That was an excellent one.

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

"First Monday" gave us something we don't see enough of on fictional television: honest debates on serious subjects. Sure the show was a rip-off of "West Wing" and just an excuse to make political statements, but at least the show recognized the legitimacy of the arguments on both sides of the issues instead of making one side the hero and one side the villain. Unfortunately, that seemed to be the whole point of the show. Court shows have to be about more than issues if they're going to be remotely interesting. Look at "Judging Amy". The political statements are only plot points. The court cases take up only about a quarter of the episode time. The whole purpose of the show is to see how legal issues affect the characters' personal lives and vice versa. But that's far more than anyone can expect from a series by Bellisario. He thinks in terms of plot, not characters. That fine for a series like "Quantum Leap" but not something intellectually deep like the Supreme Court.

When i first heard about the show i was excited because a show that includes James Garner, Charles Durning and Joe Mantegna must be great. After watching severall shows i have now finally given up, this show clearly shows that good cast alone does not make a good show. Basically the show is all about Joe Mantegna who plays Justice Novelli is new in the supreme court and he always seems to have the decisive vote, IN EVERY SINGLE SHOW. His assistants who research his cases all compete on having their influence on the vote and it gets very irritating after a while. The biggest problem with the show is obviously the writing, is poor by any standards. This show has major problems if it is to survive beyond this season.

This is a great show. I really appreciate the legal arguments and the quality of the acting. All the plot lines were suspenseful, and facts learned about the Supreme Court were well worth noting. This show has particular significance to me since I am a Supreme Court buff. I am able to say that a lot the facts stated in the were correct as to Supreme Court procedure and previous cases. I especially liked how in a couple of episodes the "imaginary" court was hearing some of the same issues as our "real" court. I.E. sex offenders' right to privacy, child pornography, etc. It was a job well done, particularly for a mid-season replacement. Sadly, this wonderful show did not rate ratings high enough to be put on to CBS's fall lineup, which baffles me to no small degree when I consider the Season Finale cliffhanger that will now be left unanswered.

Finally, the viewing public will see the "Judicial Branch" of our government. The portrayal of this branch of our government is very necessary. I do wish that James Garner would not smoke on the show. We watched John Wayne smoke through his career and die through the media. Please eliminate the smoke screen and allow the stars to shine.