There were many highlights on “Excalibur,” not the least of which was the front-and-center role played by Sam Waterston‘s Jack McCoy in the final legal portion of the episode. Following his promotion to District Attorney after the departure of his former superior, McCoy has been pretty much languishing in the background, providing direction and advice as needed to his underlings. That was no more on the 18th-season finale.

Tom Everett Scott starred to chilling effect as the Governor of New York, simultaneously McCoy’s boss and his increasingly more threatening archenemy. It was that unexpected antagonistic relationship that creates the promise of more intense drama during the 19th season if Scott should return to resume his role as Donald Shalvoy. I pray he does.

Of course, the episode’s hooker plotline came directly from the real-life high-priced hooker scandal that forced New York’s former governor Eliot Spitzer to step down from office just a couple of months ago.

The Law & Order camp put more than a few spins on the sordid tale, one of the best involving the more dominant, steadfast influence of the fictional governor’s wife, Rita. This woman, played impeccably by Alison Elliott, doled out the creeps big time. That such manipulative yet powerful people could be in charge of New York made the willies even worse.

There’s no doubt, at least in my mind — “Excalibur” should go down in Law & Order‘s history as one of the historic series’ most memorable shining moments … after all these years. Please, Wolf & Company, don’t change a thing about the cast over the summer. The mothership is now in excellent working order.

The Verdict: A

Tags: Excalibur, Law & Order, NBC, Sam Waterston, television, Tom Everett Scott, tv

Competent, compassionate, and highly intelligent Assistant District Attorney Connie Rubirosa (CSI: Miami import Alana De La Garza) is ambushed in court by a knowledgeable defendant and forced to cross over to the defense side. As a result, she’s pitted against her cunning boss, Executive A.D.A. Michael Cutter (Linus Roache), whom she would normally assist.

The unexpected drama doesn’t end there, however, because after her side of the table switches, Rubirosa learns a shocking secret that upends her view not only of the specific case, but of the legal field as a whole.

Believe me — if you’ve lost faith in the L&O franchise’s original show recently, now is the time to return to the mothership. The writing, the acting, and the cast are all in top shape, making the long-running series the one to watch among the three flavors currently airing.

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Tags: Alana De La Garza, Connie Rubirosa, Law & Order, NBC, Strike, television, tv

On Monday night, Anderson visited Late Night with Conan O’Brien to talk about all sorts of stuff, including kilts, holistic medicine, and wacky tobacky.

The highlight of the chat comes at the very end, though, when Anderson reveals what happened to him during a ride along with law enforcement. I bet not too many people can recount an event like that.

Check out the interview below to learn more about Law & Order‘s newest addition.

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Tags: Anthony Anderson, Conan O’Brien, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Law & Order, NBC, television, tv

Thankfully, that didn’t even come close to happening. Instead, viewers got a nice send-off for a deserving character, even if he left with his tail between his legs, so to speak, after risking his career for a woman he befriended during his long-ago time as a gambling addict.

To their credit, showrunners also avoided the obvious. I’m sure I wasn’t the only watcher thinking almost to the very last minute that the child of Ed’s friend from his dark gambling days was his child, as well. It’s good that the show didn’t go down that predictable route, although I was totally expecting it to.

After seeing the episode, which introduced the new partner for Jeremy Sisto’s Detective Cyrus Lupo, namely Anthony Anderson‘s sensible and wisecracking Internal Affairs detective Kevin Bernard, I have to say the future of the senior Law & Order is looking brighter than ever.

Anderson has terrific rapport with both Sisto and S. Epatha Merkerson’s Lieutenant Anita Van Buren, making it likely that the partnering of “Saint Bernard” and Lupo will be one worth watching. Maybe the newcomer will even manage to draw Lupo out of his shell more than his recently acquired, adorable Pit Bull Terrier has.

We’ll see next week on “Bogeyman.”

