3/5 Mindless, entertaining fun that never got the chance to grow
  by N. Durham (Philadelphia, PA)
Freely adapted from its Jimmy Palmiotti and Joe Quesada-penned comic book origins and stylings, Painkiller Jane is definitely not the worst original series to hit the Sci-Fi Channel, and is good mindless fun for what it's worth. Terminator 3 and Bloodrayne hottie Kristanna Loken is Jane Vasco; a DEA agent that is recruited by a government agency. She now finds herself hunting genetically altered and enhanced criminals, or "Neuros", and soon discovers that she too has some strange abilities of her own, including the ability to heal from any injury. Throughout this first (and only) season of Painkiller Jane, Jane and her crew hunt these superpowered individuals, which leads to plenty of banter, fighting, and explosions. There really isn't much else to the show other than that, as things pretty much get wrapped up as the series comes to a close with Jane's allegiance coming into question. Loken, who was basically eye candy in Terminator 3 and had the thankless lead role in Bloodrayne, is pretty wooden throughout the series. She looks quite good though, and the supporting cast, namely Noah Danby as Connor and Sean Owen Roberts as Riley, are pretty good. That being said, you pretty much know what you're getting with Painkiller Jane. It doesn't strike the gold that other Sci-Fi shows like Farscape, The Invisible Man, or The Dresdin Files did and does, but it is mindless, entertaining fun that sadly never got the chance to really grow on what it set up before getting the axe. All in all, if you're a fan of the comic and missed out on the show when it aired on Sci-Fi, Painkiller Jane is worth a look, but don't expect much out of it.

4/5 Really good show
  by C. Merced (Stamford, CT and sometimes in Puerto Rico)
A pretty good and interesting show based on the graphic novel of the same title. The series was interesting, the acting was not top-notch but it was decent. The storylines were very interesting, especially in the first half of the season. Each episode was sort of an "monster of the week" scheme where the team would search and apprehend that week's monster or rather "neuro".

The series is about the main character, Jane Vasco, who can get shot, burned, fall of 80 story buildings and not die. She will get hurt, and will have a wound, but it will heal. She will still suffer the pain of the wound too. She gets recruited into a secret branch of the government tasked with capturing neuros (people with special abilities). They neutrolize them and ship them off to a facility.

The show also dealt with Jane's realization as to what she was and her potential powers. Towards the end, the show became a bit more confusing and tried to pursue too many conspiracy theories at the same time. It did not give itself time to explore them and thus, the show seemed rush to reach a resolution quickly. Still, it was a pity that this show was canceled.

Now, if Painkiller Jane and Superman (or any other superhero) were in a fight, who would win? Remember that Jane will always heals.


5/5 One of the better Sci Fi channel shows
  by Patrick C. Wedge (Van Buren, OH)
Without getting too upset, I wish Sci Fi would have followed the true character from the comics a little more closely but hey, it was Sci Fi so I expected them to add a sci fi value to the series. As the series moved along, it did pick up some steam and the writing/stories got much better. Loken really did get the character's attitude and passion for what she was trying to accomplish. I'm glad this was collected into a full package and was upset when Sci Fi didn't renew the series. For Sci Fi, it was a great series placed at a horrible time slot (Friday 10pm). So take this chance and grab the series.

5/5 Great fun show!
  by Tom Jones (R.I.)
This was a great show that was cancelled way too soon. It should have been given more time to develop as the stories kept on getting better each week. Buy the DVD set and you will see it was a lot of fun!

5/5 Great
  by J. Wingo
I love this show I watched it when it first came on tv and I was sad that they didn't make a second season.