I am with sj. Even if the machine comes more into the plot, the show centers around crime and its prevention and figuring that out every week is the driver.

Let me add that I don't think this show is much different from NUMB3RS. I think of it like Numb3rs meets The Equalizer. That's where I situate it in a genre.

Huh. It seems a pretty clear sci fi procedural to me. I was thinking the question was--where do you discuss a sci fi procedural, not is this sci fi? I don't understand the correlation with Numb3rs at all. There's an AI, a very proto-Skynettish AI, with a personality and goals and abilities impossible in today's technology, and the fact that it's an individual (and therefore sci fi in my interpretation of the genre) is the season arc, since it's their antagonist's motivation.

For me it comes down to if I were weighing the sci to elements on one side of a scale and the procedural elements on the other side the procedural side would be heavier, but it sounds to me like you're saying that the sci fi elements trumps everything?

so I'm still with sj.

the computer (and what it is exactly) is not often discussed. if we take how it was explained in the first part of season 1, it is like numb3rs in that the computer was putting together probabilities and attempting to predict when a person in NYC would be murdered.

I think the average person who drops in the series may not get the full implications of what the computer does or is. it seems to me, what makes a genre show is that the full import of the genre should be apparent always. I would argue it isn't apparent most of the time with PoI.

You can't say this about Dr. Who, Fringe, Being Human, X-files, or Quantum Leap.

To me, in general, the procedural elements of any show will always be weakest in terms of picking a place to discuss them. If a show is [something] procedural and there's a [something] space, my gut reaction is to put it there, since procedural isn't much of a narrative unifying concept. It's usually the least interesting part of a show, and PoI isn't an exception to my appreciation.

As far as sci fi in this specific show, the machine is an AI, and AI is sci fi. The machine isn't just sci fi in the CSI sense where we can't actually do that but everyone pretends that we can, but in the story they not only admit that it's an AI, it's the motivation of this season's big bad.

Clearly there's never going to be enough momentum to move where this discussion is happening--mostly I'm just surprised that other people aren't processing the sci fi elements are relevant, where it seems to be the entire point of the show to me.

About the show itself--why were so many people saying this week's was a stunning hour of TV? I ended up watching it twice (I forgot I'd watched it before, and once I realised it was a redo I thought maybe I'd understand the acclaim) and I still don't know--sociopath Shahi is never not going to be cool, but I'm clearly missing why it's elevated above everything else in ever.

About the show itself--why were so many people saying this week's was a stunning hour of TV? I ended up watching it twice (I forgot I'd watched it before, and once I realised it was a redo I thought maybe I'd understand the acclaim) and I still don't know--sociopath Shahi is never not going to be cool, but I'm clearly missing why it's elevated above everything else in ever.

Because they were brave enough to do an episode of TV with very little of any of the main characters? Plus, AA was back, which makes it a great hour of television imo.

I thought that the ep was really strong because it went against formula, it was a mini-action movie, gave great possibilities for a spin-off and it was wild seeing a female version of John.

Clearly there's never going to be enough momentum to move where this discussion is happening--mostly I'm just surprised that other people aren't processing the sci fi elements are relevant, where it seems to be the entire point of the show to me.

I do find myself positively scintillated by those moments when John looks at a traffic camera and talks to the Machine. I only watch it at work so POI has not completely captured my attention. If or when it does though, ita_!, I might skew the discussion more in that direction.

Is anyone watching Body of Proof? Dana Delaney has always compelled me, but I feel like I might not watch it except for her. Will be interesting to see what the cast changes bring.

Speaking of which -- Mark Valley, as usual, makes me think I should be seeing Colin Ferguson. I do like that there's a partner set of cops now, though they are no Ryan and Esposito, which I guess there's no reason they should be.

Am curious to see what planting a blinky electronic thing in a human corpse is all about.