The year’s 10 best TV shows

‘CSI’ spells ‘hit’
When a show steamrolls its way to number one in the Nielsens nearly every week, there’s a reason. Unlike crime shows that spew out variations on the same episode, “CSI” (Thursdays, 9 p.m. E.T., CBS) isn’t afraid to take chances, allow side characters to take center stage and rely on humor and intelligence rather than cheap thrills. Last season closed with what was probably one of the finest season finales ever — the Quentin Tarantino-directed “Grave Danger,” in which Nick Stokes (George Eads) was buried alive by a crazy bomber. The finale felt more like a feature film than an episode of network television. And it was a reawakening for a show that had frankly grown a little complacent.      

This season, show creator Anthony E. Zuiker has more than followed up on the finale’s promise. With shows like “Gum Drops” and the two-parter “Bullet Runs Thru It,” creators gave actors Eads and Paul Guilfoyle (who plays Capt. Jim Brass) a chance to turn in Emmy-worthy performances. There’s more definitely more to “CSI” than grisly crimes and the sexy Las Vegas strip — though those are there, too, thank goodness. Gil Grissom (William Peterson) remains the heart and soul of the show. And with the team reunited this season, he's been teamed again with Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger)  — making the duo this year’s version of Mulder and Scully. This show continues to surprise, not only with innovative investigation techniques, but also with heart. It’s no mystery what draws people to “CSI” every week: characters viewers care about and root for.      —Paige Newman

‘SVU’ just keeps on motoring
The greatest pleasure in every "Law & Order: SVU" episode (Tuesdays, 10 p.m. ET, NBC), even the cheesy ones, is in guessing which member of the Unit will get to Take! It! Personally! Woman pregnant by rape? Olivia (Mariska Hargitay) will take that one. Angry dad? Stabler (Christopher Meloni) territory. Recently, the series has amped up the stunt factor by casting well-known B-listers in key parts — Matthew Modine as a notorious child molester, Martin Short as a psychic (or is he?), Dean Cain as a rapist and murderer.

Generally speaking, “SVU” doesn’t trade in ripped from the headlines storylines as often as Famous Original “Law & Order” does, which is a good thing: certainly, we’re all interested in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the need for reporters to keep their anonymous sources secret, and anthrax … but cramming all three topics into the recent “Storm” was a bit much. The high point of the current season, by contrast, is “Raw,” in which Oscar winner Marcia Gay Harden played an undercover FBI agent we didn’t realize had infiltrated the episode’s white supremacist group until after a defendant’s brainwashed son caused a courtroom shootout in which Stabler took a bullet! AWESOME!    —T.A.

‘Anatomy’ lesson
Sunday night used to be all about “Desperate Housewives.” Not anymore. More and more viewers are discovering that a richer, more satisfying dramedy lies just one hour beyond Wisteria Lane on “Grey’s Anatomy” (Sundays, 10 p.m. ET, ABC).  Shondra Rhimes makes up for writing Britney Spears’ film “Crossroads” with this medical show that examines the way interns juggle work, romance and friendship. If the show sounds like “ER,” it’s not. “Grey’s” emphasizes humor over pathos and the daily grind over miracle surgeries.

The cast really makes this show, with Ellen Pompeo (this year’s Calista Flockhart) as Meredith Grey, an intern who is in love with the very married Dr. Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey). Sandra Oh is a cast standout as Dr. Cristina Yang, who finds sex easy but fears love, and has embarked on a messy romance with fastidious supervisor Dr. Preston Burke (Isaiah Washington). Chandra Wilson’s Dr. Miranda Bailey could have been a one-note drill sergeant type, but Wilson creates nuance in the character, so that she’s protective of her interns while torturing them. This season, "Grey's" has continued to grow with the introduction of Dempsey’s challenging wife, Dr. Addison Sheppard (Kate Walsh), which makes the Dempsey and Pompeo relationship more complicated. Yes, it's soapy, but whether you’re rooting for Izzie (Katherine Heigl) and Alex (Justin Chambers) to get together, or for George to make it through an open heart surgery — the combination of romance and medicine is the perfect antidote to ordinary television.     —Paige Newman

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