for you Americans who don't have access to the show, my heart goes out to you. to my fellow Canadians, we truly have been blessed.

this show has world class actors, magnificent story lines and a cool gritty look. i am no fan of Canadian made television. hockey and davinci are the only two shows i watch on CBC. but when a friend told me about this and she ranted like a crazed lunatic about this Vancouver shot show, i figured i would check it out. THANK YOU LAURIE!

i cant say enough about this show. along with 'deadwood', 'sopranos', news, hockey, i always try and be home for davinci. find a way to watch this show if you can. you will not be disappointed.

I've been very fortunate to see many episodes of this show on WGN and I have to say that it handily bests all of the American police procedurals. We never really did good police procedurals in the US anyway; we're obsessed with happy endings and quips, when the reality of police work is grueling, unfair and exhausting. Shows like Law & Order and CSI succeed by their sheer numbers. The best one ever made in the U.S.--Homicide: Life on the Street--was unceremoniously canceled after a short but brilliant run, and constantly tried to underline the realities of detective work. Only it stands against Inquest.

Da Vinci's inquest, on the other hand, has such a great feel. The acting--especially that of the lead Nicholas Campbell--is top notch for this type of show, because it's so transparent. In other words the delivery and body language seem so authentic that you actually forget you're watching TV. I get so tired of the same puppet shows on Law & Order, the one dimensional characters who exist only to drive the plot to its tidy conclusion at the 22 minute mark.

This one is worth seeing, and I'm glad to know it's on DVD when it disappears (as it surely will like anything else that's actually good on U.S. TV.)

This show is being rebroadcast on Bravo every morning at 8 am and I am hooked again ! I wish to dip my oar in the water and to reminisce, compliment and commiserate the show and the fact that it is gone, but, I guess all dogs have their day and time moves on.

Shows like this that rely on intelligent scripts driven by characters that are superbly acted and seem like real people warts 'n all. This cast was a dream cast, not afraid to use facial expressions, make wrinkles, use vocal inflections and nuances to help me feel involved. In fact all of Da Vinci's characters and situations feel real and less like I am observing a specimen in a glass bottle or a thinly veneered facade.

The scripts were captivating and made me yearn for the next episode and the threads that ran through the series episodes added to rather than detracted from this series.

I am not a fan of jingoism but love the quality of shows like the Da Vinci's incarnations, Intelligence, Flashpoint and others that highlight the 'Canadian way'. We revel in the concept that force does not make right and may not be necessary nor best way to achieve things and that intellect versus thoughtless and impulsive action is the best course of 'action'. Our writers seem to be able to captivate, intrigue and respect the intelligence of viewers and aim UP to them, making us reach for and think about what we are watching. I hate having things handed to me on a platter and appreciate writers who treat me as an adult viewer, not as someone with a 14 year old mentality.

Let's hope that sponsors and politicians will recognize and support the quality of the craftsmanship here before it slips away. Why must we wait for the recognition of other countries before we see the quality of our arts ? If I was allowed to say something to the Canadian script writers I would like to say "Good job, thank you" and "You have my attention, please write well so that you can keep it." and "If you do, I will not let you down either."

I have been a fan of all the CSI shows for awhile, but only recently discovered DaVinci's Inquest. After watching all the American shows in which the CSI teams trade cutesy one-liners while solving impossible crimes, it is really refreshing to see actors portray real people. DaVinci and his entire cast render a convincing picture of dedicated crime fighters and crime solvers who sometimes have to admit that they have no idea what's happening. It's also refreshing to see a cast of people who look like real people. While some of the girls are drop-dead gorgeous, most of the cast have a realistic appearance and even the gorgeous ones manage performances that make them seem genuine and not just some plastic-looking starlet types who walk and move like catalog models. DaVinci is outstanding ,and Leo is a great asset to the cast. I am completely hooked on this show, and I wish I could do something to assure that it will continue. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to let someone know how much I like it.

The writing, videography, acting - this show is excellent. There are always several cases and situations that are on-going, along with the weekly crime-to-solve. They often make statements about how to deal with certain crimes that will never go away, like prostitution. They clearly use a lot of improv. The series is addicting but frustrating because it is only shown in the middle of the night. There has been such a void in quality television and there are so many reruns due to the writers strike, that I purchase the first two season of this show on DVD. But they haven't committed any others to DVD.

HOW do we get the local cable companies to offer us this show at reasonable times!??

This critically acclaimed gem from Canada is great, no, excellent television viewing. If you're a fan of TV shows like Hill Street Blues, NYPD Blue, or Homicide: Life on the Street you'll love this program.

