Review of New CBS Drama "3 LBS"

I just finished watching the new CBS drama, "3 lbs". The title is taken from the weight of the human brain, which is the "star" of the series, so to speak. I generally really enjoy medical dramas so I was anxious to see how this one was going to play. The series takes place in a cutting-edge fantastically chic neurological surgical facility in New York City. Apparently the drama of brain surgery itself was not complex enough for the show's producers, so they set the two main characters, Dr. Hanson and Dr. Seger, against each other with diametrically opposed philosophies about how to approach their patients. At least the writers have infused the drama with a touch of humor to break up all the staring at brain x-rays.

The entire neurological wing of the hospital is decorated with the pattern of nerves that map the brain. They're on the walls, on the rugs, even on the privacy curtains. It makes for a busy background. Tantalizing previews have been aired repeatedly in the last two weeks or so and it seemed it might be an ambitious clone of "House" which airs on the Fox channel. In case you've been living in a cave, "House" is about an irascible, but brilliant doctor who can diagnose the most complex and rare medical condition. Dr. House can also clear out the walk-in clinic waiting room in less than two minutes.
One certainly can't blame CBS for trying to add their own medical drama series after the roaring success of "House", "Grey's Anatomy" on ABC and a somewhat re-envigorated "ER" on NBC. I don't think this new show is a clone at all, but it will need some tweaking in order to rise to the top.

"3 lbs" stars bald, beautiful and buff Stanley Tucci as the arrogant, apparently emotionless Dr. Doug Hanson; although we do see him affected by the upbeat attitude of a blind patient for a moment. And, Hanson has a secret brain abnormality. The abnormality is hinted at with hallucinations, and confirmed by a brain scan conned, by Dr. Hanson, out of a visiting medical instrument rep.

We were also introduced to the new fellowship student Dr. Jonathan Seger (Mark Fuererstein), who is as patient-friendly and touchy-feely as Dr. Hanson is not. We also get to meet the resident neurologist, fabulously gorgeous Dr. Adrien Holland (Indira Varma), who prefers to work barefoot in order to "free up" the sensors in her feet and does little else but vamp it up in the series opener.

Dr. Hanson's sharp, no-nonsense assistant, Melania Ortiz (Zabryna Guevara) appears briefly and also another doctor, Dr. Floras (Armando Riesco) was brought to the fore, but I was too confused to figure out exactly who he is and what he does. Oh yes, and we also met the resident "bad guy" Dr. Cole, who spreads vicious rumors about Dr. Hansen in order to steal patients from him. Whew! For me this is an awful lot of new characters to process, especially when they're talking high level medical jargon.

Besides introducing the main characters, the premier episode "Lost for Words" also presented two patient stories. We met a worried mom with a musically brilliant daughter losing her speech due to a brain tumor, and an elderly man losing his memory due a tangled web of nerves (or something like that) in his brain. The twin of the musical daughter died a few years earlier during a surgery. And the elderly man gets lost. Oh yes, and then there's the elderly man's hostile son. Yes folks, this is only a one-hour show.

I do think the show may have promise. Stanley Tucci is sublime and handles his comic lines with just the right touch. All of the actors have serious credits to their names, and do perform well in their parts as they have been written. And I understand that the cancellation axe can fall very quickly these days on any new show so you have to squeeze a lot of info into a short time. But seriously, the audience needs a little time too in order to understand all the relationships and build an interest and attachment to the characters.

We're not dumb, but there's only so much any of us can take in or we lose interest. Because the show was so cluttered with egos and mysteries and flirting, I nearly missed the dramatic impact of the high point of the show. It came when the musical daughter shared with her mom a greeting (which she presumably got when she technically died for a moment in the operating room) from the dead twin sister: "Jenna says hi".

That kind of moment is certainly as important as feuding doctors, flirting beauties and surgical procedures. To the writers of "3 lbs": let's see more real human impact and less of all the other stuff. And let on Dr. Hanson's hallucinations...too freaky. Thanks.

Oh yes, we also briefly meet Dr. Hanson's young teen daughter in the opening episode. Gosh, how could I have forgotten that with all the other bodies running around, bumping into one another. Hopefully there aren't three or four or nine more repeating characters lurking in the future. But Stanley Tucci - you can put him nearly naked back in the locker room anytime for me.