Zeeshan Mahmud I think it is fair to say Lightman plays God. However the real people on godmode are the brilliant creators, producers, writers and creative minds behind this show.I immediately got hooked from the pilot's prologue of the phenomenal marriage between anthropology and forensic lie detection. It only got better from then on.Before I pour odes on Lightman's quirkiness who happens to be a 'walking question mark' I have to laud Kelli Williams' portrayal of Dr. Foster. She sure comes out to be a clear winner - silently- of a soft spoken sage with African reginal wisdom and compassion in an absolutely empowering and strong character. Perfect foil to Lightman's eccentricity and to keep him grounded. In fact, the script reads off your mouth and inner thoughts when at one point Emily blurts out how she loved her company even more than her own mom's.Speaking of which, it has a lot of psychological and emotional dynamics and sub-layers and drama. Lightman reminds me of Spader's character in Boston Legal and it does have a Boston Legal vibe all over it- which I LOVE by the way having long run out of options and fuel after exhausting each and every episode of the latter.So it was godsend in a way and saved my life. I don't watch TV or TV series but some shows like this one and Prison Break forces me to be on marathon.And in fact Kelli Williams was also in the The Practice - pre-cursor to Boston Legal. It is a bit like a detective template with law firm office vibes. And just like Boston Legal it doesn't shy away from taking bold strides and making bold statements.Interracial dating, Muslims are terrorist as well as plight of father having seen his Islamic son get slaughtered, Korean culture, holding police or fire fighter's responsible ... in fact just like any creative endeavors the producers tell hard facts as it is and doesn't shy away to sugarcoat it in a PC-laden culture and goes hard from an omniscient narrative sparing no one.In fact, just like some "god-like" characters take neutral point of view akin to comedians- again going back to Spader's unscrupulous characters be it Alan Shore or Reddington, Jim Carrey's Mask, Deadpool, the caller from Phonebooth, Jigsaw, Hannibal Lecter, the Joker... all these are transcendent of mortal views of ethics in their human form of game.I mean for God's sakes, Lightman lies as he pleases, bends rules and laws, outright and blatantly deceives, fakes news to set people up... almost as if he can transgress any boundaries simply to the carte blanche of his mastery of his game.It borderlines ego- almost as if that of a sociopath- but it is more of a restrained form of narcissism developed from years and years of research in the jungle and cultivation of his talent to a form of supernatural genius which he again and again tries to drill and inculcate in his protege's head - Ria Torres- that talent without perspiration is a genius well lost.I could go at lengths about the mentor-protege dynamics, the touch on his parental obligation, Loker's lack of internal filter and what not as a nice capstone, but it would be one long essay.Tout court, if you love intellectual, character driven dramas that faces tough challenging question marks of the modern zeitgeist, then this show is for you.

blanche-2 Imagine someone as abrasive and inappropriate as House, and you've got Tim Roth as Dr. Cal Lightman. Dr. Lightman's company specializes in discerning whether or not people are telling the truth. They work with all areas of law enforcement, including the FBI, corporations, and different government departments. Their work is based on the research of Dr. Paul Ekman, who served as an adviser on the series.The work of the Lightman Group revolves around reading people's facial expressions, voices, eye pupils, and gestures to tell if someone is being truthful.Cal's business partner Gillian is played by the beautiful Kelli Williams, and her cool, calm demeanor is wonderful juxtaposition to Lightman's often flamboyant behavior. Tim Roth, sporting his Cockney accent, is quirky Lightman to a T- he stands in people's personal space, looks them straight in the eye, and tells them they're lying. The rest of the cast - Brendan Hines, Monica Raymond, Hayley McFarland, and Mekhi Phifer provide excellent support.Original and offbeat, "Lie to Me" is an excellent series that unfortunately only ran three years. It's well worth seeing.

theBKrox Watched the whole series twice. loved it. would watch it again. story line is nice. luckily there's no "wife died" or "loved one kidnapped" drama like most other detective series. (The Monk, Bones, The Mentalist ... all of which i liked.. not as much as this though. wish it didn't though.

erich-coast I have started watching this series in 2015, and I fell in love with it instantly. Its contents are still up-to-date, except when they relate and dedicate some episodes to worldly known events at the time it was being aired (2009 - 2011). Its usefulness is obvious as it 'teaches' that lies leave emotional traces, and therefore can be read. After reading about its cancellation online, I understood why. It's a FOX show, so how could it be any different? They were pretty much teaching people how to catch phonies. And that, to FOX was like shooting their own feet... Too bad there hasn't been a 4th season (yet!)... I believe NETFLIX would be the perfect 'channel' for a return of this series, considering it has no intention on being any sort of ''moral compass'' for the American society. In my opinion, this show could easily have 8 seasons!