The dramatic-exciting series tells the story of Malcolm Bright, who has the ability to quickly identify these criminal events. Malcolm has a serious talent where he knows the killers think, how their minds work and are the best criminal psychologist. Bright uses his twisted genius to help the New York police get the real behind the crimes and stop the killers.
There's enough to recommend Prodigal Son, knowing that Fedak and company have the skills to get things right. But the three best reasons to keep watching are Michael Sheen, Michael Sheen and Michael Sheen.
I'd be happy to watch any version of Prodigal Son that was entirely Sheen, Young and Payne sitting around talking... If someone would just send me a weekly cutdown that ditched the rest of the show, this prodigal critic might be convinced to return.
Prodigal Son is more than several cuts below that Oscar-lauded classic. Still, it's better than chopped liver, of which Dr. Martin Whitly has shown he knows a thing or two.
It's a program that provides a creepy jolt while never reveling in darkness for its sake -- perpetually asking what it takes, and what it means, to take control of the potential for evil in oneself, and to each day beat it back.
The best moments, naturally, occur in the scenes between the manipulative, wily Martin and his brilliant but neurotic offspring, who's haunted by a lingering mystery from when he helped put his dad away
The early going is badly undermined by frequent and hammy flashbacks... The result is a campy tinge that often makes Prodigal Son play like dinner-theater melodrama.
What happens when you cast Michael Sheen as a brilliant psychopath and serial killer then don't use him for more than eight or nine minutes per episode? We spend the other 30 minutes wondering why he isn't onscreen.
Some tonal tweaks could turn this eagerly outrageous crime drama into something enjoyably out there, but for now, it's just the craziest "Silence of the Lambs" knock-off yet.