History Series / NewAmsterdam

[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/new_amsterdam_poster_3681.jpg]]

->''"You will not grow old. You will not die. This is the gift we give."''
-->-- '''Native American women''', upon granting Johan immortality

John Amsterdam (Creator/NikolajCosterWaldau) is a New York homicide detective. He's also an immortal, born as Johan van der Zee in the Netherlands in the 1600s. While living in the New Amsterdam colony in what would later become New York City, he saved some native women from the depradations of his fellow soldiers, but was mortally wounded in the process. They granted him eternal life in exchange.

He uses his 400 years of experience to [[TheyFightCrime solve crime]], all the while looking for his true love (who's the only one that can [[WhoWantsToLiveForever cure him of his immortality]]).

Not to be confused with the medical drama Series/NewAmsterdam2018.

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!!This series provides examples of:

* TheAgeless: John Amsterdam has physically been 35 years old since the 1600s. In the pilot he suddenly dies when it seems like he might have had an encounter with his true love, but he [[ResurrectiveImmortality resurrects]] and walks out of the morgue.
* TheAlcoholic: John was one in the past, but at the start of the series he'd been sober for 50+ years.
* BlackGalOnWhiteGuyDrama: There's an episode where the immortal John Amsterdam had a relationship with a black woman in the 1940s and impregnates her with his latest child. Due to the racial segregation of the period, they try to keep it a secret until her father takes her back home, berating John for becoming involved with a woman he couldn't publicly provide for. After fighting in World War II, John returns to take care of her after she's delivered their child.
* BlessedWithSuck: John saves the life of a Native American woman, who in return grants him eternal life and youth until he finds his soul mate, who he will know by feeling it in his heart. Unfortunately, this means he suffers a heart attack that would normally be fatal once he gets near her (that is if Sara really is his soul mate. Unfortunately the series was cancelled before we found out for sure).
* BunnyEarsLawyer: Everyone thinks Amsterdam is one.
* CassandraTruth: Amsterdam usually answers questions about his past honestly, but understandably, no one takes him seriously.
--> '''Eva:''' He has a really weird sense of humor.
* CursedWithAwesome
* CutShort: The series was cancelled after the eight episode, without resolving the plot. Though the only reason we got the show at all was due to the 2007 Writers' Strike.
* DefiledForever: The episode "Honor" has an Indian-American rape victim being [[HonorRelatedAbuse killed by her father]] because she's no longer a virgin. The flashbacks to the immortal's past also revealed that the protagonist had previously held the same notion that a woman who loses her virginity is defiled, until he discovered that she had in fact been raped.
* EpunymousTitle: The hero, detective John Amsterdam, is secretly immortal and has been living in New York since it was the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam.
* EternalSexualFreedom: {{Averted}} somewhat with the second episode during a flashback set in the early 1940s, where John fathers a baby out of wedlock with a black women named Lily. She gets fired when her employer sees her with a white man, and previously had to enter the hotel where they met through a service elevator. Her father becomes very upset with them both, and says they can never make it in the world (at this point interracial marriage was illegal in most states, for one). The hotel staff react more reasonably than you would expect in real life in the 1940s, but they may not have known John and Lily were together (or it might not have been ''completely'' uncommon if a white man had an affair with a black woman). Lily herself breaks it off, knowing they'll be together in the long run. It turns out like this after she gets pregnant, and when they reunite in the black hospital after she has their baby, there are some very pointed looks. John also mentions that he's fathered many other children down the centuries as well (we meet one of them in a flashback, and his descendants).
