When Chris Noth left Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Jeff Goldblum was announced as his replacement, I was kind of excited. I'm a fan of Goldblum's, and he's always entertaining, whether he's a guest on a talk show or doing something decidedly strange like his guest spot on Tim and Eric: Awesome Show, Great Job!So far, not so good. Last night's episode, which tried to weave together the stories of a washed-up celebrity chef, a hip hop mogul, and a flighty socialite, still didn't provide the punch I was hoping for. It was better than most of his episodes so far - and a good deal better than his first episode. And there are some elements I like; Goldblum's Detective Zach Nichols can't seem to keep from correcting his co-workers, seemingly with no ill will, but irritating them in the process.
But the character's quirks haven't yet settled. It still seems jarring to see him take time out of an investigation to play piano at his alma mater. And in the climactic scene where the plot unravels, he seems to be a bit of a parody of himself, mumbling the facts of the case while the criminal is goaded into giving himself up.
Comparing them to most of the D'Onofrio episodes, it sometimes seems like an entirely different staff of writers work on the show depending on the lead. The D'Onofrio episodes tend to be better written so far, although this week they were about even, thanks to a convoluted cross-dressing subplot.
Maybe the relationship between Goldblum and the show just needs time to develop. D'Onofrio's neo-Columbo took a few episodes to settle, as well. I look forward to the episode where it finally starts to click.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
6-29-2009 @ 1:49PM
kenm said...
I agree, the Goldblum character has been very underwhelming so far - especially when you compare it to Raines. They should have just transferred Raines to L&O:CI.
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6-29-2009 @ 12:54PM
Edward said...
Since it takes a year in between production, why not only keep Eames/Goren for all episodes? They are shooting fewer episodes on USA now. Nothing against Goldblum, but Nichols is just quirky annoying.
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6-29-2009 @ 1:10PM
Gordy said...
I told you! The arrogance really bugs me, and takes away from the story. Replace Goldblum ASAP in my opinion.
http://www.tvsquad.com/2009/06/01/law-and-order-ci-astoria-helen-open-thread/
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6-29-2009 @ 3:03PM
CI Fan said...
When Criminal Intent first came out it was nothing but Goren and Eames. A perfect combination duo! Why would the writers and producers want to add another dectective and let alone, create separate individual storylines for these detectives??? The show IS Goren and Eames, no one else needs to be added to this show. What the writers need to do is get rid of the captain and bring back the original captain and bring back the D.A that they had. I loved last nights show with Goren and Eames. I don't even watch CI when it's with Noth or Goldbloom. D'Onofrio is great! And making his character bump heads with the captain stinks! D'Onofrio should be the great case buster! Love Him!
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6-29-2009 @ 6:01PM
Frank said...
I thought Jeff Goldblum passed away last week...
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6-29-2009 @ 11:19PM
Lesley said...
Bring back Chris Noth! Noth brought some depth to the role in his portrayal of a tough detective. Goldblum fails to come across as a serious investigator and falls flat. I wish Chris Noth would reconsider, but he apparently wants the flexibility to accept other projects while not being tied down to a weekly procedural.
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6-29-2009 @ 11:26PM
Jgreenefields said...
I like Goldblum so far, I did not think I would, maybe YOU are not quirky enough,eh?
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6-29-2009 @ 11:30PM
Jgreenefields said...
I like Goldblum so far, I did not think I would, maybe YOU are not quirky enough,eh?
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6-30-2009 @ 6:28AM
CCK said...
Oh how quickly we forget. The reason they split the casts is because D'Onofrio is not mentally stable enough to do a full season of episodes. He had a break down a few years ago and they had to lighten his work load and bring back Noth in case he completely flaked out.
I might be in the minority here, but I actually think the Goldblum episodes have been better than the D'Onofrio ones this year. I was very skeptical of how Goldblum would do, but I've found his episodes to be watchable, and the D'Onofrio ones to be slow, plodding and lame.
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7-13-2009 @ 1:15AM
james said...
Jeff Goldblum is fantastic in this run on of a really great L&O series.
the Poetry episode was Great!
I have enjoyed his work since
The Big Chill.
Kudos on hiring that guy.
And the freckled faced red head turns me on, too!
Did Jeff write the poem that made her confess??? LOL!
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