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Person of Interest (TV series)

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Person of Interest
Season 1 intertitle
GenreThriller
Crime
Drama
Created byJonathan Nolan
StarringJim Caviezel
Taraji P. Henson
Kevin Chapman
Michael Emerson
ComposerRamin Djawadi
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes31 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producersJ. J. Abrams
Bryan Burk
Jonathan Nolan
Greg Plageman
Richard J. Lewis
ProducersAthena Wickham
Margo Lulick
Kathy Lingg (co-prod)
Stephen Semel (co-prod)
Ben Brafman (associate)
Production locationsNew York, New York
CinematographyTeodoro Maniaci
Stephen McNutt
EditorsRay Daniels
Dorian Haris
Farrel Jane Levy
Running time43 minutes
Production companiesBad Robot Productions
Kilter Films
Warner Bros. Television
Original release
NetworkCBS
ReleaseSeptember 22, 2011 (2011-09-22) –
present

Person of Interest is an American television crime drama broadcasting on CBS. It is based on a screenplay developed by J. J. Abrams and Jonathan Nolan.[1] The series revolves around a former CIA agent (Jim Caviezel) recruited by a mysterious billionaire (Michael Emerson) to prevent violent crimes in New York City. Season two premiered on September 27, 2012.[2]

Plot

Main article: List of Person of Interest episodes

"You are being watched. The government has a secret system: a machine that spies on you every hour of every day. I know because I built it. I designed the machine to detect acts of terror, but it sees everything. Violent crimes involving ordinary people, people like you. Crimes the government considered irrelevant. They wouldn't act, so I decided I would. But I needed a partner, someone with the skills to intervene. Hunted by the authorities, we work in secret. You'll never find us, but victim or perpetrator, if your number's up... we'll find you".

Season one opening voice-over by Mr. Finch[3]

John Reese (Jim Caviezel), a former Green Beret and CIA field officer, is living as a derelict in New York City after an attempt on his life by the CIA,[4] and is presumed dead. He is approached by Harold Finch (Michael Emerson), a reclusive billionaire computer genius who is living under an assumed identity. Finch explains that after 9/11, he built a computer system for the government which uses information gleaned from omnipresent surveillance to predict future terrorist attacks. However, Finch discovered that the computer was predicting ordinary crimes as well. While the government was not interested in these results, Finch is determined to find a way to stop the predicted crimes. He hires Reese to conduct surveillance and intervene as needed, using his repertoire of skills gained in the military and CIA. Through a back door built into the system, Reese and Finch receive a Social Security number for someone who will be involved in an imminent crime. Without knowing what the crime will be, when it will occur, or even if the person they were alerted to is a victim or perpetrator, Reese and Finch must try to stop the crime from occurring. They are helped by NYPD Detectives Lionel Fusco (Kevin Chapman), a corrupt cop whom Reese coerces into helping them, and Joss Carter (Taraji P. Henson), who had originally been investigating Reese for his vigilante activities. Although Reese arranged for Carter and Fusco to be partners in the NYPD early in the series, for the entirety of the show's first season, neither was aware that the other was also working with Finch and Reese. Periodically, the team also enlists the aid of Zoe Morgan (Paige Turco), a professional "fixer" who applies her skills to particularly difficult tasks. The series features several subplots, including "HR", an organization of corrupt NYPD officers in league with budding mob boss Carl Elias (Enrico Colantoni) which Fusco, as well as Root (Amy Acker), a murderous female hacker who is determined to gain access to the Machine.

