I worked 9 years in a very large state psychiatric hospital, and 26 years with a county psychiatric emergency/intake team. I only saw a few episodes of Wonderland before it disappeared. It captured the essence of my job in a remarkable way. Just like cops hate cop shows for the ridiculousness, all psychiatric based movies or shows are just plain stupid. This was an exception. Now, 20 years after it left, I would love to see it again, to see if my initial impression was correct.
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hewlett6111 January 2020
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DrCarol30 March 2000I came to "Wonderland" with a combination of high hopes (based on the universally favourable reviews and ABC's intriguing ads) and fears that NAMI's charges of violence and hopelessness might have some basis in fact. Of course "Wonderland" contains moments of violence--the subject matter makes that inevitable. But they are balanced by moments of hope and love, in particular the funny, tender scenes involving Dr. Banger (Ted Levine) and the little sons he loves and fears he'll lose in a custody battle with his soon-to-be ex-wife. Never mind that these two people obviously love each other and ought to stay together--this is just one example of the human element, the blending of work and private life in this marvelously written, beautifully acted, impeccably filmed tv series. I'm judging by one episode, but I have no reason not to expect the same high quality in future episodes that I saw tonight watching "Wonderland" for the first time. Bravo, Peter Berg and ABC and all the marvellous cast, psychiatrists and patients alike.
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wildfire33220 November 2009I watched the first two episodes on Direct TV's 101 network and they're showing the rest in case you didn't know. I felt all the same emotions people commented on here, even though its 9 years later. It really shows you it was a great show that held up over time and would have been big if it didn't get banned. I didn't think it was that controversial. I loved it and the characters and want to see what happens next.
I volunteered in mental institutions twice and the people are more calm not shouting as much and not as uncontrollable as much as in the TV show, but thats not saying that all people with mental illness are like that, since the show is more about the extremes. Every episode of House has the strangest most unlikely illnesses possible, but no one points out how unrealistic it is. I thought the show was quite realistic. -
Mystyglass14 September 2002and severe depression and an innumerable amount of anxieties and I was not offended by this series. Sorry. And you know what I attribute this to? The mere fact that I can differentiate between the functioning mentally ill and the non-functioning mentally ill. Yes, there are both, no matter what NAMI or any other extremist group wants us to think. There are places like Bellevue. They're called state hospitals. While I can't say whether Wonderland depicted them to a -t-, I will say that I did have family in one such state hospital for a brief time and yes, there are people who act in very extreme manners. You must remember that these are the extreme cases and more often than not they cannot simply be cured by a few days of hospitilization and therapy and a prescription or two. Sometimes it takes a lot more time to find the appropriate treatments, and sometimes they simply don't have the funding to take on a single patient's case that long. And that's why it's a vicious circle, why the same people may go in and out again and again. These such people in particular were the sum of who was portrayed on "Wonderland". They were not me. They were not the kind of people that NAMI claimed to be defending. They were chronic and "non-functional". Apparently NAMI doesn't want their stories told...
Some people complained that a man was having a silly hallucination of a tiny rhino walking across the floor. They said that it was a silly stereotype, the mentally ill having hallucinations. Has anyone seen "A Beautiful Mind"? Why didn't anyone bitch about that? Probably because Ron Howard was given enough time to tell the whole story, to explain what fueled it. Unlike the ill-fated "Wonderland", which wasn't given enough time to tell that character's story. It was wildly misjudged and done a great disservice by getting stopped in its tracks. And for that, I think that NAMI shot itself in the foot. I don't think that isolating a whole segment of the mentally ill population, (no matter how big or small), is going to make their stories go away...or help us get any closer to understanding them.
If they really wanted a sympathetic portrayal of the functioning mentally ill in the media, they should've just shut their mouths about this show and waited for it. Because you know it's only a matter of time since it's becoming more and more apparent how very many of us are walking around.
This show was quality. I only saw 2 episodes and I feel cheated. I *loved* the Ted Levine character and wanted to know what happened with his kids. I wanted to know what happened to that woman's baby, how she dealt with her trauma and if she got back to work. While not a pleasant show to watch, it sure felt dirt real and rough. As it should have...
