Why Person of Interest remains widely followed

MANILA, Philippines - A number of TV series lately are not just drama, comedy, crime or sci-fi, but high-concept shows laden with state-of-the-art technology used within the story either by the protagonists or even the villains.

One such show is Person of Interest, a crime-drama series starring Jim Caviezel. The stories are episodic, but one will be hooked to know the lead stars who figure in the series and how they interact with the other characters, even the recurring ones who are given prominence in some of the episodes.

Caviezel (best remembered for his big screen portrayal of Jesus Christ in the Mel Gibson opus, The Passion of the Christ) is John Reese, a former CIA operative who was earlier presumed dead. Later recruited by mysterious billionaire Harold Finch (Michael Emerson), Reese is assigned to consistently track down “person of interest” and prevent crimes in New York through an advance surveillance system known as The Machine.

Reese bravely puts his life on the line (working for Finch), which is nothing new to him, being a former CIA agent. He gets beaten up or gets hurt as he tries to track down and go after the bad guys. His main goal is to thwart the crimes before they happen.

Finch, meanwhile, has unlimited wealth. He is also a software wiz that’s why he has the ability to create The Machine, a program that identifies people who are about to be involved in violent crimes. He hires Reese to track down “person of interest” and pre-empt something bad or even tragic that will happen to them.

Reese and Finch work without sanctions. They help and save the innocent while the bad guys get their retribution. Hence, it is not surprising that Reese and Finch get entangled with New York detectives — Lionel Fusco (Kevin Chapman) and Jocelyn “Joss” Carter (Taraji Henson) — who are hot on their heels.

Reese can work alone since he’s used to it. However, when he teams up with Finch, they do things brilliantly together. Yes, they can track down the bad guys and prevent something unfavorable happening to any person who’s in danger — thanks to The Machine. The partnership of the two lead stars is definitely a big help to the authorities.

There are countless crimes to investigate in New York. When The Machine reveals a new name as Person of Interest, Reese goes on a 24-hour surveillance. He deals with all sorts of characters — from a stalker to a lawyer; from a serial killer to a former soldier; from a mobster to a drug addict.

Meanwhile, Finch is consistently tied down to his laptop, which provides every relevant detail of information he needs, from the background of a person to places to location. That greatly helps Reese in tracking down the “person of interest” he is looking for.

Person of Interest is a series that will definitely get you hooked. The unfolding of every story week after week is something to anticipate. No wonder the crime-drama series is now on its third season and remains widely followed in the US.

Jeffrey Jacob “JJ” Abrams is one of the executive producers of Person of Interest. He is noted for the other TV series he created like Lost (which also included Michael Emerson in the cast), Alias, Fringe and Almost Human.

Said to be “the first in Asia,” Person of Interest airs every Thursday night on Warner TV.