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MEDIUM |
Allison Dubois - Patricia Arquette Joe Dubois - Jake Weber Manuel Devalos - Miguel Sandoval Lee Scanlon - David Cubitt 
OTHER MEDIUM SEASONS Season 1 Season 2 Season 3 Season 4 Season 6 Season 7 THEY ALSO SEE DEAD PEOPLE Ghost Whisperer Haunted Afterlife Millennium 
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Soul SurvivorDA Devalos asks Allison to help him with the case of who killed the sister of a friend of his. She, however, seems to fixate on who the new husband of the woman actually is. Could he really be the spirit of her dead first husband in another man's body or is he a con artist taking her for a ride? And why is Allison's daughter drawing naked pictures of her art teacher? MEDIUM is back for its fifth season and things look like they haven't changed one bit. The story sticks to the show's template of initially misleading dreams that slowly reveal the truth whilst causing some consternation amongst Allison's fellow workers and some friction at home. If it weren't for the consistently high standard of the performances we'd have given up watching this years ago. Written by Craig Sweeny and Robert DohertyDirected by Aaron Lipstadt Top Things To Do In Phoenix When You're DeadAllison dreams of a murder and sees a witness. That witness is a doctor who claims to know nothing about it, but it slowly becomes clear that he is flatlining, killing himself temporarily and then being brought back, in order to learn secrets and make money. Another twist to the formula keeps things alive in the world of Allison DuBois. Apart from having the man appearing in her dreams through the flatlining idea, it's business as usual, but that is enough to make this episode a bit different and keep things fresh. Written by Diane Ademu-JohnDirected by Aaron Lipstadt Top A Person Of InterestDetective Scanlon calls Allison in on the case of a man who is killed with false ID and his fingerprints removed. Her dreams tell her of a man who was abusing his son and she is driven to build a huge fertiliser bomb in the garage. What, though, is the connection with Joe's new engineering colleague? The format of MEDIUM has long been a concern since it is always the same - dreams that at first misdirect, but eventually illuminate. What keeps the show fresh is the variations that are thrown in. In this episode, whilst the dreams do their usual thing, the glowing machine parts and the construction of the fertiliser bomb are the hook that is built upon. Joe's reaction to the bomb is very nicely played by Jake Weber and is another example of the peerless support that the gives Patricia Arquette. The depiction the abusive relationship between father and son is nicely complex, not necessarily going in the direction that you might expect and the child grown to manhood also confounds stereotyping to be a more three-dimensional character. Even the final denouement when all the information has been amassed ends in a way that only MEDIUM would take a chance on. Written by Craig Sweeny and Robert DohertyDirected by Patricia Arquette Top About Last NightAllison wakes up slumped by the side of the road with no memory and no idea where she is after losing six hours of her life. In those six hours, she appears to have bought a saw, cut off a woman's hand and run down a young man with her car. This is a nice twist to the MEDIUM format that has Allison having to piece together events of which she has no memory and which would appear to be fairly murderous. The ease with which everyone at the DA's office just brushes off the fact that her fingerprints are all over the dead woman with the missing hand and probably the soon to be dead man beggars belief, but the rest of the episode is up to the usual standard with a good central performance from Patricia Arquette. Written by Ken ScheflerDirected by Aaron Lipstadt Top A Taste Of Her Own MedicineJoe is falling asleep at inopportune moments and goes to see a doctor about it. Allison, meanwhile, dreams about a missing woman, but soon learns that there is more than one to consider and Detective Scanlon has a personal situation to sort out. Elements of the plot here are taken from THE SIXTH SENSE and so smack of familiarity. At least Joe's situation puts something new into the episode and Lee's agonising overthe fact that his long time girlfriend is pregnant actually becomes the story of interest rather than the formulaic 'murder of the week' tale. Written by Moira KirlandDirected by Ronald L Schwary Top Apocalypse...Now?Allison dreams of a future where there has been a huge disaster and people are surviving in fallout shelters. Whilst she sets about preparing for the catastrophe, she tries to understand how this relates to a family that has been murdered and disappeared. The case of a man holding a woman hostage and Allison getting images of that and not quite understanding them has been done on MEDIUM at least twice and so there is a real sense of déjà vu about