Miracles DVD Review:

Many shows on television are not able to live out their full lives. Often when the show is not being watched, despite the critical success, it can be canceled before all of the episodes are even aired. This was the case for Miracles, an hour long suspense/mystery show which was similar to The X Files, only dealing with purely spiritual matters. After only half of the episodes which had already been filmed were shown, the show was taken off air. Thanks to Shout Factory the entire series is available to be seen for the first time in a four disc set.

The show begins with a spiritual questioning of an investigator for the Catholic Church, Paul Callan. Paul was an orphan raised by the church, eventually leading to his employment by them as well, but as he has grown older he feels he is disproving more miracles than he ever witnesses, which has caused him to question the existence of God. Everything changes when Paul takes a case involving a young boy healing people. Paul feels that he has seen the hand of God when the young boy saves him from a car crash and the words “God is Now Here” appear in blood. The Church, on the other hand, refuses to admit the incident as a miracle, causing Paul to quit and join forces with a group that investigates miracles in a way that is seemingly more personal than the Catholic Church.

The pilot for Miracles is so utterly amazing that had it been watched the show would surely have gained an audience, and although the episodes following can begin to stretch some, they are never so bad that they are not worth watching. There are some episodes which further continue Paul’s journey to discover his purpose on earth and the existence of God, and these are the ones which seem to be most compelling. The other episodes seem rather random, more like an episode of The X Files than a thoughtful examination of God and religion alike.

With a cast including Skeet Ulrich as Paul Callan, Angus Macfadyen and Marisa Ramirez as the other members of the investigation team, and an assortment of other celebrities who make appearances, Miracles is able to pull the emotional weight of each episode with ease. Ulrich is particularly fascinating to watch as one of the more underrated young actors in film and television.

The DVD treatment of this series was amazing considering it is a show which was canceled. This box set, with four discs in a foldout container, is stylishly set with great photos and designs. The set includes fantastic special features including commentary on six episodes, five deleted scenes, and an interview. The amount of attention which has been given to this show, and the loving care which it has been released with, shows that some distributors sincerely care for the product and not just the outcome.



Ryan Izay