I honestly don’t know what to make of the premiere of The Exorcist. Based on the description, I figured it would go maybe 4 episodes and nose dive. I’m not as certain, but that’s still my prediction after watching the premiere.

Now, the Exorcist comes in with a truckload of baggage and name recognition, depending on your view. The premise for the series is the old priest, scarred by years of fighting and losing, somehow spiritually tied with a young idealized Latino priest who has never felt called by God before. Together they will take on a demon possessing a young girl whose friend died in a car accident a few months before. Mom is worried about her, including that there seem to be really weird things going on in the house. AKA demon possession.

The young priest doesn’t really believe at first, until he dreams about the old priest and his experiences, and then witnesses the girl himself in full battle mode.

The two priests are played by Alfonso Herrara (young priest) and Ben Daniels (old priest). I am not familiar with either one, but they had some gravitas in the pilot, some strong acting potential there.

Geena Davis and Alan Ruck as the girl’s parents? Thelma / Dottie (Thelma and Louise, A League of Their Own) and Cameron (Ferris Bueller’s Day Off) would not be on my likely list. She only has one real scene where there is any emotional resonance going on, and another where there’s some character revealed. But Ruck is about as catatonic as Cameron was when the car’s odometer wouldn’t go backwards.

The only bright spot that I saw was the daughter, Brianne Howey. She was downright sparkly and creepy at the same time.

Now, to be fair, I was never likely to be a fan of this show as they up the horror factor. But the main reason I can’t tell what’s happening is that the show preview for next week makes it look like there will be two parts to the series:

1. Ongoing story trying to save Casey from the possession; and,
2. Cases of the week as the two priests investigate other happenings going on in Chicago.

Supernatural has the ground easily covered for the case-of-the-week in a far more accessible format, and when Constantine tried to tred the same ground two years ago, it was cancelled after half a season. I just don’t see either pillar carrying the show long enough for it to catch on with anyone.