Tags: Anthony Anderson, Jesse L. Martin, Law & Order, NBC, television, tv

Later, talk turned to the imminent voluntary departure of longtime series regular Jesse L. Martin and the subsequent arrival of new cast member Anthony Anderson. Martin’s exit will occur on the April 23, first post-hiatus episode “Burn Card,” so mark your calendars now, L&O groupies.

News and gossip about the show has shifted this week with TV Guide‘s article featuring a familiar face on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, namely Diane Neal, who has portrayed Assistant District Attorney Casey Novak since 2001.

Initially it seemed Neal would be departing the show this season because she wanted to pursue other projects now that her current contract is almost over. Yet, TV Guide updated the original story on April 17 with new rumors that Neal has in fact been fired.

Unless someone “official” admits either version, we lowly viewers will likely never know what the true reason is. Either way, the reality is that soon SVU will have a different ADA. I was never fond of Neal’s character in the first place — she struck me as self-righteous and quick to make rash judgments. So, I definitely won’t be among those fans who’ll miss Novak, although I do hope Neal moves on to bigger and better things.

As for the third series in the franchise, Law & Order: Criminal Intent — my personal favorite until Roache, Sisto, and Anderson became attached to L&O #1 — will undergo a cast change, as well, but a return rather than a technical departure or arrival.

Actress Julianne Nicholson, who took maternity leave during the first half of the current seventh season while Alicia Witt substituted, will rejoin the series when its 12-episode summer run begins on June 8. Since I’ve always felt Nicholson is fantastic in her role as Detective Megan Wheeler, I personally can’t wait to have her back.

Tags: Anthony Anderson, Criminal Intent, Diane Neal, Jesse L. Martin, Julianne Nicholson, Law & Order, NBC, Special Victims Unit, television, tv

Before the current run started in January, I was equally excited about the arrival of both Roache and American actor Jeremy Sisto, who portrays Detective Ed Green’s (Jesse L. Martin) new partner Cyrus Lupo. Unfortunately, showrunners apparently decided against giving Lupo an interesting personality to go along with his unique name and striking backstory.

As a result, on the police side, we’re now stuck with an amazingly talented actor playing the equivalent of a sad sack and brooding lump. What a waste. I wouldn’t be surprised — and definitely wouldn’t blame him — if Sisto abandoned ship after this season. He deserves much better.

Which is why it’s so odd that in stark contrast, Roache’s Executive Assistant District Attorney Michael Cutter is the best thing to happen to the show since, well, Sam Waterston‘s Jack McCoy. Cutter is dedicated, smart, and charismatic, and he holds his own against his legendary boss, whom we’ve been watching in the equivalent role for some fourteen years, since Waterston joined the series way back in 1994.

During last night’s “Illegal” episode, Cutter was absent for the first part of the law half as another ADA (guest star John Pankow) assumed and then nearly destroyed the District Attorney’s case against a trigger-happy auxiliary police officer. All I could think about throughout the extended subplot, however, was where in the world Cutter could be.

You know a character is having a significant impact on a TV series when you not only look forward to their scenes, but you miss them when they aren’t onscreen. Kudos to L&O showrunners for picking the perfect actor for a difficult role, following in the footsteps of a series icon. Now just inject some semblance of a real human being into Sisto’s character, and everything will be cool.

Tags: Jeremy Sisto, Law & Order, Linus Roache, NBC, Sam Waterston, television, tv

As justified as such criticisms are, sometimes more and sometimes less, I’m one fan who continues to enjoy each season of the show to a large extent. Now that actors Jeremy Sisto and Linus Roache are joining the cast in tonight’s two-hour, two-episode 18th-season premiere “Called Home/Darkness,” I’m looking forward to the procedural more than ever.

Sisto and Roache are no strangers to each other, NBC, television, or crime procedurals since they starred together in one of the best new Fall 2006 series that didn’t last, the Peacock’s Kidnapped. Both actors also portrayed lawmen then, as well, which should make their transition to L&O that much smoother. Sisto works on the “Order” side as Detective Cyrus Lupo, Detective Ed Green’s (Jesse L. Martin) new partner now that wooden Milena Govich has (thankfully) left the show, while Roache toils on the “Law” beat as new Assistant District Attorney Michael Cutter.

