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Life
SERIES: NBC, Wednesday 10:00p (60 minutes)


9.3

based on 21 reviews
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based on 158 votes
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Get more information on this show at TV.com.

Official Show Site

Starring Damian Lewis, Sarah Shahi, Robin Weigert, Adam Arkin, Brent Sexton, and Melissa Sagemiller

Charlie's back after being falsely held in in prison for twelve years. Like a fish out of water, will he (and the show) flop or swim?

GENRE(S):	Drama
CREATED BY:	Rand Ravich
FIRST AIR DATE:	September 26, 2007

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

Entertainment Weekly Ken Tucker

Life is intelligent fun.

Wall Street Journal Nancy DeWolf Smith

Of all the new shows I've watched, it's also the one I'm most eager to see again.

Variety Laura Fries

Crews quirky mannerisms don't overwhelm the plot, and the show does strikes a nice balance between whimsy and its much darker backstory.

Hollywood Reporter Barry Garron

It's an entirely different vibe, further enhanced by a charismatic and quirky central character who is both unpredictable and impossible to pigeonhole. Given a chance to develop, Detective Charlie Crews could someday take a place with the likes of Kojak, Columbo and Monk.

Los Angeles Times Mary McNamara

Playing it long and lugubrious but with a tantalizing twinkle, Lewis (last seen in the States as the hateful husband in "The Forsyte Saga") may well wrest the mantle of sexiest troubled American played by a Brit away from Hugh Laurie.

Boston Globe Matthew Gilbert

The actor [Lewis], who uses a flawless American accent, makes Life worth a gander. And he is surrounded by a distinctive cast.

Miami Herald Glenn Garvin

This peculiar comedy-drama has some cockeyed wrinkles that make it interesting.

The New York Times Ginia Bellafante

The narrative structure of the show is incredibly satisfying: During each hour a crime is committed and solved, as Charlie’s search for who might have framed him provides the overriding arch, satisfying our short attention spans and taste for long-form narrative at once.

Detroit Free Press Mike Duffy

Lewis is terrific. But his brazenly loopy lawman may not be to everyone's offbeat crime drama tastes.

New York Daily News David Bianculli

Life doesn't squander the talents of its cast. The mysteries are solid, the characters multilayered, and Crews is given a bigger mystery about which to obsess--finding out who framed him.

Newsday Tom Jicha

Lewis is such a commanding presence that Sarah Shahi is rendered little more than an accessory as Dani. There's nothing going on between the partners at the outset, but this is subject to change.

PopMatters Cynthia Fuchs

Details of color and composition do the work usually handled by too much expository dialogue, granting access to Dani and Charlie’s thinking.

New York Magazine John Leonard

Just as we begin to wonder whether Life is intended to be, um, wacky, it takes a darker turn.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer Melanie McFarland

While one can never count out a decent cop show, Life's main character is so weird he either fascinates you immediately or turns you off.

Kansas City Star Aaron Barnhart

There’s no doubt Life is blessed with a fine lead actor, an intriguing premise and better writing than most new shows this fall. It’s just that viewers aren’t going to find that promising TV drama buried underneath all the crime procedural.

Chicago Tribune Maureen Ryan

Mildly satisfying, but pretty formulaic.

Newark Star-Ledger Alan Sepinwall

Lewis is a strong enough actor (again, see "Band of Brothers") that there are moments where he pulls together all these tics into a character who could be interesting, but too much time gets wasted on pedestrian mysteries to give him room to work.

USA Today Robert Bianco

Strip away the abrasive flourishes, and what's left is a standard-issue TV mystery with cases that are too easy to solve and internal conflicts and conspiracies that make no sense.

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Rob Owen

It gets bogged down by so many procedural elements that all the character moments get squished and forced out around the edges, resulting in an uninteresting blob of an overly familiar TV show.

San Francisco Chronicle Tim Goodman

Just dreadful enough to want to shoot yourself and end up in the tender loving arms of the people at "Private Practice."

Philadelphia Inquirer Jonathan Storm

I could make more fun of Life, but it probably wouldn't be too good for my karma.

The average user rating for this tv show is 9.3 (out of 10) based on 158 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Steven T. gave it a10:
Awesome show. Love the storylines and Charlie's character. Please bring it back!!!

Jennet P. gave it a9:
Interestingly, the critics who like the show are from the newspapers that intellectuals and artists read, whereas the negative reviews are all in provincial rags. In addition to the virtues already well-attested, LIFE is rich in philosophical complexity, asking questions about the nature of humanity, experience, time, etc, rather than either ignoring them or passively accepting the Judeo-Christian-humanist consensus. All this and a killer soundtrack, too! Goes to show that, just because you have a big ol' brain, don't mean you can't dance!

T H gave it a10:
The quirky nature of the lead is so well played, and surrounding actors play off the lead perfectly. This show needs to continue. The scene cuts are very well done as well, it keeps you guessing and wanting more. Fortunately there are normal people in this world that aren't paid to be 'Critics', because the 'Critics' obviously don't have a clue with just a 64avg rating, shameful. I picked up this show on the 4th or 5th episode and was hooked. Fortunately for the technology/internet, I was able to view the previously episodes and catch up. Now if the 'writers' come back, maybe we'll see how this season ends.

vlad m. gave it a10:
One of the best shows I've ever seen. being different from the others this movie stands out and totally sucks you in.

Rob S. gave it a10:
Never seen a TV Series like this before. It's so refreshing, be it the funny dialogues or charlies strange but still wonderful perspectives he has on everything. And the last episodes proofed that it has the potential to build up high tension. I find some of the bad critics way out of touch. Can't wait to see more.

Heather S. gave it a10:
Damian Lewis is gorgeous. His facial expressions and dialect are spot-on for the character he plays- Charlie Crews... he is a profoundly talented actor that deserves an Emmy for his performance. I laugh myself to tears he is so funny. Can't wait for new episodes to come!

Marcia R. gave it a10:
I like the acting, the clever dialogue, and the plot. I sure hope it comes back.

Life SERIES: NBC, Wednesday 10:00p (60 minutes)

Life
SERIES: NBC, Wednesday 10:00p (60 minutes)