Characters

Main characters

  • John Reese (Jim Caviezel): a former U.S. Army Special Forces soldier and CIA field officer, who is presumed dead. Little is known about Reese's background, and his name is one of several aliases he uses. He lost his lover, Jessica, prior to meeting Finch, which appears to have marked him deeply. Reese demonstrates skill in the use of a range of weapons, hand-to-hand combat, and surveillance tactics. He knows very little about Finch and is often rebuffed when he attempts to learn more about him.
  • Harold Finch (Michael Emerson): a reclusive and intensely private billionaire software genius. Finch developed a machine that can isolate the Social Security numbers of people with either premeditated homicidal intent or who will be homicide victims, based on its analysis of surveillance data. Following a traumatic event in his own life that led to the death of his business partner, he recruits Reese to help him deal with the people the Machine identifies. Finch lives and works in an abandoned library, and shows the results of severe physical injuries, including the inability to turn his head, rigid posture, and a limp.
  • Detective Jocelyn[5] "Joss" Carter (Taraji P. Henson): a NYPD homicide detective whose husband was killed in the line of duty, leaving her as a single mother to a teenaged son, Taylor. Carter is a former U.S. Army interrogator who passed the bar exam in 2004, but gave up practicing the law to return to police work. Carter first crosses paths with Reese following his encounter with a group of young men on a New York subway, but knew him principally as a mysterious man in a suit. Carter is initially determined to apprehend Reese, but eventually forms an alliance with him and Finch. She is unaware of the Machine's existence.
  • Detective Lionel Fusco (Kevin Chapman): a corrupt cop who Reese blackmails into being a source inside the police department. Finch later arranges for Fusco to be transferred to Carter's precinct so that he works with her. Over time, Fusco becomes increasingly loyal to Finch and Reese. Like Carter, he does not know about the Machine.

Recurring characters

  • Zoe Morgan (Paige Turco): a fixer who specializes in crisis management. Finch and Reese first meet her as a person of interest; later, she works with them on cases that require her skills. She has an ill-disguised interest in Reese.
  • Jessica Arndt (Susan Misner): Reese's deceased lover. After Jessica's relationship with Reese ended, she married another man, but remained in contact with Reese. She was eventually killed accidentally by her husband during a domestic dispute, who then covered it up by staging a car accident. It is suggested that Reese disposed of Peter before meeting Finch, but it is left unclear as to his actual fate.
  • Nathan Ingram (Brett Cullen): Finch's deceased collaborator on the Machine, who died under unknown circumstances. Ingram acted as the interface between the government and their company while the Machine was under development.
  • Grace Hendricks (Carrie Preston): Finch's former romantic involvement.
  • Alicia Corwin (Elizabeth Marvel): a liaison between Ingram and the government while the Machine was being developed and a former member of the National Security Council. Corwin began living in hiding in a small town after Ingram's death.
  • "Root" (Amy Acker): born Samantha (Sam) Groves, Root is a highly intelligent hacker and contract killer with a keen interest in both Finch and the Machine.
  • Special Agent Donnelly (Brennan Brown): an FBI agent who becomes interested in Reese when his case crosses one of Reese's. He periodically offers Carter the opportunity to work with him as he pursues Reese.
  • Detectives Terny (Al Sapienza) and Kane (Anthony Mangano): NYPD homicide detectives with whom Carter and Fusco periodically work.

HR

The following characters are involved in the HR storyline, in which a group of corrupt police officers work in collaboration with an up and coming mob boss to control organized crime in New York.

  • Carl Elias (Enrico Colantoni): a nascent crime boss and the illegitimate son of Mafia don Gianni Moretti. Elias is determined to revive the crime families of New York and to eliminate the Russian mob, with the assistance of elements of the NYPD. He first meets Reese while masquerading as a high school teacher supposedly under threat in Brighton Beach. He eventually had his father and half brother killed off to avenge his birth mother and is now incarcerated. Elias continues to call the shots from behind bars.
  • Captain Womack (John Fiore): the captain in charge of Homicide and Carter's supervisor; he protects members of HR when Carter gets too close. Reese blackmailed him into transferring Fusco to Carter's precinct.
  • Officer Simmons (Robert John Burke): a uniformed officer who is now righthand man to HR's leader; he handles HR activities on the street level and threatened Fusco repeatedly.
  • Captain Lynch (Michael Mulheren): a major figure in HR and with whom Fusco must appear to be working. Killed by Fusco to save Reese
  • Anthony Marconi[5] (David Valcin): an NYPD uniformed officer who works as Elias' principal enforcer. He is easily identifiable by a large scar on his right cheek.

CIA

The following characters are part of Reese's backstory relating to his time with the CIA.

  • Mark Snow (Michael Kelly): a CIA operative who once worked with Reese and is now trying to find and kill him.
  • Tyrell Evans (Darien Sills-Evans): a CIA agent working with Snow.
  • Kara Stanton (Annie Parisse): Reese's former CIA partner, widely believed to be dead.

