Touch.  Fox.  TV

There are plenty of shows I can watch and do something else.  Eat.  Type.  Read, even.  But not Touch.  It’s a show where every minute must be watched, where everything has meaning, where, if you go to the bathroom, you pause it so you don’t miss anything.

For anyone who hasn’t seen it, Touch stars 24’s Keifer Sutherland and is helmed by the Heroes dude, Kring.  In the show’s own words, here is what it’s about.  “There’s an ancient Chinese myth about the red thread of fate. It says that the Gods had a red thread around everyone of our ankles and attached it to all the people who’s lives were destined to touch. This thread may stretch or tangle but it will never break.”  Keifer’s young autistic son can see these threads and tries to get his dad to find and contact the those connected.

When I first heard about this show, I though, are you kidding me?  BORING!

But being me, I PVR’d it anyway.  And I am so glad I did.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen a show so masterfully plotted or a show with so much depth and feeling.  In an hour, they introduce us to a host of characters who are seemingly unrelated.  The mircle of the writing?  They make us care about all the characters.  All of them.  We feel their loss, their loneliness, their hopes and fears, their loves and hates, their pain and joy.

If you see only one new show this year, check this one out.  You don’t even need to see the pilot, each story works alone (though seeing the series from the very start gives each episode so much more depth.)  Keifer isn’t blowing away terrorists.  Kring doesn’t envision wacky superheroes.  No, this is something unique, something special.