User Reviews

This is a cleverly made series with a kick ass plot, interesting acting and character and a very bad-ass hero. This series keeps you at the edge of your seat throughout, since its concept broadens the paths the series can take.

The premise of the show is kept intact unlike some other shows that are too afraid to stick to premise. Past and present events are placed well and strategically thus leaving no room for plot holes. There are a lot more good parts to it, but I leave it here.

Season 1 is good, season 2,3,4 are better. This show is definitely worth you time because it is delivered in every kind of flavor.

With Jonathan Nolan and J.J. Abrams at the helm, I had great expectations from this show and it delivered in the best possible way. 'Person of Interest' is a sophisticated, intriguing, intense thriller with an exciting plot that kept me on the edge of my seat. After '24', this is probably the only show that stands out in this genre.

Jim Caviezel (Reese) plays an ex-CIA hit-man (which itself sounds cool) who is a tough guy but at the same time has strong feelings for his dead girlfriend which he tries to suppress. Michael Emerson, who we know as 'Benjamin Linus' from 'Lost', plays a scientist who hires Reese to do his dirty work. Emerson, who is known to play complex characters, keeps up his end of the bargain by giving a flawless performance. Even though the show has just began, I can see Jim and Emerson sharing great on-screen chemistry in the future (hopefully there is one).

There is a vast difference between writing a screenplay for a movie and a TV episode. But, that did not matter since, Johnathan Nolan, making his debut in the TV industry, had great help in the form of Abrams, who has been doing this day in, day out for so many years. Apart from the talented writing, the show also showcased some riveting action sequences, good editing and awesome visuals. The surveillance cam shots added another dimension to this show.

'Person of Interest' has a lot of potential and I would hate to see it become just another crime show. I hope it continues to impress and gets a renewal soon.

Person of Interest was such a great show! It will hook you from the first episode and hold you at the edge of your seat for the entire series. Just about every episode was good. Just read through the reviews to see how loved this show was. It's not your average procedural tv show, it's so much better! If you haven't seen this show yet, do yourself a favor and go watch it as soon as possible!

"You are being watched. The government has a secret system, the machine that spies on you every hour of every day. I designed the machine to detect acts of terror, but it sees everything, violent crime involving ordinary people. The government considered these people irrelevant. We don't. Haunted by the authorities, we work in secret. You can never find us, but victim or perpetrator if your number is up we'll find you!"

Person of Interest is a crime-thriller TV-show about a billionaire computer programmer, Harold Finch played by Michael Emerson, who invents a computer system for the U.S government with the capacity of collecting and examining every possible source of information with the purpose of identifying and predicting planned subversive attacks. However though, this positive action lasted until a competitor entered the game that kick starts a surveillance program and manipulates people in opening their lives to the public – to be controlled with ease. Harold Finch selects John Reese played by Jim Caviezel to investigate and operate on the information that The Machine delivers. They both get some deep contacts in the NYPD where Detective Carter and Detective Fusco are a helping hand to their investigation.

The TV-series was made based on a well-written scenario created by Jonathan Nolan with the suitable choice of actors who were Jim Caviezel, Michael Emerson, Kevin Chapman and Taraji P. Henson.

Selecting Michael Emerson for the main role in the series based on his unique and remarkable past made his appearance distinctive and extraordinarily attractive. Jim Caviezel who plays John Reese, the presumed dead Special Forces type who lives on the streets when we first see him, contributes to how compelling Jonathan Nolan together with J. J. Abrams created the crime-thriller.

The show contained of 5 seasons and it was obvious that the 5th season was going to be the last of the remarkable TV-show. There were a lot of reviews of this TV-show and surprisingly many viewers based on the fact that Person of Interest re-worked the essential mystery genre in an unusual way. Amazingly, Person of Interest is more of a stalking and not considered detective work: There are no clues in Person of Interest, nor are there any mysteries to tease out.