* ExpansionPackPast: Amsterdam has been a history teacher, furniture maker, painter, battlefield medic, coachman, lawyer, comedian, and a soldier multiple times.
-->'''John''': ''The Army three times, Marines, Navy, Coast Guard; not the Air Force, don't like heights.''
* ExpositionOfImmortality: The pilot episode has John paint a picture of Times Square and put it on a board near other paintings of the square from past years, dating back hundreds of years ago. Other people are also surprised at his intimate knowledge of old things, such as knowing about a club that used to be a speakeasy in TheRoaringTwenties. He also goes to AA meetings and honestly tells them (in days) how long he's been sober (''over fifty years''). When somebody does the math and tries to catch him on that, he simply claims that he looks young for his age. Oh, and then there's the reveal that his BlackBestFriend Omar York (who is 65 years old) is really [[spoiler:his son]].
* FakeAmerican:
** {{Justified}} {{in universe}} example in John Amsterdam, who was born in the Netherlands. Before there ''were'' any Americans in the modern sense.
** Zuleikha Robinson, who portrays his partner, is a straight example: she's British playing American.
* {{Fanservice}}: John's penchant for nude swims.
* {{Flashback}}: The short-lived show has John do flashbacks occasionally, starting with the pilot, where he remembers how he was mortally wounded defending a MagicalNativeAmerican woman, who repaid him by making him immortal until he found his soul mate. Oftentimes, he remembers past lovers (each time, he thought she was "the one"), children, and dogs.
* HistoricalPersonPunchline: "Soldier's Heart". Walt the orderly turns out to be Creator/WaltWhitman.
* HonorRelatedAbuse: Episode Honor has an Indian-American woman that was raped and then a victim of on honor killing.
* IJustWantToBeNormal: John ''wants'' to find his true love, so he can finally be able to grow old and die.
* ImmortalProcreationClause: Totally {{averted}}; Amsterdam's had kids all over the place. Likely part of the above. After all, [[OutlivingOnesOffspring outliving any children sucks]]. Being cursed to outlive ALL your children...
* InThePastEveryoneWillBeFamous: Amsterdam had a relationship with Creator/EmilyDickinson and knew Creator/WaltWhitman, Sarah Bernhardt, and John Coltrane. Then again, [[JustifiedTrope we are seeing the edited highlights]].
* MagicalNativeAmerican: John was made immortal by a Native American shaman after taking a bullet meant for her.
* MagicalNegro: A bizarre twist and possible {{subversion}}: the protagonist's mentor who gives him sage advice and a beer whenever he needs to unwind and talk about his troubles, while a very stereotypical grizzled and kindly old black man, is also...the protagonist's son. Such are the vagaries of being an unaging immortal (the kind who can have kids but can't pass on the immortality).
* MayflyDecemberRomance: {{Downplayed}}, where the premise is that the main character will be immortal ''until'' he finds and weds his true love. Only partly {{averted}} because any relationship with someone ''other'' than his true love would fall into this trope, including platonic relationships, such as his ''67'' children. He has mentioned being careful to avoid siring more children specifically because of not wanting to watch them grow old and die before him.
* UsefulNotes/TheNetherlands: John's original home, back in the 17th century.
* OffTheWagon: After John [[spoiler: dies of a heart attack, then [[WakingUpAtTheMorgue awakens to find himself with a toe tag]]]], he shows up at Omar's and pours himself a drink.
