THE FORGOTTEN

THE FORGOTTEN ABC-TV series 2009.

The somewhat shaky premise of this show has a group of men and women, headed by an ex-cop whose own daughter disappeared, investigate John and Jane Does, trying to find out who they are, and -- with the help of a female detective -- figure out how they died and who, if anybody, killed them. This is in the same mold as Cold Case and Without a Trace, and is reasonably effective and entertaining. The members of the squad often go way out of bounds in their investigating, considering they aren't cops, and this has been dealt with on at least one episode. The trouble is, once the person has been identified, you would think their job is through, but they continue to interview suspects and the like as if they were cops [of course, what would the show be without a murder and its solution]. This is similar to the way the members of the CSI squad go far beyond their specialties on each episode. Christian Slater is the only recognizable face on The Forgotten, which is full of perfectly competent actors. So far the back stories of the regular characters haven't gotten in the way of the mysteries. Like the other shows mentioned, there's a certain amount of welcome pathos, such as in one episode about a shamefully forgotten football player. Time will tell if this will develop into a must-watch, but for now it's a creditable entry. Future episodes should probably not have the victims being identified too early in the show.

Verdict: Okay non-cop drama with distinct possibilities. **1/2.