Unlock your mind – Limitless series now on Showmax

In sci-fi show Limitless, 28-year-old Brian Finch (Jake McDorman) gets the chance to go from slacker to superman with just one dose of miracle pill NZT-48.

The series is based on the 2011 action thriller movie of the same name, with Bradley Cooper in the lead role as struggling author Eddie Morra – and yes, he does pop up later in the series (Bradley’s also one of the executive producers).

In Limitless the show, one gulp of NZT-48 gives Brian full control of his brain – and running at full capacity! For the next 12 hours, every sense is enhanced, recall and perception are both perfect and he’s able to make dazzling, accurate connections between all the elements of information that he’s absorbing. Think Sherlock Holmes (Johnny Lee Miller) in Elementary but much, much smarter.

And while the FBI is quick to snap up his massive brain in Limitless, we think that Brian could have a lot more fun elsewhere on Showmax, like on these shows…

Who needs law school?

Brian’s speed reading, super-perception and perfect recall would be a perfect fit for the legal team on drama series The Good Wife. He can analyse past cases at super-speed, spotting every loophole. And he’ll analyse every facet of the physical evidence. Imagine his mind as a cement mixer grinding through stacks of legal briefs and mind-numbing boxes of phone transcripts, and pouring out a perfect blend of facts to bond a case together so that it’s rock solid in court. He’ll be clinking wine glasses with Alicia (Julianna Margulies) and Diane (Christine Baranski) in no time – or smirking along with the Suits boys. Want proof? Just see what he does in episode 1!

Talking the talk

Imagine how much time and heartache Brian could save the Pied Piper tech development team in comedy Silicon Valley by taking on the job of talking to investors. It requires a very special kind of brilliance to dumb down tech talk to the point that the venture capitalists not only understand what they’re investing in, but stay excited about the product rather than the company’s stock. It would give the creative team time to actually produce their programs without having to repeatedly slam into the money and marketing boys’ in-built idiot-wall.

It’s in the tiny details

Brian would be the best producer that the Everlasting reality dating show team could hope for on drama series UnReal. His super-perception would allow him to pick up on those hundred little tells that reveal each contestant’s most deeply guarded vulnerabilities. He could pick up on the body language that indicates which contestants hate each other in time to arrange a double date with their Suitor, as well as spot exactly which psychological crack to apply which manipulative chisel to, to pop off someone’s mask on live TV. Cue the tears of rage…

Let’s get physical

Having an enhanced brain allows Brian to combine his knowledge of his body’s absolute physical limits, with the limits of what physics will allow him in the space his body inhabits. It gives him the potential to be a super-spy escape-artist that the Strike Back guys could count on. But since NZT-48 only lets him reach his own current potential, Brian should probably steer clear of the muscle-bound MMA fighters in sport drama Kingdom (Season 3 episodes arrive express from the US each week) – his brain would tell him to run far and fast from those punches, kicks and aggressive warriors!

Music makes the world go round

Finally, we think that Brian would have the most fun with Rebecca Bunch (Rachel Bloom) from comedy Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (Coming to Showmax later this month). Why? Well hello, the reason that Brian is living at home with his dad as Limitless starts is that he’s a failed musician. Combine Rebecca’s insane imagination with Brian’s super-song writing and lyrical capabilities and we’d get an even better version of the I’m So Good At Yoga song (season 1, episode 2). It would really yank that Valencia Perez’s (Gabrielle Ruiz) yoga mat out from under her perfect feet.