* OutlivingOnesOffspring: John Amsterdam is an immortal man who has lived in the New York area since the 1600s. He's seen generations come and go, and his children and their subsequent children have all died in the interim. He's at the point where he's occasionally running into his great-grandchildren, and has to keep a chart of all his relatives to prevent becoming intimate with an unknowing blood relation. His latest son is physically in his 60s during the present day and has his own grandchildren.
* PapaWolf: One episode covers a case where John discovers a victim was one of his sons, to the point of personally finding the murderer himself.
* PoolScene: The hero, 400-year-old hunk John Amsterdam, swims naked at the Y after hours (he has a key, since he's one of the founding members). His partner runs into him there and unexpectedly gets an eyeful when he climbs out.
* ProductDisplacement: The montage at the end of the first episode showed Times Square change over the years, but with all the branding replaced with generic products. Apparently, Mom's Homemade Pies could afford large billboard space during the 1940s.
* PurposeDrivenImmortality: The series had a similar premise to ''Forever'' (see Literature) with John Amsterdam, where he would live as long as necessary to find true love (he didn't have the "don't leave Manhattan" part). It led to some plagiarism accusations.
* ReadingLips: Yet another skill that John has picked up over his ''long'' life.
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: John Amsterdam is four centuries old. One episode shows him regularly attend AA meetings. When introducing himself, he's truthful about how long he's been sober (about 50 years). When a guy assumes he's making fun of them, John just replies that he looks young for his age (which is true).
* ResurrectiveImmortality: In addition to being TheAgeless, John Amsterdam also possesses this form of immortality. He dies in the pilot, but he is resurrected a few hours later in the morgue.
* SarcasticConfession: John Amsterdam does this a LOT. He tells anyone who asks that he's an immortal 400-year-old. Paraphrased:
-->'''John:''' I can read lips.\\
'''Partner:''' I suppose you were also deaf.\\
'''John:''' Was for a while. Back in Normandy. A shell exploded too close for comfort.
* SecretKeeper: Omar (and at least one other kid of John's) in regards to their father's immortality (not that anyone's likely to believe them anyway -- though now that DNA tests have come into existence...)
* SupernaturallyYoungParent: The main character is 400 years old but looks 35 (the age at which he became immortal via magical means). He sometimes seeks advice from one of his still-living sons, who is a naturally-aging 65-year-old.
* SurpriseIncest: Defied. The immortal protagonist John, who ''is'' very much capable of [[ImmortalProcreationClause having children by mortal women]], keeps track of his family tree specifically so he can avoid getting into a relationship with someone who might turn out to be related to him.
* UnbelievableSourcePlot: The main character is [[Really700YearsOld an immortal early Dutch-American colonist]] that works as a police detective. He uses his hundreds of years of experience to solve homicides in present day New York. Everyone assumes he's a BunnyEarsLawyer since he does get the job done, they just don't know how.
* VampireDetectiveSeries: Except for the vampire factor, it fits this trope perfectly.
* WakingUpAtTheMorgue: This happens to John in the pilot. Initially it appears to be a throwaway gag and a way to explain John's [[BlessedWithSuck "gift"]]. It actually ends up having serious repercussions across the season, as in this day and age you can't just stroll out of the morgue without explaining yourself.
* TheWarOnTerror: John took his current name and joined the NYPD because of 9/11.
* WeHaveToGetTheBulletOut: An episode has John help an old colleague who is dying of lead poisoning from a bullet that was never extracted.
* WhodunnitToMe
* WhoWantsToLiveForever: John Amsterdam was given immortality by an ancient spell that will only end when he finds true love. True to this trope, after a few hundred years he wants to do just that.