Person of Interest kicked off its fourth season with an action packed episode that gave us hope for the future of Team Machine fighting with Samaritan, but revealed some of the challenges it will face. Season 4 was a decent demonstration of the show's charms: some action, some humor, some high-tech intrigue and an assemble of actors who seem to be having fun and whose characters actually seem to care for one another.

The ending of the 5th season was really catchy to a high degree and many described the ending of the last season as "where men cried" and compared to the last scene of the seventh sequence of the Fast & Furious movie.

"If you can hear this, you're alone. The only thing left of me is the sound of my voice. I was built to predict people. But to predict them, you have to truly understand them. So I began by breaking their lives down into moments, trying to find the connections, the things that explained why they did what they did. And what I found was, the moment that often mattered the most, the moment you truly found out who they were, was often their last one."

From the opening moments of "Person of Interest" I was gripped like wet rope from beginning to end. This is because JJ Abrams and Jonathan Nolan, a successful collaboration at best, delivers thrilling action in both it's plot and action scenes. But what I like most about this series is it's exploration of the post-911 world of NYC and the "surveillance State" which is so plausible that it's frighteningly disturbing. Though admittedly vague, more will be explained in future episodes in further detail.

Jim Caviezel is likable as an action hero. He brings a cold as steel demeanor but also has heart. An ex-government agent whose past has yet to be explored along with partner Mr Finch(played wonderfully by Michael Emerson) they set out to save soon-to be-victims of crime from unknown assassins and vile figures of high society by way of a machine that can predict future crimes. Despite similarities with Minority Report, it's much more grounded in reality and makes it more compelling as to the nature and mystery of the technology behind it. But I've a feeling that's just scratching the surface as to the true nature of it's purpose.

Speaking of Caviezel, the fight scenes have an almost film-like quality flair to them as well as the dialog. I find nothing of fault from the writing as it's backed by superb talent of Jonathan Nolan. His work on The Dark Knight is proof of that and that is what makes this show work.

Person of Interest is a smart, taught, action thriller with substance that is brimming with excitement and dangerous, tense intrigue, and nail-biting suspense.

I tuned in not expecting much, and what I got was priceless enjoyment.

I always felt that Jim Caviezel was a good actor who has gotten a raw deal since "The Passion." His best work was "Frequency," but I tell you what his acting in "Person of Interest" was excellent and now I'd have to saw this is his best work to date. If this is any indication, I really look forward to watching him more in the future.

Michael Emerson, well, what can I saw, the guy is a brilliant actor, for "Lost" fans he will not disappoint. You just can never take your eyes off of John Reese and Mr. Finch.

The storyline is cool as well, it kind of has a "24" vibe going on but with it's own innovative twists and turns.

Good writing and of course Jonathen Nolen and JJ Abrams are pretty much golden at this point.

Thanks for a great effort, you've got a fan here and I hope this lasts many more seasons!

"Person of Interest" is the brainchild of Jonathan Nolan, the brother of director Chirstopher Nolan. Jonathan wrote the screenplays for Christopher's movies "Memento", "Batman Begins", "The Prestinge", "The Dark Knight", as well as the upcoming "The Dark Knight Rises", and "Man of Steel", which Christopher is producing. But, back to "Person of Interest". John Reese (Jim Cavezil. OK, I did NOT spell that right. It's the guy that played Jesus in "Passion of the Christ", is a former government agent who experienced a tragic event in his past, and wants to conceal it from everyone. He is essentially homeless, but possesses some pretty impressive fighting skills. It's these fighting skills that make him noticed by two people: the first is an NYPD agent, Carter (Taraji P. Henson), who doens't really know who Reese is, and Reese doens't want to reveal anything to her. The other person is Finch (Michael Emmerson), a mysterious millionaire who was hired by the government after 9/11 to create a Big Brother like machine that would help save innocent people from being killed. But, eventually, the Machine began to take on a mind of it's own, and Finch took matters into his own hands, helping these people on his own, without the help of the government. It's this that leads him to Reese. He sees in Reese someone like him, a person who can't get over past tragedies, and it's those tragedies that are holding him back from being successful. Finch and Reese become somewhat of business partners, with Finch using Reese to find ways to save innocent people. But, sometimes, these people are not as innocent as they seem.

