Awake: Pilot

I like smart television, and Awake is definitely smart.

After a horrible car accident, Michael Britten (Jason Isaacs) is living a double life. He goes to sleep in a world where his wife, Hannah, is alive and his son Rex, is dead, and wakes up to a world where Hannah is dead and Rex is alive.

Michael is a detective, and he's working on the same case in both worlds. However, he has different partners. He gets clues in one reality that he uses in the next to help him solve the case.

He is seeing a therapist in each reality, and they are different therapists. Both therapists say that the other reality is a dream.

Jason Isaacs is wonderful as Michael. His acting is stellar. In one scene he's no sure which world he is in. He thinks Hannah should be alive and he calls for her, looking through the house. She doesn't answer, so he calls for and looks for Rex. He doesn't answer either. He panics, and he starts to cut himself to prove he isn't dreaming as Hannah walks in the room. It was such an emotional scene, and so well acted by Jason.

The cinematography gives the audience a clue to which reality he is in. The colors of the world in one reality (the one where his son is alive) are a bit muted, and the world with his wide is crisp and clear.

I really like this show, and I hope it is successful because I'd like to see where the writers take it.