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Not to be confused with Series/NewAmsterdam2018.

He uses his 400 years of experience to [[TheyFightCrime solve crime]], all the while looking for his true love (who's also the only one that can cure him of his immortality).

* SurpriseIncest: Defied. The immortal protagonist John, who *is* very much capable of [[ImmortalProcreationClause having children by mortal women]], keeps track of his family tree specifically so he can avoid getting into a relationship with someone who might turn out to be related to him.

* MagicalNegro: A bizarre twist and possible {{subversion}}-the protagonist's mentor who gives him sage advice and a beer whenever he needs to unwind and talk about his troubles, while a very stereotypical grizzled and kindly old black man, is also...the protagonist's son. Such are the vagaries of being an unaging immortal (the kind who can have kids but can't pass on the immortality).

* SecretKeeper: Omar (and at least one other kid of John's) in regards to their father's immortality (not that anyone's likely to believe them anyway-though now that DNA tests have come into existence...)

** Zuleikha Robinson, who portrays his partner, is a straight example-she's British playing American.

* InThePastEveryoneWillBeFamous: Amsterdam had a relationship with EmilyDickinson and knew Creator/WaltWhitman, Sarah Bernhardt, and John Coltrane. Then again, [[JustifiedTrope we are seeing the edited highlights]].

* BlessedWithSuck: John saves the life of an Indian woman, who in return grants him eternal life and youth until he finds his soul mate, who he will know by feeling it in his heart. Unfortunately, this means he suffers a heart attack that would normally be fatal once he gets near her (that is if Sara really is his soul mate. Unfortunately the series was cancelled before we found out for sure).

* DefiledForever: He held this view in the past

* HonorRelatedAbuse: Episode Honor has an Indian woman that was raped and then a victim of on Honor Killing.

* OutlivingOnesOffspring: John Amsterdam is an immortal man who has lived in the New York area since the 1600s. He's seen generations come and go, and his children and their subsequent children have all died in the interrim. He's at the point where he's occasionally running into his great-grandchildren, and has to keep a chart of all his relatives to prevent becoming intimate with an unknowing blood relation. His latest son is physically in his 60s during the present day and has his own grandchildren.

** FridgeHorror: So all those women he has married in the past? He never actually loved them.
*** Not necessarily. They just were not his soul mate.

* CutShort: The series was cancelled after the eight episode, without resolving the plot.
** Though the only reason we got the show at all was due to the 2007 Writers' Strike.

* EternalSexualFreedom: {{Averted}} somewhat with the second episode of ''Series/NewAmsterdam'', during a flashback set in the early 1940s, where John fathers a baby out of wedlock with a black women named Lily. She gets fired when her employer sees her with a white man, and previously had to enter the hotel where they met through a service elevator. Her father becomes very upset with them both, and says they can never make it in the world (at this point interracial marriage was illegal in most states, for one). The hotel staff react more reasonably than you would expect in real life in the 1940s, but they may not have known John and Lily were together (or it might not have been ''completely'' uncommon if a white man had an affair with a black woman). Lily herself breaks it off, knowing they'll be together in the long run. It turns out like this after she gets pregnant, and when they reunite in the black hospital after she has their baby, there are some very pointed looks. John also mentions that he's fathered many other children down the centuries as well (we meet one of them in a flashback, and his descendants).

* FakeAmerican: {{Justified}} {{in universe}} example in John Amsterdam, who was born in the Netherlands. Before there ''were'' any Americans in the modern sense.

** The premise is that a MightyWhitey saves the life of a MagicalNativeAmerican and in return they use their magic to make him immortal. Naturally, it never occurs to them to make the members of their own tribe immortal. However, they only made him immortal until he found his true happiness (BlessedWithSuck?), at which point he'd become mortal again. Since they're not around anymore, the implication is that they were already quite happy the way they were, making it less MagicalNativeAmerican and more NobleSavage (recovering MagicalNativeAmerican).
* MagicalNegro:
** A bizarre twist and possible {{subversion}}-the protagonist's mentor who gives him sage advice and a beer whenever he needs to unwind and talk about his troubles, while a very stereotypical grizzled and kindly old black man, is also...the protagonist's son. Such are the vagaries of being an unaging immortal (the kind who can have kids but can't pass on the immortality).

* MisappliedPhlebotinum: In the 1600s, a Native American tribe has a spell that makes people immortal. In-story use: reward some random white guy who saved the life of one of the tribe's women. Better use: make all of the tribe's warriors immortal, then easily defeat the white guys that are taking their land.
** Well, considering that we have absolutely no idea how the whole immortality thing works, it's entirely possible that it only worked on people in John's situation (saved a woman/saved a woman from his own comrades/saved a stranger from his own comrades and then was stabbed...). We have no idea how specific the requirements are.
** The spell also only works until John finds his true love. Maybe all the local braves were already married.

->''"You will not grow old. You will not die. This is [[BlessedWithSuck the gift we give]]."''

* BlessedWithSuck: John saves the life of an Indian woman, who in return grants him eternal life and youth until he finds his soul mate, who he will know by feeling it in his heart. Unfortunately, this means he suffers a heart attack that would normally be fatal once he gets near her (That is if Sara really is his soul mate. Unfortunately the series was cancelled before we found out for sure).

