It really took me long enough to finally start watching the show but better late than never. What a great pilot episode! It starts out extremely strong, then slows down its pace a little near the end and gets really exciting againg at the very end.
It was one of the best set ups I've seen in a long time. It really intruiged me a lot cause it has everything what's needed. First, the main character that somehow manages to get what we wants one way or another and has an extremely risky plan that even perfectly thought out can go wrong any minute. He makes you wonder if he is a genius or just desperate enough. Pretty compelling and charismatic character with clear motivation that I can easily sympathize with. Wentworth Miller makes a really good job portraying him. Second thing that made the pilot work is the story itself. To not give away any spoilers (though there's probably nothing to spoil so far), I'll just say that it rises so many questions about what really happened that lead characters to the starting point of the show that I'm definitely already feel involved. The case itself, the thoughts about how Michael is going to implement a plan and how his interactions with other characters will play out are what keeps me really interested. Most of the actors aside from main lead are also not bad at their performances that can be considered as a plus.
In a word, it was a pretty good set up for further events. Strong 8/10 from me. Hope the show can keep it up.