Da Vinci's Inquest begins with a story based on a true headline about the serial murders of prostitutes. Since its debut, it has collect many awards which confirms what I'm telling you here.

Add to the amazing story lines an incredible cast. Nicholas Campbell, Ian Tracey and Donnelly Rhodes star together and make a perfect ensemble cast with other familiar faces.

Since this is a TV show, I do not want to write any spoilers so, if you're interested in the program, watch it.

This is an excellent show, can't say enough about it. I'm from the States – to any Canadians out there - is all of Canadian TV this good?

I like the show's depiction of the Canadian people, meaning the characters have a "live and let live" philosophy. Life in the States is not like that at all. Everybody wants to tell you how to live your life here. So I'd also like to know if the characters in this show are an accurate depiction of Canadian attitudes?

Finally, unlike the majority of current US actors who look like they're wearing plastic masks, the actors in this show look natural. No fake breasts, freakishly plumped lips, etc. It's very refreshing to see real people on a TV show.

This show is high on group work and realistic dialogue and action, much more realistically paced and acted than current Yankee faves such as CSI and NCIS. They use real words such as "forensics" and the lead characters manage to hold audience interest without cheap and predictable audience grabbers. Good writing and excellent outdoor photography. It is so good it is only going over the show afterwards that I appreciate it at this level. While I'm watching it I'm drawn into the slice of life it portrays.

I also suspect it is less popular among us Yanks than for Canadians because of the pacing and attention to detail. I'd be happy to be wrong, however.

I began watching this show last year and I'm hooked. The more I watch the more I love it. These characters are so real and honest and hilarious. The dialog is absolutely fantastic and musical and everyone in this cast is in perfect harmony. Each actor has created the most believable character and caused me to care deeply for each one...from Da Vinci (Nicholas Campbell) himself to his awesome secretary (Sara Strange) to the sweet little drug addict whore (Emily Perkins) on the street...and all the others...I love them all and look forward to their very excellent and, as far as I can see, flawless performances. You really ought to watch it then, don't you think?

I do not think I've missed seeing more than a few episodes and the one's I've seen are, over all, very good to excellent. This is in casting, editing, directing, acting, character development et all!

This was my introduction to Nicolas Campbell and I was very impressed with his work.

I was delighted to catch Stuart Margolins performance as a disgruntled business partner who holds a body hostage, but was not surprised to see his other contributions to the series. He is a particular favorite of mine and his Evelyn 'Angel' Martin is my all-time memorable character. To this day I cannot think about his FBI Rat out of Rocky without rolling on the floor.

I look forward to finally seeing the Davinci City Hall series on US television but I can't see a man who is so obviously hooked on spiritual currency lasting more than one term as Mayor.

Leland

Clearly, I could not have been watching the same program to which all of these wonderful reviews are referring.

I came upon an episode recently very late at night on CBS and sat spellbound. Not because I found myself intrigued or even entertained, but because I thought I must have stumbled upon an awful Saturday Night Live skit and was wondering what it was doing on the wrong channel.

I recognized a number of the actors, all of whom I've enjoyed in the past. But honestly, I found myself having to almost walk right up to my television set to try and follow the so-called dialog. What is with the rambling, monotone mumbling with which every single line is delivered? I've been to Vancouver. I don't recall having difficulty understanding anyone. These people all seemed like they were in a race to deliver the most lines ever in the shortest space of time.

This was like watching The West Wing while having the flu and a goodly dose of Nyquil in your system. I can understand to some degree why this thing has almost cult status. You must feel quite amazed at yourself if you're able to follow the whole thing.

And similar to a problem I have with West Wing, I find it impossible to believe that everyone in one world speaks exactly the same way. There is absolutely no attempt to distinguish one character from another. On top of which, at least in the one episode I saw (and no, I could not stand to sit through the whole thing), emotions seemed forced and hokey. I had no interest in seeing who this show decided to make the guilty party. It was just too ridiculous.

I'll admit to being intrigued however, at the blanket admiration I am seeing on this board. Perhaps enough so to force myself to another try at watching this "best show ever, period" should I find myself up in the middle of the night with nothing better to do. I'll just have to hide the remote and find a bullet to bite down on.

DA VINCI'S INQUEST may well be the very best 1-hour television drama ever. If it isn't, there are no more than a handful - from whatever country or era - that can even come close.

It's new to American television (at least as far as I know), and I've only seen a dozen or so episodes, but their promos don't lie: one episode and I was hooked. The writing, the acting; you almost forget that what you're watching is, well, written and acted! 'Verisimilitude' is one of those words one doesn't come across much these days, but it's appropriate to describe this show. The characters are complex, their interactions so 'real life,' that watching them almost gives a feeling of eavesdropping.