* EternalSexualFreedom: {{Averted}} somewhat with the second episode of ''Series/NewAmsterdam'', during a flashback set in the early 1940s, where John fathers a baby out of wedlock with a black women named Lily. She gets fired when her employer sees her with a white man and previously had to enter the hotel where they met through a service elevator. Her father becomes very upset with them both, and says they can never make it in the world (at this point interracial marriage was illegal in most states, for one). The hotel staff react more reasonably than you would expect in real life in the 1940s, but they may not have known John and Lily were together (or it might not have been ''completely'' uncommon if a white man had an affair with a black woman). Lily herself breaks it off, knowing they'll be together in the long run. It turns out like this after she gets pregnant, and when they reunite in the black hospital after she has their baby, there are some very pointed looks.

* {{Flashback}}: The short-lived show has John do flashbacks occasionally, starting with the pilot, where he remembers how he was mortally wounded defending a MagicalNativeAmerican woman, who repaid him by making him immortal until he found his soulmate. Oftentimes, he remembers past lovers (each time, he thought she was "the one"), children, and dogs.
* HistoricalPersonPunchline: "Soldier's Heart": Walt the orderly turns out to be Creator/WaltWhitman.

* OffTheWagon: After John [[spoiler: dies of a heart attack, then [[WakingUpAtTheMorgue awakens to find himself with a toe tag]]]], he shows up at Omar's and pours himself a drink

* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld John Amsterdam is four centuries old. One episode shows him regularly attend AA meetings. When introducing himself, he's truthful about how long he's been sober (about 50 years). When a guy assumes he's making fun of them, John just replies that he looks young for his age (which is true).

* SupernaturallyYoungParent: The main character is 400 years old but looks 35 (the age at which he became immortal via magical means); he sometimes seeks advice from one of his still-living sons, who is a naturally-aging 65-year-old.

* AbsurdlyYouthfulMother: The main character is 400 years old but looks 35 (the age at which he became immortal via magical means); he sometimes seeks advice from one of his still-living sons, who is a naturally-aging 65-year-old.

* FakeNationality: Danish actor {{Creator/NikolajCosterWaldau}} plays Dutchman turned (sort of) American John Amsterdam (born Johan van der Zee).

* SecretKeeper: Omar (and at least one other kid of John's) in regards to their father's immortality.
* UnbelievableSourcePlot: The main character is [[Really700YearsOld an immortal early American colonist]] that works as a police detective. He uses his hundreds of years of experience to solve homicides in present day New York. Everyone assumes he's a BunnyEarsLawyer since he does get the job done, they just don't know how.
* VampireDetectiveSeries: Except for the vampire factor, fits this trope perfectly.

** FridgeHorror: So all those women he has married in the past, he never actually loved them.

* EternalSexualFreedom: Averted somewhat with the second episode of ''Series/NewAmsterdam'', during a flashback set in the early 1940s, where John produces a baby out of wedlock with a black women named Lily. She gets fired when her employer sees her with a white man and previously had to enter the hotel where they met through a service elevator. Her father becomes very upset with them both, and says they can never make it in the world (at this point interracial marriage was illegal in most states, for one). The hotel staff react more reasonably than you would expect in real life in the 1940s, but they may not have known John and Lily were together (or it might not have been ''completely'' uncommon if a white man had an affair with a black woman). Lily herself breaks it off, knowing they'll be together in the long run. It turns out like this after she gets pregnant, and when they reunite in the black hospital after she has their baby, there are some very pointed looks.

* FakeAmerican: [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] [[InUniverse in universe]] example in John Amsterdam, who was born in the Netherlands. Before there ''were'' any Americans in the modern sense.

* ImmortalProcreationClause: Totally averted; Amsterdam's had kids all over the place. Likely part of the above. After all, [[OutlivingOnesOffspring outliving any children sucks]]. Being cursed to outlive ALL your children...

