Kat with a K

Pilot Review: Off the Map

Shonda Rhimes really doesn't want people to call Off the Map "Grey's Anatomy in the jungle." But, um, it really is. You have basically everything you need to know about it from that description, although it maybe glosses over the uncomfortable way that - so far at least - there's been an overwhelming "American doctors must save the dumb natives" theme. I mean, the pilot was actually called "Saved by the Great White Hope," and while it seems that they meant it ironically, it kind of . . . didn't come across that way. And since the doctors are in a jungle clinic instead of a well-equipped urban hospital, there's a fair amount of wacky medicine - saving people by using coconut milk as plasma, cutting people down from ziplines, stuff like that. Other than those issues, though, it has the clashes between the new and more experienced doctors, the patients that magically mirror the doctors' personal situations, and lots of pretty people, just like you'd expect.

So, no, I didn't think it was great. But what stood out to me here were the actors. I particularly like Zach Gilford (Friday Night Lights), Caroline Dhavernas (Wonderfalls), and Martin Henderson (Darcy from Bride and Prejudice), and the whole ensemble seems to have decent chemistry. So . . . fine, Shonda, you got me. I'll watch a few more episodes to see whether my fondness for the actors outweighs my other reservations.