this episode. That said, the survivalist theme is interesting and the initial dream that sees Joe go out into a destroyed world is well managed. The minor story of Ariel being tricked by a boy at school is dull by comparison. The fate of the dead family is just plain grisly. Written by Michael NarducciDirected by Larry Teng Top A Necessary EvilThe spirit of a dead FBI profiler who was killing the people he thought was guilty appears to Allison with information that puts away a series of very bad people. Why then is she dreaming about a hooded boy forcing people to commit suicide to avoid a long, drawn out death? This is a sequel to Profiles In Terror with Kurtwood Smith back as the spirit of Agent Cooper, up to no good once again. The plot is barely believable with a teenager being able to talk people into killing themselves, but it is otherwise as respectably good as ever. Written by Matt WittenDirected by Vincent Misiano Top Truth Be ToldAllison finds that a buzzer goes off inside her head every time that someone tells her a lie after dreams in which two couples are confronted by house intruders. This is another one of the 'gimmick' episodes that the show does so well. It could have had a lot more fun with the whole truth/buzzer situation, but there are some nice conversations between husband and wife to play with the idea. The actual murder plot proves to be more complex and more entertaining than many of late. Written by Travis Connelly & Corey ReedDirected by Ernest Dickerson Top All In The FamilyJoe's ne'er do well sister comes to stay after announcing that her marriage is over. Allison, meanwhile, is struggling with Ariel's wanting to go on a skiing trip with older boys and a murder that appears to have been committed by two different people. The set up for the murder plot here is lifted wholesale from the thriller film SHATTERED and the presence of Morena Baccarin (FIREFLY and V) as one of the suspects doesn't serve to hide that fact. The sideline of Joe's sister is utterly tedious. Written by Gary Tieche & Diane Ademu-JohnDirected by Peter Werner Top Then...And AgainAllison dreams of the DA being gunned down by a wrongly-imprisoned innocent man and goes to stop it. Instead, she is involved in a car accident and finds herself back heavily pregnant before the birth of her youngest child. The dreams that she has there could finger the real killer, but can she get the DA to believe her? This is a rather curious storyline that doesn't quite hang together. Why Allison has to go back five years in order to get the dreams about the killer instead of having them in the normal time frame like all the other stories is never quite explained and the supposed tragic outcome of her past adventures are just dismissed when it becomes time to wrap things up. The whole thing feels unfinished. Written by Travis Donnelly & Corey ReedDirected by Larry Teng Top The Devil Inside Part 1A religious fanatic targets Allison and her family. He even manages to break into the house whilst they are under police protection. His death, however, is not the end of the story. What seems like being a bog standard MEDIUM story takes a left turn when the stalker is taken care of, but the episode continues, Allison's dreams prove to be utterly wrong and it becomes clear that the dead fanatic is now shaping her dreams. This is an interesting take on the show's mythos and being the first part of an ongoing storyline it will be interesting to see where it takes us. The portrayal of a family under siege is excellent in all its fear, frustration and even banality. Written by Diane Ademu-JohnDirected by Peter Werner Top The Devil Inside Part 2The stalker is now inside Allison's head and preventing her from seeing who is responsible for the string of murders plaguing Phoenix. Throughout its time, MEDIUM has come up with some startling visual imagery to complement the increasingly familiar plotting. In this episode it is the smiley-headed man that Allison sees in her dreams. The killer's face has been replaced with a shining smiley that looks quite astonishing. It is enough to distract from a mainly pedestrian plot that builds up to a rushed and rather underwhelming finale in which Allison plays little part. Written by Michael NarducciDirected by Peter Werner Top How To Make A Killing In Big Business Part 1Allison is head hunted by a big corporation called Lydecker by a woman who has a skill much like Allison's own. She is loathe to take the job whilst the Phoenix PD are trying to capture a killer with a penchant for stealing women's eyes, but doesn't feel able to pass it up. A change of pace sees Allison lifted out of her comfort zone and placed into a new world of big business. The conflict between her new job and her old is inevitable and is nicely played by everyone, but most especially Patricia Arquette. The various goodbyes are touching and very in character. The various killings are pretty bloody and Ariel's side story about visions of a dead schoolgirl