Kokomo Tribune Entertainment NOW
Issue link: http://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/404320
TV Media Weekly
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October 25 - 31, 2014
who'll live a lot longer than even
his own son.
Narrated by Gruffudd's Dr. Mor-
gan, the show's story is also told in
flashback and happens to be eerily
similar to a now-defunct 2008 pro-
gram. Astute viewers may recall
"New Amsterdam," an ill-fated Fox
series that only saw eight episodes
before its demise. The similarities be-
gin with the immortal John Amster-
dam, played by Nikolaj Coster-Wal-
dau ("Game of Thrones"), who was
a mid-thirties New York homicide
detective. He was a soldier seeking
his true love, and his 65-year-old son
is in the picture as well.
According to producer Matthew
Miller, "Forever" is not a retelling
or spinoff. In fact, it was only in de-
veloping the show that Miller
heard of the previous series. His
idea was actually spawned by far
more touching means, as he ex-
plained at Television Critics Associ-
ation press tour in July.
"It was pilot season, and I was
putting my five-year-old son to
bed," Miller said. "He asked me,
'Daddy, are you ever going to die?'"
It's a question likely posed by most
toddlers at some point, and initially
Miller said no. He eventually added,
"I will die, but it won't be for a very
long time. ... [My son] burst out cry-
ing, and my wife came in and con-
tinued raising my child, and I went
off to write television."
The old saying "time flies" cer-
tainly rings true for many of us. For
Dr. Morgan, however, that idiom
couldn't be further from the truth.
See how the immortal doctor han-
dles living forever when a new epi-
sode of "Forever" airs Tuesday, Oct.
28, on ABC.
By Lydia Peever
TV Media
H
ow would you explain to your
friends and coworkers that you
may live forever? Imagine bump-
ing into your college professor de-
cades after graduation looking
much the same as the first day you
met. How would you explain that
away? The fledgling series "Forev-
er" tackles this idea when a new
episode of the fantasy drama airs
Tuesday, Oct. 28, on ABC.
Enter Dr. Henry Morgan. Aside
from being touted as the top medi-
cal examiner in New York City, he
makes a hobby of playing with
dead things. Rest assured, this is all
in the name of research as Morgan
is immortal. He dies time and time
again — four times in the pre-
miere, if you can swallow that —
and keeps coming back. The prob-
lem is that even though he has
studied death, he has no idea why
it eludes him.
The dark doctor is played by
Ioan Gruffudd ("Ringer"), who has
his fair share of dark and brooding
in roles on his resumé. You may re-
call him as Mr. Fantastic from the
Marvel Comics-based "Fantastic
Four" franchise, where he may
have been just as conflicted deal-
ing with a preternatural power few
could understand. He also has
starred in films such as the bio-
graphical drama "W." (2008),
"King Arthur" (2004) and "Amaz-
ing Grace" (2006).
"I'm a character that has lived
for 200 years," Gruffudd said in
conversation with ABC News. "Yes,
I'm immortal, but [Dr. Morgan]
sees this as a curse rather than a
blessing. If you can imagine living
for 200 years and everyone else
isn't immortal, people come and
go in your life, and people pass on,
and it's a bit of a tragedy. It's an in-
teresting dichotomy. The character
lives and breathes and works in a
medical examiner's office, sur-
rounded by death, but he can't die
himself."
The rest of the cast comes from
so many styles there is bound to be
a personality that will speak to any
viewer. Alana De La Garza is the
tough-as-nails Det. Jo Martinez.
She isn't sure what to make of the
distracted medical examiner, but ul-
timately finds him intriguing,
though she doesn't know his secret.
De La Garza has been dabbling
with law in television for a decade,
starting with the naval and milita-
ristic "Jag," as well as popping in
"Law & Order," "CSI: Miami,"
"NCIS: Los Angeles" and "Law &
Order: Special Victims Unit."
Lucas Wahl, the doctor's devoted
assistant, is a bit of an oddball. Al-
though he is more death-obsessed
than his liege, he offers a spark of
youth to the proceedings. Portrayed
by Joel David Moore ("Bones,"
"Avatar," 2009), he has had less se-
rious roles in films such as "Dodge-
ball: A True Underdog Story" (2004)
and "Grandma's Boy" (2006).
Judd Hirsch's character, Abe, is
the owner of an antique shop in
"Forever" and one of the few
people who knows of Henry's
odd affliction. Not only is Abe a
friend and confidant, he also
happens to be the adopted son
of the immortal doctor, which
adds a special twist to the al-
ready-quirky situation. So while
many kids seek advice from their
parents, there's often a swap in
this relationship since Abe en-
courages his father to live a little.
It's an odd sentiment, perhaps,
when it's directed at a man
Judd Hirsch and Ioan Gruffudd as seen in "Forever"
'Forever' and a day
New fantasy drama toys with the immortal
2
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