You've got to have faith in ABC's 'Eli Stone'
Scott D. Pierce
Looking for a good cry? Try "Eli Stone."
Looking for a TV show that will make you think about the meaning of life? Try "Eli Stone."
Oh, and if that's not enough to pique your interest in the ABC series, how about the musical numbers?
"We always say that we're trying harder than anybody to entertain you," co-creator/executive producer Greg Berlanti said.
All this from a television series that's all about faith. Not religion, but faith.
"We wanted to do a show about faith, but we didn't want it tied to a specific religion," Berlanti said. "We wanted this to be a show for everyone."
Including those who don't believe in God.
"Everyone, including the most atheist of atheists, has asked, 'Is there something bigger than ourselves? What's our place in the universe? What's our relationship to other people?' And the show traffics in that area," co-creator/executive producer Marc Guggenheim said.
On the surface, "Eli Stone" is often downright goofy. Eli (Jonny Lee Miller) is an attorney who made a great living working for a big practice that specialized in defending corporate clients who were often guilty of whatever they had been accused of doing.
But the other explanation was that God was sending him these visions. And when his vision of an earthquake that did heavy damage to the Golden Gate Bridge came true, it meant that a whole lot of people — including Eli himself — had to rethink what this was really all about.
"Toward the end of last year, we were able to hint at some of the more sort of epic nature that we had kind of had designed through the show," Berlanti said. "It was kind of always the design that it would start off smaller and get increasingly bigger, with a big bang by the end of the year. We try and keep that momentum in that size and that scope."
Fans of the show will recall that last season, after the earthquake, Eli had surgery to remove the aneurysm. He survived — barely — but the question of whether his visions would survive was left open.
It's quickly answered in Tuesday's second-season premiere, and — as has become an "Eli Stone" trademark — it's answered in an unexpected way.
(Although it's rather obvious what the answer will be because, if the visions stop, so does the show.)
"The way that Eli tackles the situation, I think, is going to evolve and change," Miller said. "That's part of my job to try and make it not be the same thing all the time."
Recent comments
I agree with all of the positive things said about this show: It…
Chris from VA | Oct. 13, 2008 at 6:44 a.m.
A very good show. last year's coproducer and this seasons producer…
Anonymous | Oct. 10, 2008 at 11:53 a.m.
As Christians I see a lot of similarities to Gospel teachings that…
eli rocks | Oct. 10, 2008 at 11:32 a.m.
