St. Elsewhere

There were very few shows that could provide stirring, insightful, sometimes disturbing drama week after week, but "St. Elsewhere" always did. A superlative cast made it entirely believable: Ed Flanders was terrific as Dr. Westphall, as was William Daniels as Dr. Craig. I still miss the insults that Craig threw at Dr. Ehrlich (Ed Begley, Jr.)

I found the show so believable that I wondered if there was a real St. Eligius Hospital in Boston. I think everyone should see it.

The two part episode that spanned St. Eligius' history from 1935-1985 was the best show ever on TV. The great thing about the show is that you never know if things will wind up good or bad, and the show likes to use your own memory of previous shows rather than beat you over the head with them.

After watching St. Elsewhere on Bravo, I realized that it is truly a superior show even now. It took chances that nobody else is willing to take. It is even more multi-ethnic than most dramas today. It makes ER and other medical shows look like they written by first graders. Even after all these years, St. Elsewhere has aged like fine wine. It is fresher now than ever before. Too bad, it struggled in its day. What a shame. It is truly one of the finest dramas on television today even in syndication. ER could learn a lot from watching St. Elsewhere. Too bad, ER's stars are ruining their own show. Maybe if William Daniels joined the cast, I would start watching it again. St. Elsewhere is one of the finest hours on television. Even now, it will blow you away. I miss the chemistry among it's characters and it's controversial but yet compassionate way of handling some situations. I still think Christina Pickles should be recognized with an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) because it would boost the show's genius and brilliance all around the world. I dislike the fact that she will be more remembered for her role as Ross and Monica's mother on Friends than her days on St. Elsewhere as Nurse Rosenthal, a British woman with a love for Jewish men. Anyway, it was a show that just gets better in time. It's classic television and every medical show should watch and take notes.

There is much to be said about St Elsewhere and its immense importance in defining the modern Television drama. The series set the formula for how future medical dramas would be produced. Physicians were not perfect individuals, and patients died. Doctors and nurses were "real people", and they, as did the patients, cope with day to day life inside and outside the confines of St Eligious hospital.

St Elswehere would bring the viewer into a drama filled hospital, where both doctors and patients interacted. The writers while giving us a look into the lives of both the Physician and patient, mercifully avoided a soap opera like atmosphere. They were instead disciplined in the intercourse between doctor and patient, and everything in between. They explored issues that TV had previously considered taboo, and handled those subjects in a mature, responsible manner, while never disregarding the intellect of the audience, and their ability to hold attention to dialogue.

Comparatively St Elsewhere moved on a slower pace than it's modern counterpart, "ER". The writers gave you scenes and story-lines that would cause the viewer to slow down and think, and avoided fast paced vacuous imagery and verbiage. Rarely did their ER blow-up, or the hospital fall victim to a helicopter crash. While there were expeditious Emergency Room exhibits in the St Elsewhere series, they did not bounce back and forth the camera like a ping-pong in an attempt to keep us amused. Instead, they focused on dialogue, the characters, and most imortant the plot.

Its drama along with real and diverse characters, will ensure its place in history, as one of televisions best series. St. Elsewhere is a prime example of how big ratings mean very little in defining a shows value or place in Televisions hierarchy.

Prior to this show,shows set in hospitals tended to have a "Cahracter first" element to them(i.e. "Ben Casey,M.D.,"Dr.Kildare","Marcus Welby M.D.","Trapper John M.D.")or else had a sort of generic quality of efficiency and heroism(think "Emergency!" of even the soap opera "General Hospital")attached. This show,a stubborn NBC offering okay-ed by legendary head of programming Brandon TArtikoff that managed to stay on the Wednsday at 10 EST/9 CST for the entirety or near entirety of its five year run.

Featuring a collection of renowned veteran actors(Ed Flanders,Norman Lloyd and William DAniels),durable vet character actors(Ed Begley Jr.,Stephen Furst,Christina Pickles,France Nguyen,Alfre Woodward and Bonnie BArtlett)and an eclectic blend of young up-and-comers(Denzel Washington,Mark HArmon,David Morse,Stephen Furst and Howie MAndel. Yes,THAT Howie Mandel),this show would tackle all sorts of once-ignored and taboo subjects such as AIDS,Autism,abortion,rape and The right to die. The show's later seasons would reflect the ratings-challenged series' standing,and would ultimately create a more surreal,less grounded storyline follow-through that would create a conclusion that would NOT sit well with many loyal viewers,among them myself, Still,this show's production,writing and acting would be the ground-layer(word I just made up!)for such dramas as "ER","House" and "Grey's ANatomy". It's tempting to say that a show that's over a quarter-century old and has been off the air for just over twenty years would now be quaint,but I have a funny feeling that many(if not all)of the plot lines and story arcs of this show would carry fair weight now as well. Since it was never that popular in syndication,I would suggest one request to buy this from your friendly Borders or Barnes and Noble or have your local vid store or library rent it out. A lasting legacy of not only smart television but a model of "little shows that could",due to the loyal,stubborn following of dedicated viewers.