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Eli Stone
SERIES: ABC, Thursday 10:00p (60 minutes)


8.5

based on 24 reviews
read critic reviews
how did we calculate this?

based on 67 votes
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Get more information on this show at TV.com.

Starring Jonny Lee Miller, Victor Garber, Natasha Henstridge, Loretta Devine, Sam Jaeger, James Saito, Matt Letsher, and Julie Gonzalo

A San Francisco lawyer begins seeing things including George Michael.

GENRE(S):	Comedy, Drama
CREATED BY:	Greg Berlanti Marc Guggenheim
FIRST AIR DATE:	January 31, 2008

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

100

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Rob Owen

Eli Stone offers a well-stirred mix of character comedy, relationship drama, legal cases and musical numbers.

Entertainment Weekly Ken Tucker

With these superb supporting players [Victor Garber, Tom Amandes, and Loretta Devine] helping drain away any potential drippiness from the show's magical-realist trappings, Eli Stone proves as solid as a rock.

Hollywood Reporter Barry Garron

There's a strong supporting cast, including Loretta Devine as Stone's no-nonsense secretary, but the big attraction is Miller's Stone and his transformation from heartless corporate lawyer to protector of the little guy.

TV Guide Matt Roush

Adorably quirky and emotionally surprising, Eli Stone is a legal drama the same way Pushing Daisies (how I miss it) is a mere whodunit.

Miami Herald Glenn Garvin

It's hard to say which is more unlikely: That a corporate legal fang could be God's prophet; or that the Almighty would spread His word through visions of George Michael; or these matters could be blended into a daffily funny and affecting television show.

San Jose Mercury News Charlie McCollum

Effortlessly mixing drama and wit, mysticism and biting social commentary, there is a real glow to Eli Stone that will brighten your day and lift your spirits. That is a very rare thing on television.

The New York Times Ginia Bellafante

There’s a cynicism balancing the upbeat goofiness of Eli Stone.

USA Today Robert Bianco

It's hard not to like a show that extends its warmth even to characters you expect to be unsympathetic and that expands its entertainment vocabulary to music, dancing and flights of fancy.

New York Post Linda Stasi

Lots of fun. The acting and comic timing, when called for, are tremendous - and Miller's got the heft to carry it off.

Variety Brian Lowry

It's a formula nevertheless--one that renders Eli Stone engaging but not fully involving, particularly once the vision/trial/puzzled-looks-from-colleagues ground rules are established, based on a sampling of two subsequent hours.

Los Angeles Times Robert Lloyd

What makes the show worth watching are some old-fashioned character relationships; no single performance tears up the place, but together they make something interesting.

Newark Star-Ledger Alan Sepinwall

Eli Stone, lightweight and proudly quirky.

Chicago Tribune Maureen Ryan

Eli Stone is not quite there yet; the characters are pretty thinly drawn in the first few episodes, and the law cases seem heavily tilted toward the "little guy" side.

Washington Post Tom Shales

Maybe it should be considered substitute programming, until more solid and substantial dramas return. On that level, it doesn't totally blow, bro; it's actually quite tolerable.

LA Weekly Robert Abele

Eli Stone is another lawyer hour disguised as feel-good rehabilitation fluff, with Eli now compelled to use his sharklike courtroom mojo to take up the causes of wronged underdogs against the kinds of heartless corporate clients his blue-chip firm typically represents.

San Francisco Chronicle Tim Goodman

Though Berlanti doesn't always get the balance right and there's no telling whether people will glom onto Eli the way they did Ally, having seen three episodes and been entertained through most of them is saying something, at least.

New York Daily News David Hinckley

Eli Stone is uneven and seems uncertain about what it wants to be when it grows up, it has rather endearing moments.

Chicago Sun-Times Doug Elfman

The tone of this odd show (created by Greg Berlanti and Marc Guggenheim, and initially directed by Ken Olin) is both sweet and wacky, as if it were made by David E. Kelley, he of "Ally McBeal." But it's missing something.

Boston Globe Matthew Gilbert

Despite a good cast led by Jonny Lee Miller as Eli, and despite the happy San Francisco setting, Eli Stone is a bag of too-familiar tricks.

Salon Heather Havrilesky

Sadly, no matter how spunky and weird Eli Stone might be at times, at its heart it's Slick Yuppie Lawyer Makes Good, for the millionth time over.

Philadelphia Inquirer Jonathan Storm

It's not the worst thing you've ever seen, innocuous entertainment (despite the inoculation controversy) that, like Boston Legal, includes the occasional entertaining musical number.

Newsday Diane Werts

Eli Stone is fated to flounder.

Philadelphia Daily News Ellen Gray

Eli/Ally not only isn't the most original character of the season, he's not the most sharply defined, either.

Wall Street Journal Dorothy Rabinowitz

The main deadly force in Eli Stone is its scripts, which are ever so spritely in tone, ever so dumb in essence.

The average user rating for this tv show is 8.5 (out of 10) based on 67 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Darron K. gave it a10:
I cannot remember the last television show I actually looked forward to watching. TV has become absolute garbage, in my humble opinion. With the exception of this odd show Eli Stone. Anyone who has been through psychological or spiritual trauma should be able to enjoy this show. That should mean everyone, but, as is evidenced by the various reviews out there, this show is not for everyone. Most shows are incredibly dark and nihilistic-the point always ends up in the suicidal ideation of Camus or Nietzche. I became a huge fan of this show. Sure, the visions are out there, the plots are wacky, but the message, the message is pure and needed today. Surprisingly, in its simplicity, this show is actually far more complex than the majority of filth on the tube. Folks, if you are a spiritual person who has faced hardship, if you are a Christian or a spiritual libertine who has eyes towards hope, faith, and the promise of a better future, look no further than Eli Stone for great television. In fact, go buy the Season 1 DVD, it is fantastic. This is no 7th Heaven or Joan of Arcadia...there is an element of truthfullness in this fanciful show and it seeps with humanity in an inhuman time. Highly recommended from someone who can barely sit through 99% of TV today.

Stephen B. gave it a9:
So often a second season disappoints and fails to carry forward the momentum of the first. Not so for Eli Stone. Yes, it is soppy and hardly an intellectual challenge. However it is also a creative and carefully crafted continuation of the story, stirring the emotions in a delicate and entertaining manner. Sit back, relax and enjoy.

Frank C. gave it a10:
Considering some of the trash ABC has had in the past, this is about the only reason my TIVO ever sees the light of day on ABC. The story is well written and well acted.

Mark G. gave it a10:
This show is pure entertainment....something most shows don't....

Jane Z. gave it a10:
This is such a refreshing show and so well done. It is fun and entertaining. The cast is well suited together. I look forward every week to Thursday evening and Eli Stone. I hope it will be renewed.

Melissa gave it a10:
Like "Michelle" said, I liked the first episode but it didnt make justice to what was to come. I kept on watching because it seemed promising and I was not disappointed. Eli is a beautiful man (and i don't mean hot) he's flawed and trying so very hard to do the hard thing. It reminds us that we cant expect to be good without struggling a little. Love it, love it love it!

Josephine S. gave it a10:
I love this show...I want it to continue...One of the best shows on TV!!! My favorite.

Eli Stone SERIES: ABC, Thursday 10:00p (60 minutes)

Eli Stone
SERIES: ABC, Thursday 10:00p (60 minutes)