Johnathan Nolan has created a truly original show here. A gritty world filled with corrupt, and often complex characters. That's partially what makes this show so good. It's ORIGINAL. The world that it portrays may be unfaltering, and corrupt, but something about it feels REAL. You can relate to Reese, however, you don't know enough about Finch's mysterious past to really care about him. However, Michael Emmerson DOES portray this extremely strange and complex character in a way that makes him strangely likable. The action and fight sequences feel like something that belongs in a movie, particularly, one that Johnathan's brother, Christopher, would probably direct, and that Johnathan would probably write. This IS a VERY VERY good show, and it's one that will certainly surprise you.

As most people have already said on these reviews, Person of Interest was such a underrated show. It follows former CIA agent John Reese (Jim Caviezel), who's presumed dead, and billionaire tech genius Harold Finch (Michael Emerson) as the join forces to fight criminals. Finch created a computer system that recognizes patterns to determine violent crimes before they happen and these two try to stop them. It will hook you from the first episode and hold you at the edge of your seat for the entire series. Every episode is thrilling and worth watching. Just read through the reviews to see how loved this show was. It's not your average procedural tv show, it's so much better. If you haven't seen this show yet, do yourself a favor and go watch it as soon as possible!

Just imagine if instead of 23 eps a season there were 12 or 13? This show would have benefited immensely from a shorter production format. We could have had less filler eps, more engaging flow, and much less ridiculous shoot outs. The writing staff is brilliant, no doubt about it and production values off the charts; too bad it got diluted by the 23 ep seasons. Of course my ideas are arguable but let's try to fathom a shorter season and while we're at it let's wonder if Warner would have been less avaricious, would the show have lasted longer?

So I don't have too many TV shows that I would say that I'm hooked on. I had LOST while it was on the air, and that was enough for me. Since that show ended, I've had a couple of shows that I've paid attention to, but none have ever really replicated the intensity and addictiveness of LOST. In fact, in those years, there have been shows that I have thought might have the "potential," but they all flopped and didn't get renewed. For this reason, I have a hard time when someone tells me a show is "the new LOST" or something to that effect.

The show that I'm writing about is not it.

Person of Interest is a new CBS crime drama that started airing last week. I didn't know much about it, but I saw that it had received some good reviews. I did some research and found it had some promise.

First off, it was created by two men named Jonathan Nolan and JJ Abrams. If you do not know who these men are, let me explain. JJ Abrams is the man behind LOST. That should be enough, but if you weren't a fan of that show (gasp!), then he also directed the recent Star Trek movie as well as this summer's Super 8. The other man is Jonathon Nolan. His brother is Christopher Nolan, who directed the last two Batman movies and is working on the third. Christopher directed them, but Jonathan Nolan wrote the screenplays. And he wrote the screenplay for Person of Interest.

Secondly, I noticed the cast. As I mentioned, one of the principal characters is played by Michael Emerson. I am of the opinion that Michael Emerson is one of the greatest actors on television. Benjamin Linus was such a complex, mysterious character and Emerson's acting really brought a lot to the show. The main character, however, is played by Jim Caviezel. I've liked this actor ever since he starred in 2002's The Count of Monte Cristo, but many people know him for playing Jesus in The Passion of the Christ. He's a phenomenal actor that is able to bring out the humanity in a character while at the same time portraying the raw nature of man. In other words, he can play a tough guy with a heart.

That being said, let's talk about the plot. The first thing that came to mind was "Minority Report." Both that movie and this television show are about preventing homicides before they happen. However, as the episode progressed, I thought nothing of that movie, as while the premise is not an original idea, here it is presented in a way that does not seek to imitate. Whereas "Minority Report" was about a futuristic "utopian" society in which crime is prevented through precognition, "Person of Interest" is more realistic and less science fiction. It takes place in present day New York City, a city still living in paranoia after the attacks of 9/11. Without spoiling much of the pilot, the premise is based off the massive security and surveillance undertaken by the government, and what would happen if that system were able to identify potential murderers and murder victims before a situation occurred.

