Good Sam

Mainly because Sophia Bush and Jason Isaacs are compelling to watch — individually and together — Good Sam rises slightly above the run-of-the-mill network medical procedural. But the relationships and characters will have to evolve to keep us tuning in.

It’s the antagonistic relationship between Griff and Sam that fuels the series, and is the its most interesting and most frustrating aspect overall.

“Good Sam” offers both medical-case-of-the-week and soapy storylines along with the who-needs-who more back-and-forth between father and daughter. This one’s more middling OK than good.

As W.C. Fields might have said, "If you can't dazzle them with brilliance, baffle them with buckets of cardiology, pulmonology and doctorly jargon." Which is OK: It's what we expect from medical shows—enough facts, faux or otherwise, to certify the characters' medical credentials. It's the characters and the actors who matter. In that regard, the series, which will air Wednesdays on CBS (streaming on Paramount+), has a significant asset in Ms. Bush.

Bush and Isaacs are well-enough cast to buy Good Sam a few more episodes to find consistency, though the mad-cap second episode doesn’t fill me with confidence.