In addition to the fresh regular faces, central series veteran Sam Waterston has taken over the bossman position of Executive Assistant District Attorney following the departure of former cast member Fred Dalton Thompson at the end of last season to pursue a run for the U.S. presidency in 2008. Although it was nice to break ground with the series’ first female detective (Govich) last year, the current changes are looking substantially better and long-lasting. Don’t forget to see for yourself tonight at 9pm EST.

Tags: Jeremy Sisto, Law & Order, Linus Roache, NBC, Sam Waterston, television, tv

The time to tune in for the two-hour opening episode is Wednesday, January 2, at 9pm EST. L&O will then return to its familiar 10pm time slot the following week, when it will be joined at 9pm by Law & Order: Criminal Intent.

The younger CI spinoff was sent to NBC’s basic-cable sister network USA for the beginning of its fall run, where it’s earned some respectable ratings, making The Peacock’s decision to rebroadcast episodes no surprise.

As a result of the two staples’ arrival, fans can say goodbye for now to the newbies Bionic Woman, which needs some serious work before it comes back, and Life. Both rookies will have aired all of their original episodes completed before the writers strike by the time this week is over.

Look out for two new cast members when the flagship L&O returns, Jeremy Sisto and England native Linus Roache. Both thespians starred in one of the best new series canceled too soon last fall, NBC’s riveting Kidnapped. To say that I’m psyched for the arrival of each actor is among the most colossal understatements ever.

Adding to my anticipation is the promotion of series veteran Sam Waterston to the top-dog position of Executive A.D.A. on the show. I sense some notable and commendable improvements ahead.

Tags: Criminal Intent, Law & Order, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, NBC, television, tv, USA, USA Network

The weekend before last, I did myself the enormous favor of watching the entire thirteen-episode DVD set of NBC’s Kidnapped in a couple of sittings. Also based in bustling New York, New York, the unforgivably canceled crime drama features a dizzyingly talented ensemble cast led by Jeremy Sisto (himself a recent addition to the Law & Order family, where he’ll portray the new partner of the detective played by eight-year veteran Jesse L. Martin), Carmen Ejogo, Delroy Lindo, Timothy Hutton, Dana Delany, Mykelti Williamson, Michael Mosley, Giancarlo Esposito, and, of course, Roache. My conclusion after those marathon viewing sessions was that I had just experienced the best new drama of the Fall 2006 season, hands down. Two weeks later, I still feel the exact same way, in large part due to Roache’s performance as an FBI agent.*

In addition to Kidnapped, Roache has appeared in numerous television and film projects, both in the United Kingdom and the United States, including the well-received Hollywood release Batman Begins and the controversial British movie Priest (my first significant encounter with his work). On American television, he earned a Best Supporting Actor Satellite Award for the 2002 HBO movie The Gathering Storm, as well as a Best Actor Golden Globe nomination for the 2002 FX movie RFK. He also appeared in the pilot of the forthcoming Fox series Canterbury’s Law, and it’s still unclear if he will remain with that midseason drama, too.

There’s no question that Roache has a lot to bring to any television or film project he joins. So, critics can continue ragging on the mother L&O ship all they want; this fan literally cannot wait for the eighteenth season to begin.

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* In fact, I encourage anyone who appreciates gripping, high-octane crime dramas to check out Kidnapped. Although NBC—Bad network! Bad network!—hastily canceled the series last year after broadcasting just five installments, it’s currently in the middle of burning off the remaining eight produced episodes at 12am EST on Monday mornings. Since the airings are presently at the tenth episode, I highly recommend either renting or buying (believe me—the show is worth the money) the DVD set that NBC at least had the common sense to release back in April.

Related News: ‘Law and Order’ Casting News: Milena Govich Out, Jeremy Sisto In | Sam Waterston Promoted to Head Honcho on ‘Law and Order’

Linus Roache photo courtesy of Steve Granitz/WireImage.com

Tags: Law & Order, Linus Roache, television, tv