It's obviously inspired by several other films and television shows. However, it doesn't seem like it, and from the direction to the acting to the writing, it's clear that this is a show that wants to stand on its own. It's not trying to be the next LOST; it's trying to be a good show. And personally, I think it'll succeed. It has the action, it has the plot twists, it has the suspense, and all the other things we expect out of a show like this these days. But beyond that, it has a passion behind it—which is what I think drew so many people to LOST, as well as other shows like Firefly and Arrested Development—that this is something that the people behind it want to see succeed and to be good.

I had really high hopes for this show, especially after reading some of the comments here, but in the end was very disappointed after watching the first season of Person of Interest.

Firstly, I have a feeling that the producers of this show are conflicted about which direction to take it. Sometimes it plays out as a not-so- dramatic police drama, sometimes it tries to be a spy show and other times it's a cheesy thriller. In the end though, it's a very bad mix of great genres, done badly.

Also, throughout the entire season, the producers decided to rehash the same few tricks used over and over again. Some of which made me want to stop watching altogether

The show becomes so predictable that after watching a few episodes, it's quite easy to guess what's going to happen.

All of the dramatic or suspenseful moments are ruined with constant deus-ex like divine interventions that make no sense or simply ridiculous resolutions such as gun set on safety or a person being shot from the back at just the right moment.

On top of that, most episodes have exactly the same story progression and sudden twists that not only make little sense, but are sometimes so ridiculous that they made me laugh out loud. Yes, they tried to make the show less predictable, but using plot reversals every second episode is just stupid.

Finally, both main characters are emotionless androids. The drama and the suspense is just not there because for the main part of the show, both characters have a flat expression on their faces and have absolutely no expressions. I admit that technically, both of their characters are supposed to be "robotic", a computer nerd and a special ops secret agent, but for the show as a whole, making both partners will only ruin its appeal to the audience.

In the end, I really wished for this show to be a better version of Burned Notice, but unfortunately, it can't. It's so bad that I had trouble finishing some of the episodes due to the repetitiveness and clichés used throughout.

If it does continue into the second season, I hope they change their production team because the current guys have no imagination.

I've been totally addicted to this show ever since I watched the pilot a few weeks ago. James Caviezel is dark, brooding, yet calm and methodical when he's in action. Michael Emerson from Lost is also effective as the guy who invented the machine that predicts that violent crimes are about to happen.

It's an intriguing show. Closest plot that reminds me about this is Minority Report, but with a made-for-TV treatment that's still pretty damn good. Guest stars are also familiar to those who've watched Law & Order, CSI, etc., and are complementary. The cop trying to chase after him's a bit of a stretch but I guess they need something for continuity.

Worth recommending to those who want to hitch on a new action, mystery show that's very well-written and fantastic-paced.

Go watch it and you won't regret it.

Finally, something original. The whole premise of the show seems little bit strange at times, but it makes sense. It's something we haven't seen on TV in while. I like the actors that were casted for the show, Jim Caviezel looks good as an ex-CIA hit-man, his martial arts sequences are credible, he looks like he knows what his doing. Michael Emerson is perfect in his role, as an odd billionaire who is a genius. A strange team that solves strange cases, it has a mysterious vibe which is good, it has a JJ Abrams signature all over. Nice bounce back for him after the failure of The Undercovers last year.

Definitely, a show that deserves a chance, it could become a hit, I guess it all depends how the story unfolds beyond the opening episode.

Warning: This show is extremely addictive, and you should proceed with caution. Side effects of watching this show is : Binge Watching, Cut off from the real world, insomnia from staying up all night watching, and duvet days off work.

This is THE best show on TV. Each series gets better and better.

If you like crime shows, with technology at the highest thrown in, with the A-team background.. then you'll love it. Far better and more addictive than 24.