Production

The series was officially picked up by CBS on May 13, 2011,[6] and debuted on September 22, 2011.[7]

It was renewed for a second season on March 14, 2012 by CBS, which premiered in September 27, 2012.[2]

Reception

According to CBS, Person of Interest received the highest test ratings of any drama pilot in 15 years,[8] what one CBS executive called "crazy broad appeal you don't usually see," prompting CBS to move CSI, which was broadcast on Thursday for over 10 years, to Wednesday, opening up a slot for Person of Interest.[9] The pilot episode won its time slot, drawing 13.2 million viewers.[10] On October 25, 2011, the show received a 22 episode full season order. The order was later increased to 23 episodes.[11]

Critical reception

David Wiegand of the San Francisco Chronicle said "Person of Interest separates itself from the gimmick pack, not only because of superbly nuanced characterization and writing but also because of how it engages a post-9/11 sense of paranoia in its viewers."[12] David Hinckley of the New York Daily News gave the pilot four stars out of five, commenting on Caviezel and Emerson's performances, saying Caviezel "brings the right stuff to this role" and Emerson "is fascinating as Mr. Finch."[13] Mary McNamara of the Los Angeles Times stated, "the notion of preventing crimes rather than solving them is an appealing twist...The surveillance graphics are very cool."[1]

Ratings

Season Episodes Timeslot (ET/PT) Premiere Finale TV Season Rank Viewers
(in millions)
Date Premiere
Viewers
(in millions) 		Date Finale
Viewers
(in millions)
1 23
Thursday 9:00 PM
September 22, 2011
 13.33[14]
May 17, 2012
 13.47[15] 2011–12 #13 14.34[16]
2 TBA
September 27, 2012
 14.28[17] TBA 2012–13 #5 17.03[18]

International distribution

The following table lists the countries in which Person of Interest airs outside the USA.

Country Network(s) Series premiere Timeslot
 Argentina Warner Channel TBA TBA
 Australia Channel Nine September 25, 2011[19] Mondays at 9:30 pm
 Belgium La Une August 28, 2012 Tuesdays at 8:15 pm
 Brazil Warner Channel October 18, 2011 Wednesdays at 10:00 pm[20]
 Canada Citytv September 22, 2011 Thursdays at 9/8c
 Chile Warner Channel TBA TBA
 Costa Rica Warner Channel November, 2011 Tuesdays at 9:00 pm
 Cyprus NovaCinema 1, NovaCinemaHD September 30, 2012 Sundays at 9:00 pm
 Fiji Fiji One July 11, 2012 Wednesdays at 9:00 pm
 Germany RTL September 13, 2012 Thursdays at 9:15 pm
 Greece NovaCinema 1, NovaCinemaHD September 30, 2012 Sundays at 9:00 pm
 Hungary Viasat 3 March 8, 2012[21] Sundays at 8:55 pm
 India STAR World March 6, 2012 Tuesdays at 10:00 pm
 Israel Yes Action March 15, 2012 TBA
 Italy Mediaset Premium Crime April 30, 2012 Fridays at 9:15 pm
 Japan TV Tokyo TBA TBA
 Mexico Warner Channel and Canal 5 (XHGC-TV) September 18, 2012 Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday at 10:15 pm
 Netherlands Veronica August 26, 2012 Sundays at 9:25 pm
 New Zealand TV ONE January 16, 2012[22] Mondays at 9:30 pm
 Norway Canal+ 2011 Mondays at 8:00 pm
 Panama Warner Channel November, 2011 Tuesdays at 10:00 pm
 Philippines Chase January, 2012 TBA
 Poland ITI Neovision February 2012 VoD
 Portugal RTP1, RTP2 May 8, 2012 Wednesdays at 02:32 am
 Puerto Rico WAPA TV September 2012 Thurdays at 9:00 pm
 Slovenia POP TV March 20, 2012 Tuesdays at 10:30 pm
 South Korea Channel CGV May 11, 2012 Fridays at 10:00 pm
 Spain laSexta November 17, 2011[23] Wednesdays at 10:30 pm
 Sweden Canal+ Series November 21, 2011 Mondays at 8:00 pm
 Taiwan Public Television Service November 14, 2012 Monday to Thursday at 11:00 pm
 Trinidad and Tobago CBS March 8, 2012 Thursdays at 9:00 pm
 Turkey CNBC-e November 17, 2011 Thursdays at 9:00 pm
 Ukraine ICTV 2012 Mondays and Tuesdays at 23:57; Thursdays at 00:01[24]
 United Kingdom Channel 5 August 14, 2012[25] Tuesdays at 9:00 pm[25]
 Venezuela Warner TV November 2011 TBA

