“Forever,” ABC’s new drama that premiered in two parts on Sept. 22 and 23, exhibits all the problems associated with the portrayal of a complex idea like immortality. How can writers strike a balance between characters undergoing emotional struggles and the mystery surrounding why they cannot die? For “Forever,” such a combination sounds ridiculous, and unfortunately it comes off as being that way most of the time.

“Forever” centers on Henry Morgan (Ioan Gruffudd), a mysterious medical examiner living in New York City. Through his narration, the viewer discovers that Henry became immortal when he was killed defending a slave onboard a trading ship 200 years before. Since then, whenever he dies, he returns in a body of water completely naked. After dying in and returning from a subway crash that puts him in the line of potential suspects by the New York Police Department, he strikes up a relationship with detective Jo Martinez (Alana De La Garza) and helps her find the real criminal behind the subway collision.

Taken as a whole, the pilot is entertaining enough, but it is not groundbreaking in any way. Considering the freshness of its concept, this is disappointing. The first episode is very much typical of the opening to a crime show, and it has all the trappings of genre television: a procedural format, red herrings and the like. Instead of living up to the show’s rich premise, “Forever” falls into one cliché after another.

Henry’s characterization is not particularly convincing either. The flashbacks that allude to events in Henry’s past leave much to be desired, and they do not resonate because of how artificial they come across. We miss out on important information about who his former lover is, and we don’t know why we should even care. The writing is hackneyed and contrived at times, making blatant references to Henry’s immortality through one-liners and non-sequiturs that do not really contribute to Henry as a character or the progression of the episode.

Better things can be said of Gruffudd, however, whose portrayal of Henry is spot-on so far. Gruffudd delivers a portrait of a man who is off-putting and ineffably confident. His relationship with his only friend, Abe (Judd Hirsch), contains a level of warm kinship and chemistry already. Their scenes together are undoubtedly the highlights of the episode. The idea of Henry being a student of death is a fascinatingly dark concept that should be explored as the show progresses. A story arc about a mysterious caller who knows Henry’s secret should prove to be the most intriguing part of the show. It strays from the procedural format and strikes to the heart of Henry’s internal conflict. How that mystery is revealed and reconciled will be a barometer of how well the writers can weave an arc into the procedural and create a satisfying and cathartic conclusion.

The best scene of the episode comes at the end, when the viewer discovers how Abe and Henry met. It is heavy-handed and panders to viewer emotions, but it drives one message home perfectly — that regardless of one’s position in life, hope holds no judgment or condescension. This is universal and absolute. Despite the episode’s many generic shortcomings, its strengths signal that there is hope yet for “Forever,” and it could be a success if the creative team can weed out the superfluous elements and build on their strengths as the season progresses.

A version of this article appeared in the Wednesday, Sept. 25 print edition. Email Bradley Alsop at [email protected].