Do No Harm
Episode 1: Pilot
By: Carlos Uribe
Do
No Harm is about Dr. Cole Price and his evil alternate, evil
personality named Ian Price. It is a modern take on the classic Dr.
Jekyll and Mr. Hyde story.
Spoilers
Ahoy!
The idea for a modern-day Jekyll and
Hyde story is one that holds a lot of promise. The idea of having the
protagonist deal with the consequences of his alternate self's
identity could lead to some good drama as the show tries to explore
the difference between good and bad. In order for the idea to work,
the good guy must be interesting on his own right. It can be easy for
a writer to confuse a good person with a bland personality. It is
difficult to root for a two-dimensional person as it's nearly
impossible to relate with them regardless of the situation they're
going through. The idea also needs an antagonist who relishes his
immortal behavior while also actually acting evil. In order for the
protagonist's world to truly be at stake, his alternative self has to
act in a completely depraved manner. The Jekyll and Hyde tragic story
isn't an interesting one because of how Jekyll is losing his world
but because Hyde's insane actions can be compelling on their own
right. The bad guy of the story has to be just as strong as the good
guy. Do No Harm is a new medical drama that adds a twist that Cole
Price happens to be taken over by the antagonist, Ian Price, every
night. It simply isn't a very good one simply because it doesn't make
the idea work. The writers tries their best but it's terrible
dialogue, weak characters, and by-the-numbers medical situations lead
to a show that is ultimately weak. It's never exactly boring because
this show can be used as an example of “it's so bad it's good”.
Which is fine if that's what you're going for, but there's signs that
Do No Harm was to legitimately be a good show. It's just that it
fails in every turn to actually be good.
What went wrong? Cole Price is about
as bland as you can expect. The show never really takes the time to
establish him as anything other than a super doctor who cares. He has
a crush on Lena and used to be engaged to an Olivia. He's only in
control of his body for twelve hours. That's basically all you need
to know about him. He's a good guy but he's presented with no flaws
nor with the possibility that he can misbehave as well. It's
difficult to root for the guy when he never feels human. A large
problem with the pilot is that it rushes into unleashing Ian as soon
as possible in order to make Cole's life more difficult. While we do
get a general sense of Cole's status quo, it leaves very little room
to actually establish a character. Ian is a problem character as well
simply because he doesn't really do anything that bad this episode.
He just makes sarcastic remarks and tries to have as much sex as he
can. If the show is trying to present him as a truly dangerous figure
then it's disappointing how weak his actions are. I'm not expecting
him to rape or kill but at least give us the sense that he's truly
someone to fear. We get hints of that but the show never really goes
far enough. It doesn't help that most of what he does that's supposed
to be wrong is kept off-screen. Part of the fun is to watch Ian's
depraved actions but the show largely skips over them in favor of
keeping Cole's conflict in the focus. Which would be fine if Cole was
actually a character.
It doesn't help that the entire show
is kind of dumb. Cole establishes that his evil self takes over at a
particular time at night and then he wakes up in the morning. How can
he possibly be a doctor if he only works in the day? Oh-the show
explains that away because of Cole's diabetes. It's understandable
that they would ensure he had the right blood pressure before going
to operate but I'm pretty sure diabetic doctors can work at all times
of day. This doesn't really explain how Cole's body can survive with
this little sleep. It's not just the mechanics that have logical
problems. The dialogue is filled with many lines that were simply
terrible. The pilot itself has now become known for ending with a
line so nonsensical that it makes you wonder how this was ordered to
series. Oh, and the medical drama isn't just a typical show but it
actually contains a scene where the female boss decides to allow a
procedure on the base fact that because Cole had never tried it
before, he hasn't had any failures with it. It's logic that makes no
sense and it betrays any semblance that the show takes place in some
semblance of reality. It helps make the show be entertaining but
that's only because it's hard not to laugh at how bad everything is.
There should be no surprise that the
side characters are all undeveloped. The love interest Lena might be
a doctor but she primarily exists as a love interest and nothing
more. She never feels like a character on her own right. The boss,
Vanessa, is a typical medical drama stereotype that never really
impresses. Cole's professional rival is Kenneth whose entire
existence is to disagree with Cole. Cole has a friend, Ruben, that is
trying to develop a way to suppress Cole's alter ego but that's all
we learn about him. We don't even know that they're friends neither
do they seem to actually have that bond. A large problem with the
show is that Cole doesn't seem to have an actual relationship with
anyone. They all just exist in the same show and happen to know each
other but there's never that dynamic. His assistant, Josh, basically
just shows up to be told to cancel Cole's schedule. Cole's former
love interest, Olivia, is the character with the most promise as
she's trying to rebuild her life after it was destroyed while raising
Cole's son. The final character is Cole's group leader, Will, who we
learn nothing about. He merely exists to allow Cole to express his
fear of what happens with Ian gets out. None of these characters
truly develop beyond anything other than their primary function in
the show. It truly is a world of stereotypes and medical drama
clichés.
Do No Harm is not a very good show
of television. It doesn't have a compelling tale to tell nor is it a
smart show. It can be entertaining but only because it doesn't seem
to realize how stupid it truly can be. The show isn't going to be
along for very long because it's the biggest flop ever amongst the
major networks but if you like watching television to make fun of it
then Do No Harm might be the perfect candidate.
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