Romans8_1, you have made some valid points about it being a door opener to conversations with unbelievers, cleaner than most other shows (I strongly agree with that!  I watch very little modern tv shows anymore.  It's TVland and history channel, etc, for me).

I have watched about 4 of the most recent Arcadia shows and I don't like them.  Perhaps I am hyper-sensitive over this kind of stuff.  I will tell you my main reasons.

1)  Several episodes ago "God" made a comment about the Bible and the Koran.  Like they are both "His" word and on equal footing.  That really sent my red alert sirens flashing because it just endorses the current fad belief that "all religions worship the same God...just in different ways".  

It would not have bothered me as much if the character who said it had been someone other than "God".  For example, (and this may be a double standard on my part), but the wizards and all of that in the Lord of the Rings movies don't bother me.  They are all just fantasy, and so all of that stuff is just entertainment.  Arcadia is just entertainment also, but one of the main characters is supposed to be "God".

2)  It bothers me to have a show about "God" and have 8 to 10 curse words per episode.  The fact that they are in there is proof that the producers have no concern for the One True God.  They are just producing their version of "god in a can".  What bothers me is that their man made version of "God" is supposed to be the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (and Allah too for that matter).  A show about God (even if it's a made up version of God) that likes to use curse words just offends me.

The funny thing is, I can watch other shows with cursing and they don't offend me as much.  We have a cuss-word blocking device on our television so we don't have to hear them.  But you can tell when one was there and it blocked it out.  There have been movies like "Windtalkers" (about the Indian Code writers in WWII), and at times the cuss-word blocker chopped out nearly every sentence!  That did not bother me as much as the fewer cuss words in Arcadia, because it was a war movie, not a show about "God".  

Again, perhaps that is my double standard.  But it's just disrespectful to have a show with a character that is supposed to be the Living God and have cuss words in the show.

There are some good lessons taught in the show as you mentioned.  But I kind of look at those as the good tasting kool-aid that is supposed to disguise the one drop of cynaide.  Satan is a deceiver and his favorite tactic is to mix a little bit of lies with a lot of truth.

I also had a similar problem with the "Touched by an Angel" show.  It was by far a cleaner show that other modern shows also.  But I felt the same about it too.

I guess if I were to use Arcadia as a discussion piece with an unbeliever, I would use it as a comparison piece between the secular view of God, and the Biblical view of God.  I would also point out the tactics of deception that are placed in there to make it look good, but then used to veer off the true path in a subtle manner.

Please keep in mind that I am just expressing my thought processes here.  I don't expect everyone to agree with me.  

E_T

Romans, for me, I don't like the show.  I don't see it in the same vein as the angel show with Michael Landon.  I don't like the song, "What if God was one of us" that it comes on with.  

I think what bothers me about it is this:  In some ways these types of shows are so subtle that they are actually more dangerous than, say, Marylin Manson, for example.  He is so offensive that it doesn't take much to see the problem.  The Joan of Arcadia show is much less offensive, and far more subtle, and thus, more mainstream.  That may be where the danger lies.

For dedicated Bible studying believers, the show offers no chance of deception.  It's just a lesson in how the world views God.  But for the unbeliever or the lazy believer, then it's amazing how many people will believe the "doctrine" of this show.

On the whole, other than the 10 curse words or so, the show is clean, which is more than can be said for most modern shows.  It's hard to find a show that is clean enough to watch anymore!

E_T