See Why Critics Are For ‘Law And Order’
Any question that NBC’s “Law & Order” (at 10) is worthy of its Emmy for TV’s best drama?
Tune in tonight and you’ll see why Emmy voters gave the series long-overdue recognition. As is often the case, the absorbing story is snatched straight from the headlines.
Detectives Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) and Curtis (Benjamin Bratt) are called to a mysterious crime scene - a room in a cheap motel where a maid has discovered bloody sheets but no other evidence of a crime. The trail leads to a teenage couple who killed their newborn baby.
As the disturbing case is turned over to McCoy and Ross (Sam Waterston, Carey Lowell), it becomes apparent that the admissible physical evidence is weak. Then, a shocking revelation further complicates their strategy.
What always amazes me is how the show gets you hooked with a plot that mirrors a true story. But the legal maneuvering and the technical aspects of the law are what really get you involved.
In a way, the letter of the law is the adversary.
“Law & Order” works because it addresses a social concern we all share.
It’s not a show about crime. It’s about the criminal court system.
We see it for better and for worse. And we believe these characters who seek justice in what has become a sometimes unjust system.
Highlights
“Baseball,” NBC at 1 p.m.: Game 2 of the National League Championship Series, with Florida at Atlanta. On FOX at 5 will be Game 1 of the American League Championship Series, with Cleveland at Baltimore.
“The Nanny,” CBS at 8: Elton John guest-stars as Fran and Maxwell (Fran Drescher, Charles Shaughnessy) have their first date at a dinner party hosted by the British singer. The affair is to toast John’s film biography, “Tantrums and Tiaras,” in which, it turns out, Fran appears in a most unladylike cameo.
“Dharma and Greg,” ABC at 8:30: This series, off to a strong start in the ratings, goes into week three with Dharma (Jenna Elfman) undertaking a little “home improvement” and the newlyweds’ fathers (Mitchell Ryan, Alan Rachins) feeling each other out over a game of golf.
“Murphy Brown,” CBS at 8:30: As Murphy (Candice Bergen) awaits the result of her breast exam, “FYI” battles network lawyers in an attempt to follow up on a hidden-camera investigation of a supermarket chain. The story line mimics the reallife probe that landed ABC News in court.
Don’t miss Bergen’s dramatic final scene in which she hears back from her doctor.
“Scientific American Frontiers,” KSPS at 7: The series begins its eighth season - and the sixth for host Alan Alda - with a look at plant and animal life and other physical characteristics of Panama.
“Working,” NBC at 9:30: Fred Savage (“The Wonder Years”) stars in this sitcom inspired by the workday foibles you might find in the “Dilbert” comics. Savage plays Matt Peyser, an aspiring young employee at an international conglomerate. The pilot was unavailable for review.
Cable Calls
“Rain Man” (1988), TBS at 5:05: Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman team up in this touching tale of an Los Angeles hustler (Cruise) and his autistic savant older brother (Hoffman), who set off on a cross-country car trip. The journey transforms the self-centered Cruise character into a caring and sensitive type.
Talk Time
“Tonight,” NBC at 11:35: Rob Schneider (“Men Behaving Badly”), Tori Spelling (“Beverly Hills, 90210”) and The Artist Formerly Known as Prince. “Late Show With David Letterman,” CBS at 11:35: John Lithgow (“3rd Rock From the Sun”), model Christy Turlington and music group Foo Fighters.
“Politically Incorrect With Bill Maher,” ABC at 12:05 a.m.: Laura Innes, USA “Up All Night” host Rhonda Shear, and authors Larry Dossey and Michael Shermer.