cathylr Aired at the same time as ER, unlike the latter, the situations are funnier and seem less realistic (although based on actual cases). It is a bit hard for me to remain objective as this is the series that made me discover David E.Kelley and remain a fan to these days. Here, the sense of humor is second degree, a bit cynical sometimes but always in line with human feelings. All I can recommend is that you watch and see...

amyhpete I don't know where people got the impression that Lahti came on after Patinkin left the first time. They were on the show together, quite memorably in my opinion. Lahti was either part of the original cast or added very shortly after it began. And no one is talking about Tommy Wilmette, the ex-husband. He was evil-brilliant. My favorite episode (which I still have on VHS in a packing box somewhere) was when an argument broke out between Geiger and Willmette in the corridor.They were facing each other, sort of countering each other's aggression by moving in a circle, and the camera circled with them, giving us a view of both of them, and they were talking over each other at exactly the same decibel, yet you could sort of understand what each was saying. Finally Wilmette prevailed, raising his voice. Geiger says, "That was fun. I'd go two for three, but I have surgery," turned around and left. It was classic! And while I agree it was a mistake to write out Peter MacNichol's character, the lawyer, his death was some of the best dramatic writing I've ever seen in television. He was shot by a patient, and as he was struggling to speak, he said, "You can take steps to make sure the hospital assumes no liability for this..." the gathered cast then cheers and says, "He's going to be just fine!" which as it turns out he wasn't, but he was in every cell of his body a lawyer until the end.Then there was the time Camille Schut had, inexplicably, slept with Billy Cronk. The next day she encountered Aaron at a funeral for their mutual longtime rabbi. "You smell like sex," he told her as they were standing around the burial site. "Excuse me," she says. "You smell like sex," he replies, "I've had sex with you and I know that you smell like sex." I thought Diane Grad and Billy Cronk were a great storyline - until they got married. I liked Aaron Schut and his struggle after his stroke. It gave him a chance to really explore his anger. Prior to that, the extent of his emotional range was whining to Hector Elizondo, "Why is everyone else more important than me?" Most of the time I think crossover shows are stupid, but there was one with Picket Fences where reference was made to Cook County General (the hospital portrayed on ER) and Hector Elizondo said, "We never talk about that other hospital." Anyway, Christine Lahti was on with Patinkin during his original stint with the show. His torment of her and his ardent dislike for Tommy WIlmette was one of the points of watching. It was far and above ER in terms of quality and writing. But it did go downhill in the last two seasons.

hpande Hey people,I am a real life doctor, and watching CH really makes my night. Adam Arkin is one REAL talented actor; the role he has to play is not an easy one, yet he does it so well. Mark Harmon is another hunk. Eric too does a fine job, although personally he was portrayed as a little rebellious guy, which doesn't actually work in the medic world. But soon he captures the audience.dr.hemant pande

Goon-2 I don't really care for the genre of "doctor" TV shows, but to give Chicago Hope credit, it does have more appeal than the majority of them. I was once a faithful viewer in its first season, after seeing the characters played by Mandy Patinkin and Hector Elizondo on a brilliant "cross over" episode of Picket Fences. Back then, Chicago Hope was admirable for its "quirky" plots and great character development, but over the years it has adapted more of the "formula" doctor show(6 thousand subplots and little chance to "bond" with the characters)and I have moved on. I still catch an occasional rerun on the show, and while it would not convert me back to being a regular viewer.I do enjoy the characters of Adam Arkin and Hector Elizondo and the others aren't bad, except Christine Lahti's "feminist" character gets tiresome, and tends to overuse and ugly word that is a part of the male anatomy. Nevertheless, even an episode consisting of her, Jayne Brook and Stacy Edwards going to the mountains that I thought I would loathe did not turn out to be too bad, considering. Mark Harmon and Peter Berg's characters bring a slight amount of life, but as I said, it's still not enough to make me watch the show regularly and I hope it does not steal viewers away from Frasier, as it prepares to face against it in the 1999-2000 season. It's not THAT great.