I hope they release all the episodes on DVD someday. -
With the departure of the superb Homicide series last year, I did not expect to see another show that would be as dense with detail and as intelligently written again, never mind anytime soon. Well, it has aired only one episode so far, but Wonderland is a remarkable piece of work. The pace is faster than Homicide and the storylines are perhaps even edgier (given the setting is an urban psychiatric hospital, this was, I suppose, inevitable). It is great to see the remarkably talented Michelle Forbes working again. Ted Levine and Martin Donovan (remember Hal Hartly's Trust?) are two of the other fine actors who make up this talented ensemble cast. Like Homicide, the characters are multi-faceted, vulnerable and living on the edge in very stressful lives. The opening episode shows a central character who is pushed to an emotional breaking point by events that result in a reaction not unlike one of his patients. It is as if someone had seen Samuel Fuller's Shock Corridor and decided to make a Homicide style series out of it. If the first episode is an accurate indication, this series will be a keeper.
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fedtho2 September 2008Switzerland is amazing... Between the three national linguistic areas ("swiss German", French and Italian), who *each* have *two* TV channels, we pretty much get almost all of the best American and British TV shows there are. And most of the time, thanks to double-channel audio, with the original English sound!
We got to discover TWIN PEAKS probably first in Europe (at least on the continent, not sure about the U.K. ...), it started in Germany six months later. Just one example.
Three or four years ago, I discovered Wonderland late at night, and surely was absolutely riveted. I wrote to the (german swiss) channel who'd broad-casted it to thank them for selecting it, and they seemed obviously delighted someone had appreciated their choice...
Couple of nights ago, I found it running again. It was the episode where Dr. Lyla Garrity (Michelle Forbes) has suddenly to give birth to her child while visiting an innovative institution... I guess this is the "cliffhanger" someone mentioned here: the baby's fine, but she is in very bad shape, in a coma when reaching the hospital... and we don't get to know the end of it, of course...
Everything that needed to be said has been said here about Wonderland. So I'll just silently mourn once more how such a jewel was put to sleep against all odds - but we learn to be thankful when something good lasts on TV.
I'll finish with an apology in the name of the European Community. And that would be: for the blunt stupidity of Wylie_Times from Sweden, stating that, supposedly, "as soon as something good comes along there's hundreds of protest groups immediately calling it offensive" AND that this is "Just typical America". Simplification is still the easiest way, and the easiest way still the favorites choice of so many. I'm not saying I'd never take this kind of shortcuts, I know I'm human. It still horrifies me when I see others taking them, though.
Will they ever put WONDERLAND on DVD? -
puffthetragicdragon-688356 November 2017I sincerely believe a revival of the show could do well on a platform like or similar to Netflix or Hulu, but I would hope the language and content would not get out of hand.
I would be okay with having NAMI and similar organizations on board for consultation, but the show should also depict people who abuse the system even if they take their medications as prescribed. -
ngear-22 November 2006I saw the pilot of this show six years ago, and when it crossed my mind a few minutes ago, I had to see if I could find out why the series didn't continue. I recall thinking at the time that it was probably the finest pilot I had ever seen. When the show didn't materialize, I was so disappointed. I don't recall details, after all this time, but now I read that it was canceled because of pressure from advocates for the mentally ill. This is interesting, because I donate regularly to NAMI, and NARSAD, and am very much concerned with the wellbeing of victims of mental illness, as two very close, very beloved family members have died as a result of mental illness.
It seems to me that this series could actually have been used to educate the public about mental illness. If there were issues with how mentally ill persons were depicted, it seems to me that it would have been more beneficial to address those issues within plots rather than cancel the series. I feel certain that the writers were up to the challenge of keeping the show entertaining, dramatic, and not overly "politically correct" while actually making the public MORE aware of the plight of mentally ill people, and possibly removing some of the stigma and "otherness" which we add to the burden of their disease. -
mockturtle9 May 2007In the pilot episode of "Wonderland" an unborn baby is stabbed in the head by a violent psychotic that has just shot 5 people on a street corner yet is inexplicably being treated right next to them (and sharp objects) instead of being isolated. The viewer is treated to people repeating things louder and louder and over and over without anyone doing anything to contain their acting out. It's all very dark and intense, but it feels sensationalistic and pretty hollow. They assembled a great cast and it has tempted many to say it was too brilliant to last, but it didn't seem very brilliant and I don't feel compelled to watch more of it.
