Watson

The pilot kicks off CBS's new medical drama with decidedly mixed results. The episode introduces us to Dr. John Watson (Morris Chestnut) as he takes charge of his new department, but the dynamics feel as artificial as a plastic skeleton in a med school classroom.

The resident doctors working under Watson seem to have graduated from the School of TV Medical Clichés rather than actual medical school. There's the overly confident one who makes rookie mistakes, the timid one who actually knows their stuff but can't speak up, and the competitive one who's trying too hard to impress. Their interactions with Watson lack any natural rapport, making their teaching moments feel more like awkward job interviews than mentorship.

However, the episode does have two saving graces. The first is the wonderful Rochelle Aytes, whose presence lights up every scene she's in. She brings a grounding element to the show that makes you wish she had more screen time.

The second highlight is the genuinely surprising twist ending. Without spoiling too much, it cleverly ties back to Watson's past with Sherlock Holmes in a way that promises more intriguing developments. It's the kind of reveal that makes you reconsider earlier scenes and wonder how it will affect future episodes.

The medical case of the week is serviceable, though it suffers from the supporting cast's lack of chemistry. Watching Watson's team stumble through differentials feels less like brilliant minds at work and more like a group project where nobody did the reading. Even their celebratory moment after solving the case has all the warmth of a hospital waiting room.

The production values deserve credit - the hospital setting looks appropriately high-end, and the medical procedures are well-staged. The directors clearly know how to shoot medical drama, even if the material they're working with needs a stronger prescription.

Despite its flaws, the episode ends on such an intriguing note that it earns its five stars almost entirely on the strength of its final five minutes and Aytes' magnetic performance. Whether the show can maintain interest beyond this hook remains to be seen, but for now, it's just enough to make you curious about episode two.

Bottom Line: A rocky start saved by Rochelle Aytes' stellar presence and a twist ending that actually surprises. The show needs urgent care when it comes to its supporting cast chemistry, but there might be enough here to keep viewers coming back for a few more appointments.

I really wanted to like this show, now that a few others I watch have concluded their episodes for the season, but it really didn't impress me. I love medical shows, shows about mysterious diseases, but this didn't draw me in. I've watched Morris Chestnut in a few other shows, which is why I gave this one a chance.

I didn't need this association with Sherlock Holmes - it would have been fine just being a medical show with a character named Dr Watson.

One odd point: why did they feel the need to cast one actor to play Stephens and Adams? We're there no acting twins, brothers, or lookalikes available?

Like the other reviewer, I'll give this another chance, but if you're looking for "House," "Brilliant Minds" is better.

Seeing ads for a Watson, I wondered if they meant the Sherlock Holmes character or being cheap. At least it IS the obvious character. I've enjoyed Sherlock things, particular modern day like Elementary (making Watson female initially felt like a gimmick but I found it worked, particularly since it was Lucy Liu, she pulled it off well). In the ads I definitely recognize the lead guy, I know I've enjoyed his work before but I can't place him, finding him well qualified for portraying a suave likeable guy with the smooth resonant voice that girls can like, encouraging there to be girls _I_ can like. :)

Okay, concept is interesting, Sherlock is gone (bit of a shame, but clearly necessary to build a show around Watson), so shows Watson post-Sherlock, with all that investigative experience. Cool idea, sounds like a great recipe for another House - another show I loved - except this actor has the vibe of a personable guy, what was fun about House is his acidity, his sarcasm, his severe lack of a bedside manner and not caring about it. Being brutally blunt in a way that was very effective.

Loving seeing the gorgeous girl from So Help Me Todd, took a bit to recognize her, she looks more exotic here. But then there's the Croft twins. I see Stephens listed (I agree with Watson, that name is moronic, weird names bug me, and it just seems to be to make fun of), but no second Croft. I was trying to look up his name. Hmmm. I spot Croft Twin, so I pay attention to catch the OTHER name, was all ready to edit IMDb to change Croft Twin to the right name. THEN I notice the SAME GUY plays both! What a stupid unnecessary gimmick! And there's two Croft Twins, clearly those two are to play the OTHER twin when focus is on the main actor playing one or the other. Look, the two people playing one gimmick was a fascinating cool innovative crowd pleaser in 1961 with Parent Trap. IT'S JUST STUPID AND UNNECESSARY NOW! This will intrigue nobody now, you need a reason now (like a cloning storyline, or Mike Myers spreading his comedy abilities around in Austin Powers by playing vastly different characters). They're fussing around and making it harder on themselves for NOTHING! Hire actual identical twins, don't get unnecessarily complicated! Aren't the Sprouse twins still acting? Boom, done. Don't want to spend the money? It should be REALLY easy to get no-name identical twins. And are these three really cheaper than two? AND the extra effort/tricks?

And DAMN does Randall Park feel horribly miscast! They shouldn't even have the character, he's shoehorned in here, he doesn't fit in a medical drama. And Randall just has the VIBE for a lovable friendly schlub. He seems to naturally smile all the time, that's what his character was like when I "met" him in his show Fresh Off The Boat. He played "himself" pretty similarly as an interviewer in Young Rock. He guested as a clinic case in House where he was a similar wimpy try-to-please-people kind of guy, a clip that ends up in many House compilation videos. Congrats for not being typecast, but it's just damn jarring here.

My biggest complaint is the twin thing, and they're pretty stuck with it. If they fire one character to simplify the acting, seems like it would be the more enjoyable easy-going one because fussbucket Stephens seems to be the worker, the more effective and useful doctor, so they need to keep both to make a well rounded team and not ruin the unnecessary Team Experiment they declared right off the bat instead of letting it percolate for a few episodes before revealing the surprise.

I am a big fan of Morris Chestnut. This series feels very formulaic. Like any person only ever has one case to follow up on. Realistic please! I am not a doctor or detective but in my real life - I have several items open and being pursued at once allllll the time. The acting is a little stilted from the supporting characters. I will be hanging on for a few episodes to see how this develops. I usually give at least five episodes to a new show to see character and deeper storyline develop. Some mystery around how Moriarity is involved and how deeply with Watson. Did Sherlock really die? Or will he reappear?

We were really looking forward to Watson. We were also extremely underwhelmed. My biggest issue, which may or may not have contributed to low rating is the way Morris Chestnut talks. Because his voice is so low along with how fast he talks I could barely understand him. His lines were a mumbled jumble of words which I could not understand. Along with subject matter of the Pilot, I didn't get it. I also thought that the writers could have dumbed it down a little for we the audience to understand. I finally put it all together and understood what was going on. I also thought the Pilot was flat, nothing that drew me in to pay attention.

I will give it another chance or two and see if it gets better.