Also, as in real life, there is not always a resolution. Some episodes end with matters left hanging and loose ends untied. Life doesn't always supply us with all the why's and wherefore's; neither does DA VINCI'S. This is a show that does not treat the viewer like an idiot. Perhaps a lot of Canadian TV is like that, but it's a novelty down here.

Nicholas Campbell, as Vancouver coroner Dominic Da Vinci, is the on-screen engine that powers this show. The acting of all of the series' regulars - Ian Tracey, Donnelly Rhodes, Sue Mathew, Sarah Strange and others - is of a uniformly high order, but each is even better when playing a scene with Campbell, whose presence, style and energy make everything just crackle with authenticity (oh, hell, I don't know; does authenticity crackle? If it doesn't, it should). If you've been a regular viewer of U.S. shows such as "X-Files" and the "Stargate's" - which were/are produced in Canada - you'll see a number of familiar faces.

Be warned: this show could spoil you for all American television drama. My viewing companion and I watched an episode of "Law & Order" - which we enjoy - immediately after viewing a DA VINCI; big mistake. Anything else is going to suffer by comparison. But here's some good news: if you jump in now, you've got seven seasons worth of episodes to see. That should tide you over for a while, and you'll want to catch each one.

Da Vinci's Inquest is the finest crime drama on television, where there is an abundance of crime dramas. If you enjoy shows like "Law and Order" and "NYPD Blue" it will not take you long to become hooked on this one. The only negative thing to say about "Da Vinci" is this: Once you get hooked on it, every other crime drama will seem inferior.

Nicholas Campbell plays the title character Dominic Da Vinci, a Vancouver Coroner, and the series revolves around him and the cases he has to deal with. The premise is very simple, but the show has so much to offer.

Every episode is interesting, and real. It deals with important issues such as prostitution and drug abuse, and the writers don't hold anything back. All the characters are interesting and likable, and the actors who play these characters do an outstanding job - especially Nicholas Campbell. Campbell is brilliant as Da Vinci. The Dominic Da Vinci character can be a real jerk at times, yet he is very likable, probably more than any other character.

I have recently noticed that this show is starting to play in other countries and I do believe that it will do well outside of Canada. The stories are universal; drugs and prostitution are problems within just about every country. Aside from the fact that show makes reference to Canadian cities (they always mention a lot of towns/cities in British Columbia, and places like Calgary, Toronto, Montreal and Regina) viewers in other countries don't necessarily need to know that the show is Canadian because they can relate the story lines to issues present in their own country.

Truly, a superior crime drama.

This is one of the finest television series, ever, in my opinion. It has a poignancy, passion and nearly poetic dialog that US television can't match.

The episode where Da Vinci, while working feverishly at his coroner's job, keeps avoiding repeated phone calls from his mother only to find that he has missed being present at his own stone-cutter father's passing and, then, mimics his old man by chiseling the letters of the gravestone, breaks one's heart.

Watching it on WFSB in Hartford, another recent episode has a beautiful and moving speech delivered by a mother, fearful that her son has murdered her abusive boyfriend, in which she both describes her dilemma as a single mother and a helpless victim of the circumstances of a hard life, plus offers herself up as a more likely culprit in a transparent effort to protect the boy.

The program even featured Matt Frewer, star of probably my favorite television program, ever, Max Headroom, as a guest villain in a two part series.

It doesn't get much better than this.

I am lucky enough to get the CBC out of Vancouver down here in Seattle. Da Vinci's Inquest had much better writing generally then we get in American TV dramas. It may be just me, but I love how mostly each episode drops in to a story, the story develops, and with each ep we get more and more character backstory and ongoing story. And then the ep ends with a suggestion (or several possibilities) of how that eps plot might wrap up, but with out our being burdened, like American TV, with the simple-minded requirement that with each ep everything has to be completely wrapped up. And the acting is top notch. And of course Vancouver is a tremendous location, and I am so glad to see it used as Vancouver, and not just a as a prop to pretend to be some US city.

Da Vinci's Inquest was loosely based on the real life experiences of Larry Campbell, the former chief coroner of Vancouver, British Columbia, who was elected mayor of that city in 2002. The part of Da Vinci, however, was written specifically for actor Nicholas Campbell. Elements of the series story lines were also taken from sociopolitical issues faced by the real-life Vancouver, such as the plight of the homeless, the controversy over a designated injection site for drug users, the idea of establishing a red light district, and the disappearance of homeless women and sex workers-similar to the case of Robert Pickton.