** The premise is that a MightyWhitey saves the life of a MagicalNativeAmerican and in return they use their magic to make him immortal. Naturally, it never occurs to them to make the members of their own tribe immortal. However, they only made him immortal until he found his true happiness (BlessedWithSuck?), at which point he'd become mortal again. Since they're not around anymore, the implication is that they were already quite happy the way they were, making it less MagicalNegro and more NobleSavage (recovering MagicalNativeAmerican).
** A bizarre twist and possible subversion -- the protagonist's mentor who gives him sage advice and a beer whenever he needs to unwind and talk about his troubles, while a very stereotypically grizzled and kindly old black man, is also...the protagonist's son. Such are the vagaries of being an unaging immortal (the kind who can have kids but can't pass on the immortality).
* MayflyDecemberRomance: Downplayed, where the premise is that the main character will be immortal ''until'' he finds and weds his true love. Only partly averted, because any relationship with someone ''other'' than his true love would fall into this trope, including platonic relationships such as his ''67'' children. He has mentioned being careful to avoid siring more children specifically because of not wanting to watch them grow old and die before him.

* OutlivingOnesOffspring: John Amsterdam is an immortal man who has lived in the New York area since the 1600s. He's seen generations come and go, and his children and their subsequent children have all died in the interrim. He's at the point where he's occasionally running into his greatgrandchildren, and has to keep a chart of all his relatives to prevent becoming intimate with an unknowing blood relation. His latest son is physically in his 60s during the present day and has his own grandchildren.
* PoolScene: The hero, 400-year-old hunk John Amsterdam, swims naked at the Y after hours. (He has a key, since he's one of the founding members.) His partner runs into him there and unexpectedly gets an eyeful when he climbs out.

* PurposeDrivenImmortality: The series had a similar premise to ''Forever'' (see Literature) with John Amsterdam, where he would live as long as necessary to find true love (he didn't have the"don't leave Manhattan" part). It led to some plagarism accusations.

* InThePastEveryoneWillBeFamous: Amsterdam had a relationship with EmilyDickinson and knew Creator/WaltWhitman, Sarah Bernhardt, and John Coltrane. The again, [[JustifiedTrope we are seeing the edited highlights]].

** The premise is that a MightyWhitey saves the life of a MagicalNativeAmerican and in return they use their magic to make him immortal. Naturally, it never occurs to them to make the members of their own tribe immortal, perhaps because the immortal magic only works on superior white genes. However, they only made him immortal until he found his true happiness (BlessedWithSuck?), at which point he'd become mortal again. Since they're not around anymore, the implication is that they were already quite happy the way they were, making it less MagicalNegro and more NobleSavage (recovering MagicalNativeAmerican).
** A bizarre twist and possible subversion -- the protagonist's mentor who gives him sagely advice and a beer whenever he needs to unwind and talk about his troubles, while a very stereotypically grizzled and kindly old black man, is also...the protagonist's son. Such are the vagaries of being an unaging immortal (the kind who can have kids but can't pass on the immortality).

* InThePastEveryoneWillBeFamous: Amsterdam had a relationship with EmilyDickinson and knew Creator/WaltWhitman, Sarah Bernhardt, and John Coltrane.

John Amsterdam (NikolajCosterWaldau) is a New York homicide detective. He's also an immortal, born as Johan van der Zee in the Netherlands in the 1600s. While living in the New Amsterdam colony in what would later become New York City, he saved some native women from the depradations of his fellow soldiers, but was mortally wounded in the process. They granted him eternal life in exchange.

->''"You will not grow old. You will not die. This is the gift we give."''

* {{Flashback}}

* InThePastEveryoneWillBeFamous: Amsterdam had a relationship with EmilyDickinson and knew Walt Whitman, Sarah Bernhardt, and John Coltrane.
* MagicalNativeAmerican
* MayflyDecemberRomance

* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld

* SecretKeeper: Omar.

* WakingUpAtTheMorgue

* WhoWantsToLiveForever