Raines
Raines | |
---|---|
Genre | NBC Universal |
Original release | |
Network | NBC |
Release | March 15 April 27, 2007 | –
Raines is a seven-episode American
Premise
Michael Raines (Goldblum) is a police detective who investigates murders. With the series premiere, Raines is returning to work after recovering from a shootout[1] that killed his partner,[2] Charlie Lincoln (Malik Yoba). Over the course of each episode, Raines involuntarily hallucinates the victims, whom he speaks to and uses as sounding boards for his case; as Raines learns more about the dead, the apparitions he sees change duly.[3] Once Raines solves their murders, the hallucinations disappear.[2] Creator and executive producer Graham Yost found the analogous premise of Raines in his own creative process: "I spend time alone in a room, thinking of characters and interacting with them. And I'll talk a dialogue in my head."[4]
Variety categorized the show as "a throwback to the 1970s — a single-lead detective show that neatly wraps up whodunit each hour."[3]
Episodes
Zap2it shows that seven episodes of Raines aired from March 15 – April 27, 2007.[5]
No. | Title [5] | Directed by | Written by | Original air date [5] | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "Pilot" | Frank Darabont[6] | Graham Yost[6] | March 15, 2007 | |
Raines investigates the murder of Sandy Boudreau (Alexa Davalos), college student and escort. He rules out the wino who robbed her body (Tracey Walter), her father (Graham Beckel), and ex-boyfriend (Ryan Hurst). Instead, Boudreau was hired by Wendy Tucker (Ashley Gardner) to honey trap her husband (Jeff Perry). When Boudreau failed and threatened to reveal the plot, Tucker shot her. In the penultimate scene, Raines steals Boudreau's money from evidence and gives it to her mother (Valerie Mahaffey) to escape her abusive marriage.[6] | |||||
2 | "Meet Juan Doe" | Fred Keller[7] | Graham Yost[7] | March 22, 2007 | |
After bringing his wife Maria ( | |||||
3 | "Reconstructing Alice" | Peter Werner[8] | Fred Golan[8] | March 30, 2007 | |
Alice Brody ( mentally ill, homeless, and living in Venice Beach when she is shot and killed. The manager of an insolvent local homeless shelter (Cheryl White) conspired with her neighbor Jason Kitman (T. James Lynde) to use the homeless' identities for committing insider trading. After Brody was denied Supplemental Security Income due to the fraudulent accounts in her name, she was shot and killed by Kitman. Raines' therapy continues apace; he worries he will end up like Brody due to his mental health.[8] | |||||
4 | "Stone Dead" | April 6, 2007 | |||
5 | "5th Step" | April 13, 2007 | |||
6 | "Inner Child" | April 20, 2007 | |||
7 | "Closure" | April 27, 2007 |
Production
Raines was filmed in
Cast
Yost cast
Malik Yoba was cast as Charlie Lincoln,[2] Raines' partner who died before the show began; whereas he once kept his eccentric partner grounded, now Raines hallucinates his presence and continues to rely on his assistance.[9]
Madeleine Stowe plays Dr. Samantha Kohl, a psychiatrist unenviably tasked with helping Raines cope with the loss of his partner and subsequent hallucinations.[10]
Rounding out Raines' cast are:[3]
- Matt Craven as Captain Daniel Lewis
- Dov Davidoff as Remi Boyer
- Linda Park as Michelle Lance
- Nicole Sullivan as Carolyn Crumley
Release and cancellation
On December 21, 2006, Australia's Network 10 secured the rights to broadcast Raines (and Friday Night Lights) in that nation.[11] Raines was a mid-season replacement for NBC that premiered in the US[10] at 10 p.m. on March 15, 2007.[3] Raines was cancelled; in an interview after-the-fact, Goldblum only reflected that he was fortunate to have had the opportunity, especially as it led to his starring role in Law & Order: Criminal Intent.[12]
Reception
As of July 2023[update], the
Brian Lowry of Variety called Raines unremarkable in its field, with only Jeff Goldblum to distinguish it, conceding that his analysis also fit the popular shows House (with Hugh Laurie) and Monk (with Tony Shalhoub). Lowry appreciated Raines eschewing mysticism in favor of Raines' acknowledged hallucinations.[3] The Toronto Star's Vinay Menon similarly called Goldblum the show's driver, but that the performance "sometimes feels locked inside the wrong car."[17] Though the San Francisco Chronicle anticipated a quick cancellation for Raines for its predictability, pandering, and mediocrity, reviewer Tim Goodman nonetheless called it an "enjoyable time waster", praising Goldblum and the show's "crisp, darkly saturated visual style".[9] Alessandra Stanley thought Raines was an overly slavish homage to 1986's The Singing Detective; while she was uncertain about the hallucination gimmick—noting that most television detectives have been strong men with faults (e.g. Kojak with his lollipop or Ironside in his wheelchair)—Stanley felt Raines was trying to be too much and was muddled therefor. She did recommend allowing Goldblum's new vehicle to find its feet, though, much like House, Boston Legal, and Shark did.[2]
Scott D. Pierce of the
See also
- River (TV series) – British television drama series
References
- ^ Media Life. Archived from the originalon March 8, 2012. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
New NBC drama takes chances and makes them work
- ^ from the original on June 5, 2015. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
- ^ from the original on June 5, 2019. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
A crime procedural tweaked with the slimmest of gimmicks, 'Raines' largely boils down to one's appreciation of star Jeff Goldblum, who occupies center stage in practically every scene. Relative to riskier dramas, it seems a reasonably safe bet, though it's hardly the sort of series people will rush home to see.
- ^ from the original on December 23, 2020. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
- ^ a b c "Full episode and TV Listings". Zap2it. Archived from the original on December 23, 2020. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
- ^ a b c "Pilot". Raines. Season 1. Episode 1. March 15, 2007. NBC.
- ^ a b c "Meet Juan Doe". Raines. Season 1. Episode 2. March 22, 2007. NBC.
- ^ a b c "Reconstructing Alice". Raines. Season 1. Episode 3. March 30, 2007. NBC.
- ^ from the original on June 5, 2019. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
Two new dramas on Thursday night all but guarantee themselves a brief stay on the schedule thanks to predictable formulas, audience pandering and, in one case, seriously annoying the ghost of Kurt Cobain.
- ^ from the original on March 25, 2020. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
- ^ Devlin, Darren (December 22, 2006). "Ten wins Grand Finals flip". Herald Sun. Archived from the original on April 11, 2009. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
THE toss of a coin yesterday delivered three of the next five AFL Grand Finals to Channel 10.
- ^ Goldblum, Jeff. "Back in Time with Jeff Goldblum for Law & Order: Criminal Intent". The Deadbolt (Interview). Interviewed by Troy Rogers. Archived from the original on September 29, 2011. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
- ^ "Raines (2007)". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on June 27, 2023. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
- ^ "Raines". Metacritic. Archived from the original on June 27, 2023. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
- OCLC 9541172. Archived from the originalon August 22, 2010. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
- from the original on June 5, 2019. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
Strange Raines.
- from the original on August 6, 2020. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
- from the original on December 23, 2020. Retrieved December 23, 2020.