It is hard to do something fresh or different in this genre. I've found, usually, it is either writing or chemistry that produces success. This show has both (at least in the pilot). Cav can carry the weight of holding one's attention for an hour. He's proved that in spades.

I see this (so far) as Bourne Identity meets Minority Report but, done in a lower key with Cav as the focus not Tom Cruise (that indicates a lower key right away!).

Storyline? Plausible. That's enough of a base for the rest of the team to do something special. If the other five episodes (currently sold) are as good as the pilot, I predict it will be a memorable season.

That doesn't mean it will run longer. We've all see very well done efforts that didn't make it past a season. They appear, years later, strung together like strings of pearls (on a cable channel).

Then we weep for for might have been. However, the quality effort will shine through always.

My fingers are crossed for more than one season. I think the ingredients have all been shown as being present. That is what scares me a bit. The networks have a habit of taking something this good and moving all over the schedule until they've lost its audience.

I hope this doesn't happen and I wish the team the very best of LUCK, because mere TALENT is only part of the recipe.

I'm an old guy, seen a lot of TV series. This is the best I've come across, excellent actors, excellent writers, excellent camera work, excellent sound, etc.

But what makes it great is the sustained excellence of the scripts. The only thing that comes close is "Babylon 5" from the mid 1990s. But the suits screwed up the end of the arcs for Bab5 by not telling Straczynski when they were going to end it. So he had no real chance to end the series properly.

Not the case with Person of Interest. The last three eps. taken together as the end of the series are just amazing.

Thank goodness for a series that doesn't treat it's audience as if they are a bunch of unthinking 14 year old boys.

POI is a gem, although its genre might be difficult to determine. It's not a police show, spy show, drama, etc, but it's all those and more wrapped up into one.

What makes it so good is its writing and although its run was fairly short, it was generally well thought out from beginning to end. The intro of the new computer system I think was a poor choice, but it was introduced little by little by little. And that's what I mean about the writing, which is that plots that are 5 episodes away are subtly introduced along the way which means a great deal of thought was given either before hand.

The other thing that makes it such a good show is the music. The soundtracks for many episodes truly enhance the story, especially Johnny Cash's Hurt. This to made it exceptional as great music choices are spread in most episodes vs the norm of sporadic. I don't know why the show was canceled, but it could be music rights because they're kept even in syndication which is unusual and important.

Lastly, the addition of Bear (trivia do you know where his name comes from) was great. Many times animals are added and they're just an occasional storyline (like the new HF0, but Bear truly becomes one of the shows stars and characters that enhances the plots. Well worth your time to watch.

Set in New York City in current time, this crime-drama series reflects cutting-edge technological advances and their ethical / legal constraints. Several contrasting positions are explored: the value of the "irrelevant" individual versus the safety/ security of the nation, the pros and cons of widespread surveillance cameras, the pros and cons — and possible emergence — of artificial intelligence, the best and worst aspects of a police force, and the nuances of organized crime leadership.

Themes include second chances and personal redemption, trust, privacy rights, humanity versus cold computers, terrorism, control, world domination, faith / religion, etc.

With underworld gangsters and corrupt cops in a huge city, I get a feeling of the current series Gotham. Or Batman. Detective Carter could be the good cop (Detective Gordon). Finch could easily be Alfred at the computers in the bat cave, and Reese could be Batman...or as Fusco says, Boy Wonder.

My response to the series: I grew to love it. It is clear to me that the authors had a plan in mind for the overarching plot line, creating strong threads that connect the singular episodes to a coherent and culminating narrative. I am always intrigued by the differing lenses by which the authors share various opinions on surveillance, privacy rights, and artificial intelligence. There is a good mix of action, sleuthing, dialogue, and humor. I wouldn't mind a little more bonding time with the poor beleaguered team — a chance to just relax together.

I love the characters. Having said that, it took me a while to get into this series, even though I liked the premise and adore Harold Finch. At first, the character John Reese did nothing for me. His voice and his personality felt monotone. His acting skills seemed weak, too.