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plomac8 April 2000When people would ask what I wanted to do for a living I used to have to explain what forensic psychology was and that it did not involve gathering hair at a crime scene. Now I can just tell them to watch this truly amazing show. After just two episodes I already find myself wondering if this could be the best show I've ever seen. Both episodes left me emotionally drained and wishing for much, much more.
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wry7 May 2002I am a sufferer of major depression. I am on a medication that is very effective and am fine now with a full time job a loving relationship and a very satisfying life. However six years ago, after a suicide attempt I was admitted to the CPEP unit at Bellevue, the place that Wonderland depicts. After one day people with mental illness are diagnosed and treated with medication and a day or two later they are no longer suffering from the delusions that are so common in such a chemically imbalanced illness and are no longer violent as the patients in Wonderland were potrayed. I spent three months at Bellevue before my release and I NEVER saw anyone acting out like the patients of Wonderland. This show only continued to further the stigma that haunts all of us suffering from some form of mental illness and keeps us from finding fulfilling gainful employment. I am lucky since i work in the field of treating those with mental illness and i can understand what many are going through.
i must add that i did enjoy some of the best acting TV has ever allowed us to see. Especially Ted Levine (Jame Gumm in Silence of the Lambs) who is one of my favorite character actors but as a first hand observer the storylines were not an accurate portrayal of the reality in the CPEP Unit at Bellevue. -
x31031 March 2000Flawless writing, wonderful acting, realistic dialogue, and lots of danger - real, imagined, implied. The patients on this locked psychiatric unit are extremely ill, clearly likely to harm themselves or others because of their mental sickness. They have the psychological equivalent of cancer, and they're not gonna get better by the end of the show, folks. Many of them will die unless they get a lot of care.
Speaking of which, the caregivers are human as well, meaning they suffer from the same maladies, albeit in smaller, more manageable (most of the time) doses. However, the writing is so good that the story never relies upon cliche: no "whacky but lovable" patients, and no "crazy shrinks". Everyone is portrayed as real humans with the same problems that you and I have to cope with. And just like in real life, sometimes you do your best but things get worse, not better.
The first episode was as good as anything I've ever seen on TV, and better than most commercial films. Watch it and be awed... -
Notraxxs16 September 2000I'm not sure how long this series was on abc...but it was brief. The problem? This series was way to intense for prime time. The writing was top-notch, and the characters were involving, but I don't think America was ready for something like this. I almost broke into a sweat just watching it. Its in-your-face style constantly assaulted the viewer, and its gritty images and dark themes challenged mainstream television. People would rather not break the happy little bubble that is network television. And that really is a shame, because this show had a lot of potential.
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Imagine my disappointment earlier: I sat down to watch Wonderland via the VCR, and rather than Wonderland, I had taped some slickly-produced canned news program.
Yes my fellow reviewers worries about Wonderland have, unfortunately come true. E! online reports that ABC has pulled the show, faced with a drop in the ratings, and an apparent campaign against the show by a group who felt that Wonderland unfairly stigmatized people afflicted with mental disorder.
Was this show too gory? There were some scenes depicting violence and its aftermath, e.g., The shooting of bystanders in Time's Square by an actively-psychotic man; later, a struggle that ends when a pregnant psychiatrist is stabbed with a hypodermic needle which may have impacted the unborn's cognitive functioning.
Any gore was incidental to the storyline which was intense and compelling throughout. Writing and directing were superb. The viewer is horrified by the atrocity of a killer, yet cannot help but identify with Dr. Banger's (Ted Levine of The Silence of the Lambs) guarded empathy for this man who is likely to be committed for many years to a secure psychiatric hospital.
The staff and the patients were subject to the same stressors in life, to varying degrees. Anger, impotence, fear, self-loathing --all are possible responses to stress. When slapped by the news that his unborn child would most probably be grossly impaired, Dr. Neil Harrison (Martin Donovan), the consummate professional, nearly strangled the perpetrator. He later thought he saw his wife exposing her abdomen to this same man.
