Eli Stone: The Complete First Season

An offbeat dramatic comedy that garnered almost uniformly glowing reviews during its 2008 freshman year, Eli Stone was a welcome addition to last season's primetime lineup. Jonny Lee Miller stars as Eli, a ruthless, high-powered corporate attorney who suffers a brain aneurysm that causes him to have strange prophetic hallucinations. The onset of these premonitions and the death of his father spur Eli to reevaluate his place in life and gradually transform him into a do-gooder (of the kind he formerly ignored) who continually alters the lives of people he meets. The best is saved for last in this 13-episode first season compilation, as the penultimate installment finds Eli foreseeing a devastating Bay Area earthquake and trying to get the Golden Gate Bridge shut down, while in the finale Eli goes into surgery, risking the loss of his gift—and his life. Miller, a relatively fresh face for the small screen (many will remember him from the contemporary cult classic Trainspotting), is nothing short of dazzling as Stone, and he receives marvelous support from an experienced supporting cast that includes Victor Garber, Natasha Henstridge, and Loretta Devine. DVD extras include an extended pilot episode (with audio commentary), behind-the-scenes featurettes, deleted scenes, and bloopers. Highly recommended. (E. Hulse)