of the show is not mob related (her personal life and her other hospital patients); and the shrink on The Sopranos was never asked to kill anyone.
I think the purpose of the pilot was twofold: to establish that she hasn't crossed, and won't cross, that line; and that her mob boss going forward is a "good" guy, as these things go.
jnemo1329
September 18, 2012 at 4:12AM EST Reply to CommentFOX has nothing to replace this with. No utility players, nothing that repeats well. Won't be first cancellation. I can see them eventually pumping out double Bones eps, but that will still be weak. Any cheap reality shows in the wings? No way they rush out the Kevin Bacon show. This Doc might be here to stay for 13 unless it starts doing half of what Bones does.
notWalt That logic didn't save Lone Star
September 18, 2012 at 3:15PM ESTtxt
September 18, 2012 at 4:46AM EST Reply to Commentthe mob doctor...remind me of cop rock.....
tim_masterson
September 18, 2012 at 7:22AM EST Reply to CommentHow much better would The Mob Doctor be if it were about Paulie Walnuts going to med school and becoming a doctor?
eakawie
September 18, 2012 at 8:17AM EST Reply to CommentLike I said on the Podcast post, there's a good show to be made with this premise, but this isn't it. A black comedy about a sleazy doctor who actually enjoys working for the mob- basically Saul Goodman, M.D. could be great.
I wonder if that's what was originally pitched, and this is what you wind up with after the development process and network notes.
SlackerInc Good point and interesting speculation!
September 23, 2012 at 7:18AM ESTChampSkins
September 18, 2012 at 8:44AM EST Reply to CommentTerra Nova and Alcatraz were both much better.
notWalt faint praise indeed
September 18, 2012 at 3:16PM ESTjdstorm
September 18, 2012 at 9:04AM EST Reply to CommentI just finished watching the pilot, and i posted something similar on Dan's slideshow.
Short answer. I liked it, and will watch again. tonally the show was a mess, but that's common among most pilots. everything else is in place for this to be a successful show. Everyone at the hospital felt comfortable, and had decent chemistry. If the MOB element takes a back seat and this becomes Grey's 2.0 with MOB elements only coming to the fore in event episodes this could be one of this years breakout hits. especially given its timeslot
SlackerInc Why would a show called "The Mob Doctor" push the mob elements to the "back seat" and just be another medical drama? That makes no sense.
September 23, 2012 at 7:19AM ESTjdstorm Why would how i met your mother introduce the mother before the final scene? Why isn't Courtney Cox still hitting on young guys in cougartown?
September 23, 2012 at 8:08AM ESTSometimes your premise outlives it's usefulness, and sometimes playing the exact same show 7 times a week makes you king of network TV. (Seriously whats the difference between (Hawaii 50, NCIS, NCIS:LA, CSI, CSI:NY, The Mentalist and criminal minds) If the MOB doctor was just another medical drama that was well done with occasional MOB elements to keep it fresh and different or was on CBS it would be a hit
SlackerInc Maybe it would be a hit, but it wouldn't be of interest to me. I guess all those shows you listed are hits (right?), but I've never seen a single episode of any of them, even though I watch more than my share of TV...
September 23, 2012 at 9:07AM ESTjdstorm I only watch one regularly/at all. (NCIS:LA has been pretty funny since Vaughn from community joined in season 2) They're All CBS shows so they do anything between Super Hit to Hit NBC would Kill For. But the main link i was going for was that they are all ensemble cop shows with a slight variation mostly location. Sometimes it great to watch a show do something simple well, with a likeable cast, unlike almost every critically acclaimed cable show where most people are pushing "ryan murphy show" levels of narcissism
September 23, 2012 at 10:57AM ESTSlackerInc I don't like Ryan Murphy shows either (at least the two I've seen: Glee and The New Normal). And I'm guilty of having cable shows on the top of my "all time best" list: Breaking Bad, Sopranos, Six Feet Under. But I do like some network shows: Parenthood, Community, Survivor, Happy Endings, Big Bang Theory, and Once Upon a Time come to mind. I don't watch many procedurals to be sure, although I loved AWAKE and still miss it months after it aired its final episode.
September 23, 2012 at 12:39PM ESTHollywood Anesthesia
September 18, 2012 at 12:57PM EST Reply to CommentThe medicine on this show is horrifically bad. The two doctors hook up while discussing a patient having a ruptured ectopic pregnancy, which in real life is a surgical emergency. They decided to make out more even though a little girl was bleeding to death.
The huge plot device of the lidocaine syringe being full of epinephrine. A surgeon would have no reason to use lidocaine on an incision prior to performing open heart surgery. They wouldn't even have it available on the surgical field.
pamelajaye not just that - there's no reason to put epi in a glass syringe (which it had to be - plastic doesn't shatter). Some drugs will eat thru plastic I think but epi isn't one of them.
September 24, 2012 at 12:25AM ESTAlso, reminded me of Mercy. Wasn't one of their docs working for criminals?
Please cancel this so I won't have to watch any more.
NeoGeo12
September 18, 2012 at 3:36PM EST Reply to CommentFox clearly having trouble producing some interesting Drama concepts. This show seems like generic stuff from the bottom barrel. They must regret canceling The Chicago Code, The Finder and Revamping Human Target in season 2 horribly than canceling it.
Just to have an hour drama to watch this season on Fox. I started Fringe last week so I can catch up in time for its season 5 premiere.
Teklanika
September 20, 2012 at 10:59AM EST Reply to CommentWow, that was bad. How do you not name Zach Gillford's character Matt Saracen?
jdstorm Now we know why Matt took Julie Back so quickly after she Told him what she did after they broke up. He needed a normal well balanced GF
September 23, 2012 at 8:11AM EST