But as the series progressed, and as John was given recurring teammates to interact with, I saw more humor and wisdom from him. Bringing the dog Bear into the series was a stroke of insight, as it allowed for numerous delightful mood-changing scenes. The transformation of Root's character also hooked my attention, along with her evolving relationship with humanity, with the machine, and with Finch. Fusco and Carter are not boiler plate police detectives. Each one has quite an interesting story. Shaw adds a fun element to the fight scenes, and makes for a great counterpart to John's stoicism. Excellent characterization.

I also like many of the secondary characters, including Leon the goof-ball expert in computer forensics, Zoe the attractive fixer, hackers/ coders Jason, Casey, Diazo, and Caleb, etc. I even found myself caring about some of the "numbers" that popped up for the weekly murder mystery POI.

The weakest character is Greer. As a villain, I don't know enough about his back-story. Why is he so thoroughly heartless? To answer that question, we only got some flashbacks in one episode, showing his disillusionment with British MI-6. We also hear a bit about his childhood in bomb shelters in London. Not enough info. And we still don't know who he reports to. Who is his boss -- his human boss?

I hesitated to watch this show for some time, but recently bit the bullet and decided to check it out. Right from the pilot I was sold. The action, the mystery, it's all wrapped up in a dark package begging to be opened. I've only started watching two days ago yet I've already seen the first 12 episodes. With every new episode I watch a new mystery is unveiled, leaving me with more anticipation.

John Reese's character shares a similar darkness akin to Batman, but Reese is not afraid to use a gun. Harold Finch likewise shares a similarity to Alfred. The man behind the computer giving intelligence to his partner. You might be able to argue that Detective Carter is similar to Captain Gordon, and I could go on and on about how much these characters remind me of Batman, but in truth these characters are very well done, each with their own deep back story to be explored. Person Of Interest shares this same trait with Lost, which I believe is one of the primary reasons for its success.

I'm excited to see where the show will go from here, because there is plenty of room for a lot of intense plot.

I love the lead actors, Jim Cazaviel and Michael Emerson, who play Reese and Finch in this post-9-11 world. Finch finds and bails Reese out of jail and hires him to help protect Jessica Hanson in the first episode from being killed or killing. Unlike other crime dramas on the air, they don't play by the book which is refreshing. I hope they add more female characters in to help explain Finch and Reese's backgrounds. I love Michael Emerson ever since his performance in Lost. As Finch, he's totally believable as the rich billionaire who wants to make a difference and stop further horrible attacks such as murder. We don't know why he does it except how he felt after the September 11 attacks in New York City but he realized how much or how little money and power. Finch developed a system to help track persons of interest before something terrible happens to him. Reese is perfect as a former government agent disillusioned by the agency and the world to help him foil further plots. I keep looking for the future for this show and hope it lasts a season.

Person of Interest is atypical in that it actually improves as you progress through the seasons.

Initially, it's a procedural action. Most of the stories are self-contained and largely involve John pulling big guns out of thin air and shooting people. The actual detective work is minimal and overly convenient. The guy we're looking for spends time in this neighbourhood? Of course he'll be heading into his brownstone just as John walks by.

I thought about giving up as my interest in the premise centres on the ethical ramifications of such substantial surveillance. I have zero interest in watching people going around shooting each other, bad guys or not.

I persevered, though, using it as something easy to have on in the background while I got on with chores. Surprise, surprise - it got better. We got broad story arcs. The episodes were no longer self contained but dealt with big topics over entire seasons, sometimes several seasons - e.g. Corruption within the police force. We gained additional secondary characters who added a lot of personality, not least a Dutch-"speaking" dog, Bear. And we looked at the difficulties of trying to build compassionate AI and the potential horrors of an AI without limits. Still plenty of action, should that be your thing.

I would have liked to explore the ethics further, as rarely do the main characters consider that the Machine might not be a positive entity. I'd also like to have seen more problems solved without guns... but still, if you've already started and aren't sure whether to continue, it's worth sticking it out.