causing her to take pills is more affecting than the usual. Written by Craig Sweeny & Robert DohertyDirected by Peter Werner Top How To Make A Killing In Big Business Part 2Allison insists that the detective heading up the investigation into the serial killer is involved, but Scanlon has a hard time believing her and her new boss, Mr Lydecker, makes it very plain that her dreams now belong to him and are not to be passed on to the police. As soon as Allison meets the son of her new employer it becomes abundantly clear who the killer is and why she was recruited by the company. The threat that the new boss lays down at Allison's feet is utterly chilling and leaves her with a very real dilemma, though we always know which way she is going to go. The cliffhanger, though, is a very nice one. Written by Craig Michael NarducciDirected by Arlene Sanford Top How To Make A Killing In Big Business Part 3With Lydecker dead and his killer son on the loose, the psychic who recruited Allison steps into the breach at the company, but can Allison find a way to get the DA the evidence he needs to bring everyone to justice? Allison finds the corporate machinations and murders too much to bear, but the manner in which everyone is brought to justice relies on the side story with her daughter and is far too convenient to be fully satisfactory. Written by Davah Feliz AvenaDirected by Miguel Sandoval Top The Man In The MirrorAllison goes into a coma and wakes up in the body of a man she suspects of being a killer. Whilst Joe tries to come to terms with this turn of events, Allison wonders if she will ever get her body back. There aren't any comedy episodes in MEDIUM, but this one comes pretty close at times as Jeffrey Tambor makes a good job of mirroring Patricia Arquette's mannerisms in playing her in his body. It's not the first time that she's switched bodies in the show and the mystery plot that she has to uncover is pretty run of the mill, but the hospital scene in which the killer is unmasked is as close to farce as the show has ever come. Written by Corey Reed & Travis DonnellyDirected by Aaron Lipstadt Top The First Bite Is The DeepestAllison dreams of a years old kidnapping and believes that the masked kidnapper has come back into contact with his previous victim whilst carrying out a new job. In order to the solve the case, she will have to gain the help of an old friend who isn't that keen on seeing her. Welcome back Anjelica Huston as Cynthia Keener, the PI who appeared throughout Season 4. She was last seen being arrested for murdering the killer of her daughter and prison has not mellowed her any. The case that she is called in to help on is fairly straightforward, but her presence manages to raise it up beyond the average. The supporting story of Joe trying to sort out a new job is San Diego is, by contrast, dull, although it is probably leading somewhere for the future. Written by Diane Ademu-JohnDirected by Patricia Arquette Top The Talented Ms BoddickerA bank teller dreams of a robbery before it actually happens. Allison shares her dream and then another about one of the robbers killing the other over a fight about where the rest of the money went. It soon becomes clear that Ms Boddicker's talents do not lie in dreams, but in subterfuge. Allyce Beasley is such an instantly likeable presence that this episode is always going to be a lot of fun, even when it becomes clear that the character that she is playing is far from being as white as the driven snow. The mystery plot is mundane and we've been here before too many times with the show, but the casting is a success and pulls off the ethically grey conclusion and leaves the audience with a smile on its face, something that is all too rare for the show. Written by Michael NarducciDirected by Aaron Lipstadt Top Bring Me The Head Of Oswaldo CastilloAllison dreams of a future where her whole family has been slaughtered, she can no longer dream and her only aim is to kill the man that brought all this about, Mexican drug cartel killer Oswaldo Castillo. The dreams are threatening to kill her because of a tumour in her head, but if she takes the surgery then she might lose her one chance to save her family, but if she doesn't then they might lose her. Forget the plot about the drug cartel enforcer because that is all stuff that we have seen before and the twist in the tail comes as no surprise, having been obvious since earlier than half way through. What this episode is about is Allison's illness and the dilemma she faces between her own health and the safety of her family. This is extremely well played by Patricia Arquette and Jake Weber, showing once again why they might be the most convincing couple ever to grace a genre show. The 'to be continued' at the end of the episode kind of undermines the cliffhanger, but it's a hell of a way to end the season. Written by Craig Sweeny & Robert DohertyDirected by Arlene Sandford Top |
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