Awards

Person of Interest won Favorite New TV Drama at the 2012 People's Choice Awards.[26]

References

  1. ^ a b McNamara, Mary (22 September 2011). "'Person of Interest': TV review". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2011-09-25.
  2. ^ a b de Moraes, Lisa. "CBS picking up most of its primetime slate for next season". The Washington Post. Retrieved 14 March 2012.
  3. ^ "Pilot". Person of Interest. Season 1. Episode 1. August 14, 2012. CBS. {{cite episode}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |episodelink= (help); Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ "Matsya Nyaya". Person of Interest. Season 1. Episode 20. April 26, 2012. CBS. {{cite episode}}: Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help)
  5. ^ a b "C.O.D". Person of Interest. Season 2. Episode 9. December 6, 2012. CBS. {{cite episode}}: Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ Roffman, Marisa (13 May 2011). "CBS Orders PERSON OF INTEREST and TWO BROKE GIRLS". Give Me My Remote. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  7. ^ Seidman, Robert (29 June 2011). "CBS Announces Fall 2011 Premiere Dates". TVbytheNumbers. Retrieved 20 September 2011.
  8. ^ Karlin, Susan (21 September 2011). "'Person Of Interest' Creator Jonathan Nolan Isn't Paranoid--Or Is He?". Fast Company. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  9. ^ de Moraes, Lisa (18 May 2011). "Upfronts Week 2011: CBS moves 'CSI' to Wednesday to make room for new J.J. Abrams series". The TV Column. The Washington Post. Retrieved 24 September 2011. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  10. ^ O'Connell, Mikey (23 September 2011). "TV Ratings: 'X Factor' holds, 'Charlie's Angels' off to modest start". From Inside the Box. Zap2it. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  11. ^ Goldberg, Lesley (25 October 2011). "'Person of Interest', 'Unforgettable' Get Full-Season Orders at CBS". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  12. ^ David Wiegand (21 September 2011). "'Person of Interest' and 'Prime Suspect' reviews". San Francisco Chronicle. p. E-1. Retrieved 2011-09-25.
  13. ^ Hinckley, David (22 September 2011). "'Person of Interest' review: John Reese and Mr. Finch partner up in ultimate mystery CIA operatives". Daily News. New York. Retrieved 2011-09-25.
  14. ^ Seidman, Robert (23 September 2011). "Thursday Finals: 'Big Bang Theory', 'The X Factor', 'Parks and Recreation' and 'Whitney' Adjusted Up". Zap2it. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  15. ^ Bibel, Sara (May 18, 2012). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'American Idol', 'Grey's Anatomy', '30 Rock' Adjusted Up; 'Touch', 'Scandal' Adjusted Down". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved May 18, 2012.
  16. ^ "Nielsen Television – TV Ratings for Primetime: 2011-12 Season-to-Date". Zap2it. May 13, 2012. Retrieved May 18, 2012.
  17. ^ Kondolojy, Amanda (28 September 2012). "Thursday Final Ratings: Big Bang Theory, Grey's Anatomy, Adjusted Up; Parks & Rec, Up All Night, SNL: Weekend Update, The Office, Glee, Scandal, Rock Center Adjusted Down". TV by the Numbers. Zap2it. Retrieved 29 October 2012.
  18. ^ http://www.zap2it.com/tv/ratings/zap-season-ratings,0,1937498.htmlstory
  19. ^ Knox, David (16 September 2011). "Airdate: Person of Interest". TV Tonight. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
  20. ^ "Person of Interest - Miércoles 10pm". Warner Channel (in Spanish).
  21. ^ "A célszemély - vasárnap 20:55". Viasat (in Hungarian). Retrieved 29 October 2012.
  22. ^ "Person of Interest on One". Throng. 16 January 2012. Retrieved 29 October 2012.
  23. ^ "La esperada 'Person of Interest' a por 'Tu cara me suena' y 'Tierra de Lobos'" (in Spanish). Vertele!. 10 November 2011. Retrieved 29 October 2012.
  24. ^ "Ефір/Особливо небезпечний". ICTV (in Russian). Retrieved 29 October 2012.
  25. ^ a b Munn, Patrick (18 May 2012). "Channel 5 Acquires UK Rights To Person Of Interest". TVWise. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
  26. ^ "People's Choice Awards 2012". Chiff. November 8, 2011.
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