CBS's innovative and exciting new drama, Hostages, was chosen by critics to be the big hit of the 2013 fall season, but things didn't quite turn out that way. The show was much more than I expected and unlike anything else on network television, but the amazing story is both the reason people did and didn't watch it.The problem with Hostages was that if people did watch it an it was renewed, where else could you go? Season 2 would have required a whole other cast and story or else it would risk just going around in circles. It's also the kind of show where you have to watch it from the beginning and see every episode to know what's going on, so either way the show was doomed from the beginning. Don't get me wrong, the story was phenomenal, and would have been one of the best mini-series ever, but beyond that there was nowhere to go and I think people realized that.Dr. Ellen Sanders (Toni Collette) is one of the best surgeons in the country, and her day has come as she has been selected to operate on the President of The United States. The Sanders family are on top of the world, until one night a group of mercenaries break into their home and give her a simple task. Kill the President or we kill your family. From there the family is held hostage until the surgery is upon them.Toni Collette stars, and while she's been in a ton of things, this was easily her best performance since the Sixth Sense. She was so good that it seemed like the kind of role that was written specifically for her. The doctor had some wild ideas and took some crazy risks to try and find out who the mercenaries were and why they were really doing this.Collette is paired with veteran TV star, Dylan McDermott, who plays double duty as both her captor and as an FBI agent, who has a ton of other things on his plate. The story itself seems simplistic, but there are so many side elements that effect each character, but none more so than McDermott's character, FBI agent Duncan Carlyle.Hostages is edge of your seat excitement, with a cast that is top notch. There is so much more going on here than a simple hostage situation. Each character has their own story that could really be worthy of a film and the show goes in so many unexpected directions, it just really was outstanding in every sense of the word.I absolutely loved this show and watched all 15 episodes in a week, still the show was easily doomed to a single season, because of the complexity and inflexibility of the story.

The trailer for this television series made it look gripping, I recognised the lead actress and one or two supporting cast, and critics were calling it the new Homeland, so I was hoping it would live up to my expectations. Basically the series centres around Dr. Ellen Sanders (The Sixth Sense's Toni Collette), who is due to perform surgery on the President of the United States, President Paul Kincaid (James Naughton), but the day before it happens, her family are taken hostage. She, her husband Brian (Hercules' Tate Donovan) and their teenage children, daughter Morgan (Grounded's Quinn Shephard) and son Jake (Mateus Ward) are being threatened by rogue FBI agent Duncan Carlisle (Miracle on 34th Street's Dylan McDermott) who is working for a higher power, along with a small team of assistants, Archer Petit (The Lost World: Jurassic Park's Billy Brown), Sandrine Renault (Sandrine Holt) and Kramer Daly (Rhys Coiro). The kidnappers want her to kill the President during surgery, and only then will the family be released, but the day of the operation Ellen deliberately sabotages it, so it is rescheduled for a later date, so the family will remain hostages until the surgery is completed. As the series goes on we find out more about the problems within the family, the personal problems of the kidnappers, and the conspiracies and corruption within the presidential headquarters, and of course the family try to find ways to get out of their situation, and the kidnappers find ways of stopping them from doing so. This includes Ellen trying anything to find a way out and getting to know more about Duncan and his wife, Duncan himself trying to stop authorities finding out about his scheme and most of all trying to find a cure for his sick wife, Brian trying to find ways out also and found out to be having an affair with his assistant Samantha (Hilarie Burton), the children going to school and trying to act normal during the situation at home, and the team members having their own individual troubles with family and money. It is unclear if there will be a continuation, but in the final episode the operation was completed on the President, his bone marrow was stolen and given to Nina, the President is warned by his wife, First Lady Mary Kincaid (Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves' Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio), that he will pay for his crimes, who is his secret daughter and is an almost perfect blood match, the dangerous people are eliminated, and Duncan releases the family and hands himself in to the police. Also starring Paul Calderon as Secret Service Agent Stan Hoffman, Jim True- Frost as Secret Service Agent Logan, Brian White as Colonel Thomas Blair, Joanne Kelly as Vanessa Moore, Jeremy Bobb as Quentin Creasy, Chief of Staff, Lola Cook as Sawyer Carlisle and Larry Pine as Burton Delaney. The acting of the programme is really good, especially from the always reliable Collette and a good choice with McDermott who I have usually seen playing nice guys, the scripting is well written, and the tension in many of the episodes really works with the atmospheric music and occasional violence, I don't think there is to be any more, so in the fifteen episodes it lasted it was a great drama. Very good!

This must be one of the worst screenplays ever. Bad acting, wrong facts, over done. Still struggling to see the end. The things happening at he hospital must be way wrong. If someone is being shot how can they walk around the next hour as if nothing happened. And more and more of these things.The acting is even worse, and yes i did create an account just to write a review of this bad, bad show. Talked about it with my wife who is also watching this show. The plot is too predictable, you just know what is going to happen next..Hope you will have more fun with this show than i did. 3 more episodes and i am done. I have to pad myself on the shoulder if make it to the end.

At first I thought it was poor acting and an unlikely story, but I'm hooked by watching the DVR'd episodes. I love the twists and turns of each character's loyalties and possible evils....the bad guys are beginning to look like the good guys and even the family members are changing their weaknesses and character. Anticipating a very surprise ending! Looking forward to the next episode!! I am also recording "Blacklist" which comes on at the same time and day. I am also hooked on that show. I don't usually watch TV intensely but my husband has been gone a lot in the past 3 months so I have indulged in these serial shows. I thought I enjoyed Blacklist more than Hostages, but now I think they are both equally exciting and full of suspense. Both shows make the viewer leery about what actually goes on in the higher levels of the government! Who can you trust??!!