pilot awake pilot pilot episode american television police procedural fantasy drama awake originally aired national_broadcasting_company nbc march written series creator pilot earned nielsen rating watched million viewers initial broadcast directed highest rated non sports program respective time slot nbc year episode generally received positive reviews critics commenting episode unique script cast members particularly performance felt effectively embodied characteristics lead role pilot introduced main character detective works involved fatal accident family michael conflicted parallel realities reality wears red wife survived accident reality wears green son survived michael know reality real sees separate red reality green reality michael deals kidnapping green reality murder red reality concept awake devised previously created american television drama lone star fox network nbc encouraged conceive concept future television series cancellation inspired processes dreaming script cited potentially complex mainstream american television plot detective therapy sessions having fully recovered injuries michael recalls night family involved car accident reveals time goes sleep conflicted realities reality wife survived accident son pronounced dead scene second reality hannah died accident instead michael trying lives realities wears red wrist reality hannah alive green reality alive green reality michael noticed focused lot tennis mother sport tennis coach talking feelings hannah red reality hannah trying write late lives wanting try child michael different partner reality green reality partner freeman officer red reality newly promoted partner transferred different michael starts realize things transfer reality reality clue pertaining case shown michael reality helps save girl murdered quick change serial killer lee evans attempt going michael mechanism insist reality dream try prove michael evans michael read united_states_constitution reality dream michael constitution michael learned alcohol system night car accident lee michael dream feels guilty killing son end episode michael comes conclusion wants live family members goes sleep red reality hannah michael told green reality tells michael enjoy tell loves michael goes sleep transferring green reality production conception series creator devised concept series originally titled episode green lit national_broadcasting_company nbc described procedural mixture based life detective experiencing parallel universe car accident family nbc picked pilot episode awake february previously created american television drama fox network canceled shortly airing episodes low ratings stated cancellation good platform explore new ideas potential television felt awake similar concept wanted continue idea living spaces interview hollywood reporter elaborated conception series wife doctor patient chief complaint covered worms went sic year old guy completely remembered year totally convinced covered worms couldn understand people weren reacting stuck reliant little piece material ears tells real think real idea interested couldn tell difference dreams reality think lot stuff playing went sought inspiration dreaming process adding concept way dreams feel real way experience don crazy happens sort bursts balloon think interested question balloon couldn tell difference awake asleep started looking way marry ideas months later awake president entertainment division nbc encouraged conceive concept future television series cancellation lone star weeks sent rough draft script agent impressed script midnight went room sick wife sleeping got bed stated script remarkable praised claiming guy written procedural life making cases work initially looked sell acquisition rights successfully way lower executive branches company script declined entertainment president felt reading chairman 20th century opted develop deal cable television networks newman believed network accept difference cable network dramas degree intelligence gordon chosen showrunner series gordon commended pilot script gordon originally read script flight new_york read pilot got past struck voice stated writers real voices kyle self time confident thing hand open closed gordon later compared television series good wife said good wife procedural aspects decide format use week compared awake saying makes awake episode pilot written directed casting february obtained role central character series gordon premise character guy goes sleep wakes wife goes sleep wakes son cop sees clues details crossover world uses insight solve crimes thought premise series audiences making easier expand fanbase think aspects lone star difficult wider broader audience interested articulated main character somebody couldn decide liked hated think dilemma sympathetic want win following month producers approached play initially received role hannah later received role instead allen originally auditioned play march cast son alongside cast members commended series script noted auditioning sequence fast stated process getting job actually went fast audition room jason room cast director room director room audition like wow okay received role weeks audition cast members include play partner reality serve reality chose role lieu position police procedural television drama writing writing episode script difficult processes creating series writing team confused exchanging executing ideas script result created outlines distinguished green red ink edited language better separate ideas things initially confusing trying break story think time reach audience attention paid clear little tricks needed sort away hopefully screen pretty instantly oriented world complexity script pilot episode concept cited potential issue series evaluated viewers enjoy clever mythology overlap affect interesting ways despite series sliding doors like script reading script felt incredibly hard complicated know reality gift hard like hard work later suggested brooding mainstream american television potentially bend scripts stated pilot comes people amazing prestige lots talented people head network chooses despite concerns gordon asserted concept awake concept understand sat paid attention properly broadcast reception pilot originally aired nbc march debuted midseason replacement firm moved saturdays shortly awake premiere episode initial broadcast viewed approximately million viewers pilot earned nielsen rating share meaning roughly percent television equipped households percent households watching television tuned episode episode debuted global network canada simultaneously nbc broadcast garnered million viewers making eighth watching program week according united_kingdom episode broadcast obtained million viewers making viewed program channel june awake pilot exciting new series category voted journalists seen pilots pilot episode generally received positive reviews television critics praised storylines telegraph called premiere episode impressive online commented instantly fell love storyline man living realities order stay people loves npr asserted pilot laid foundation emotional storylines ultimately evaluating strongest recent memory richly interesting narrative worth watching closely entirely beautifully acted written packed genuinely questions grief dreaming things thoughtful holmes added engaging contrast similar television shows james_poniewozik time noted concept melodramatic episode focuses subject loss manages painful watch moving absorbing hopeful affirmed telecast effectively solved issues raised series wrote awake handles confusion problem yes takes concentration law order inception michael needs hold markers anchor sense reality instance wears red green wife son alive respectively help follow episode best new season despite complicated narrative abc lost kept time awake makes fast emotional connection gives viewers immediate stake lives compelling characters journalist stated series acted written buddytv writer called pilot great episode grade review todd_vanderwerff said episode great piece televised art describing script witty warm soulful wrote direction conveys emotional world watch mute grasp going end episode leave feeling like seen unique wonderful worth watching week increasingly crowded television landscape pilot highly anticipated los_angeles_times journalist observed promised year best interesting new series pre broadcast review ign gave pilot classifying masterpiece commentators enthusiastic general consensus writing washington_post felt despite having high ambitions pilot episode slow critics lauded cast acting specifically performance vanderwerff concluded cast performances delicate perfect wagner felt suited lead role easily audience touching solid work grounds shows viewers lengths man pain hold loves heartbreaking thought evoked ambiguity attracted viewers character hollywood reporter echoed analogous sentiment writing perfectly conveys man struggling horrible options utterly compelling mature soulful literally gets rest deal reality son acting rage moving different pace different ways opined failed engage audience praised performances jones excellent sinister ken_tucker entertainment_weekly keen acting series helps enormously playing lead actor knows convey gravity contrasts series concept avoids heavy stated performance delivers graceful subdued performance man daily basis taste heaven hell man guilt gratitude noted allen performances series deserve praise having play characters dealing loss benefit able lost loved like
Pilot (Awake)