This was the show at its most powerful. Dr. Bangor refers to this as the "dark side" of the human psyche. We all walk a line of "normalcy." At stressful times that path is narrow and razor-sharp. At such times it is our ability to adapt and to transcend that keeps us from falling off.
Sure the shooting in Time's Square was disturbing, but slasher flicks on TNT or TBS toss gore by the bucket load, rendering this violent act all but tasteful. Viewers are made to identify with the travails of "normal," even trained people who are nonetheless subject to the same experience as their patients. This casts "sanity" in a particularly fragile light.
This very exploration of fragility is what crystallizes Wonderland's greatness. It also may be alienating to a demographic that wants to be entertained rather than made anxious.
Then again maybe Wonderland's ratings would have been better had some numb programming executive (speaking of cognitive impairment) not have placed a program of this magnitude in a time slot opposite ER. -
hero1 April 2000Ditto AltonMann review. This new presentation is almost "too good" for TV. It does follow in Homicide's quality footsteps. I'm a psychiatrist by trade and can attest to the show's accuracy and realism in the chaotic ward/emergency scenes and the feeling tone generated in the action (which wondrously persists as a realistic backdrop to the personal conflicts of the principal charactors in the drama). The group therapy sessions were terrific and revealed even more depth in terms of the principal's personality and professional attributes. These are great actors, and I'm extremely impressed with Peter Berg's writing and directing skills. I wish to add my appreciation for the inclusion of Ted Levine to the fine cast. I sincerely hope this show can outlast the scheduling maneuvers and dilemmas. NYPD BLUE finally made it, Homicide died too fast (and never found a large audience), and the superior West Wing apparently is finding an audience and may surprise us by sticking----perhaps Wonderland will survive--hope so, but experience tells me not to hold my breath.
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plworland17 April 2000Heightens my awareness, empathy, and knowledge in how close each of us are to that "fine line." The drama is intense, and detractors will say stereotypical. The acting is superb, the plots heart-pounding, and the outcomes gut wrenching.
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BelanaTorres11 August 2001Hmm..... I still don´t know why they stopped Wonderland. I mean, isn´t the series about the fact, that we are all mentally ill in some way or another, that the line to mentally illness is very thin? Sure, it´s not a boring series, there are still jokes in it, but I don´t think they are meant to hurt mentally ill persons. Wonderland is really the best series I EVER saw on TV. I saw the first 8 episodes and I hope they begin to think about there decision to kick it off television. Well, that´s just my thougts I had after the last episode.
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mentalcritic15 April 2001Wonderland too good for television? I think not, guys. Here's the real reason why the network pulled the plug on this garbage: real mental patients, such as those represented by the National Alliance For The Mentally Ill, banded together and protested this show in such huge numbers that sponsors began pulling their advertising from the show en masse. The network had no choice but to cancel the show, lest it become entirely bereft of sponsors through the efforts of real mental patients who found this show grossly offensive.
Now think about that: a show set in a mental hospital gets the thumbs down from mental patients, including myself. Puts all the positive comments given to this dreck in place, doesn't it? -
Wylie_Times29 June 2001I live in Sweden and Wonderland was bought by a cable network called Canal +. So far they've showed eight episodes and I started wondering why I haven't heard more abouth this great show.
So I head to imdb and what do I find? It's been cancelled after only two episodes in the US!
Just typical America, as soon as something good comes along there's hundreds of protest groups immidiately calling it offensive. It's so stupid! The double standards just keep oozing.
A shame that Peter Berg didn't go to a cable network instead of ABC. -
ween-329 December 2000What can I say? Isn't there a cable network to pick this show back up? And I got a bad sinking feeling that "Gideon's Crossing" is about to suffer the same tragic fate. The "Homicide" curse, I guess. With all the garbage that passes for entertainment on television, it's a shame to see quality shows fall by the wayside. "Law and Order", "West Wing" and "Will and Grace" survive..so there's obviously an audience for intelligent writing and acting. It seems that ABC is unwilling to hype their best shows, and as a result, deservedly continues to lose market share. All that money to advertise the "Geena Davis" debacle? Seems to me that a reassessment is in order.