I have been in law enforcement for over 30 years now. Only two shows really capture what it is really like: from the US, Homicide: Life on the Streets and the Canadian classic Da Vinci's Inquest. What sets this show apart from just about every other show is how true it is to real life. Life isn't always about good and bad; there are many shades of gray. Cases aren't always tied up in a neat bow. Good people have character flaws. Bad people are often good people with a single character flaw. Life goes on. I can't praise this show enough for realistic writing and acting. I think that I counted exactly one car chase in all the years that it was on--and it was a slow-paced car chase. The cops all smoked cigarettes and drank coffee out of Styrofoam cups. That may sound like a cliché, but I assure you, it's absolutely accurate. There were good cops, troubled cops, and bad cops. Justice didn't always prevail. Like the US show Homicide, I never considered this show as just a police procedural. It was a show about life.

Along with HOMICIDE: LIFE ON THE STREETS, Davinci's Inquest is the best show written for TV I have ever seen. It is real, gritty, and Davinci's sarcastic attitude is delightful, as is his continual amazement at the lack of depth people show. I only recently started watching it, as WGN is showing the reruns. Wish I had caught it when it first aired. The rest of the cast is superb also. I particularly like his secretary and his wife, the pathologist. I am getting an insight into Vancouver, into Canadian rules of justice; and I note the differences in our own Bill of Rights and the lengths to which a coroner may go in Canada. Apparently they have the same problems with drugs and prostitution as the States. I'm sure most of Vancouver is beautiful, but this show gets down to the real underbelly which is peopled with real, believable characters. The stories and people are haunting and stay with you...

I am a very-very picky member of audience. I like reality-related shows, and it should be "make-believe closer to 100%". It is hard for me to do not notice sloppy jobs, as I am a scientist. Before this serial I had only 2 serials which passed the line "good" for me (Sopranos and Mad Men), so I am glad to watch it. I would not watch anything with poor performance and poor director's work. Most of series (I am 51 now, I had a quick look at many of them, trust me) did not pass one episode on me; 3-4 series I watched for 1-2 seasons, but they did not survive on me: either stories get too silly, or cheesy, or attention to details is too sloppy. Da Vinci's inquest passed for me to the "greatest job I ever saw on TV" - acting is great not only for the main guy, but for every single small role on the background, operator job (not being shy to obstruct the view or do not bother showing what should be there), attention to the details (people are mumbling like real people, CSI wear and act as the are supposed to, bad guys are not 100% bad, good guys are not 100% good, dead people look dead, weather is real, etc). It seems that a very good professional was in control of this production. Too bad it was discontinued. The team deserves recognition, for sure.

I am so happy to start seeing "The Da Vinci Inquest" here in the United States. WGN has started broadcasting episodes (sometimes three or four a day). I couldn't be happier. This series is so fresh and new compared to what else is out there. If you get a chance, please watch a couple of episodes.

I get so tired of the US made TV shows, like "Law & Order" or the various, tired "CSI" shows. You can usually solve the mystery a quarter into the program. "DVI" shows compelling, lovable characters digging up clues and evidence. You easily like them and are rooting for their success.

Filmed in Vancouver, BC (one of the most beautiful cities in this continent) the program is very noire-like. It doesn't necessarily glorify the city. Junkies look pretty lousy on this show and how the police treat them is a lot different than what you see in US shows (even like in Cops).

I recommend to all of my fellow US viewers, to give this show a try. You will love it.

Based on true events, Da Vinci's Inquest portrays the troubled life of Vancouver coroner Dominic Da Vinci (brilliantly portrayed by Nichols Campbell) as he weaves his way through the politics and compromises needed to make a difference while dealing with personal demons, in-your-face adversaries, and the subtle erosive effect of societal apathy. With a brilliant supporting cast including the late great Donnelly Rhodes and Ian Tracey, developer Chris Haddock sets a high standard for authentic location-specific story-telling. Cinematographer David Frazee's work here is not to be overlooked; look to him to do more directing and producing in the future.

Da Vinci's Inquest is one of the best dramatic TV shows ever produced in Canada on any Canadian networks. First of all the gritty and realistic stories were always captivating and awesome. A big big reason for that was the stupendous acting by the entire cast but most especially by the lead character Da Vinci who was gruff and knew his job really well but was far from perfect and in many ways an anti-hero. The support cast was also awesome even though Da Vinci himself stood out the most. Detective Shannon, Detective Kosmo and Detective Leary were all great actors. Da Vinci's City Hall was still pretty good but not nearly as good as the original Da Vinci's Inquest series. This is an awesome show.