For several years, "Law and Order: SVU TV show" has reigned as the most popular title in the "Law and Order" franchise. As the opening intones, In New York's war on crime, sexually-based offenses are considered especially heinous.," and the Special Victims Unit works round the clock on the city's most gut-wrenching cases. "SVU" has held onto its legions of loyal viewers by delivering hard-hitting, compelling and complicated plots week after week. Over the years, the characters have evolved, but the core cast has remained constant. The consistency and continuity undoubtedly contribute to viewers' dedication to Detectives Elliott Stabler (Christopher Meloni) and Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay). "Law and Order: SVU TV show" also attracts high-powered stars for special appearances in every episode, and it challenges the guests to step well outside their comfort zones, demanding they play parts radically different from roles that made them famous. In recent years, Julie Bowen and Luke Perry co-starred in an episode that told the story of a woman who unwittingly married the man who raped her. Cynthia Nixon of "Sex and the City" fame played a woman with multiple personality disorder; and superstar Sharon Stone has done a stint as Deputy District Attorney. "SVU's" combination of an exceptionally strong core cast plus great guest stars plus intriguing, engaging, labyrinthine plots often "ripped from the headlines" takes viewers on a weekly thrill ride, keeping it riding high in the ratings.

It was good while it lasted. Launched with much fanfare and intense audience interest, "FlashForward" brilliantly recreated the mysterious, fascinating, are-they-prophetic? two minutes and seventeen seconds on October 6, 2009, when almost everyone on Earth lost consciousness of their ordinary surroundings and caught glimpses of their lives on April 29, 2010. An ambitious attempt at transposing Robert J. Sawyer's "high-concept" novel from the printed page to the small screen, "FlashForward" focused on the team of FBI investigators charged with determining what had happened. One of the FBI agents enjoyed the special privilege of seeing his team crack the case in his vision of the future; all he has to do is recreate the six months of investigative work that yield the break-through. Meanwhile, the principal characters attempt to cope with the consequences of their visions for their lives in the present, because they have seen broken marriages, lives lost, and great portrayals on their horizons. Most viewers and critics sadly agreed "FlashForward" unfortunately juxtaposed a brilliant high-tech crime drama on some pathetically ordinary people and lives.

The Surgeon, one of a series of books written by Tess Gerritsen supplied the backstory for the hot new series on TNT named Rizzoli & Isles (after the two main characters in the book). Angie Harman (Baywatch Nights, Law & Order) is a homicide detective in Boston. She finds her life in danger in the first episode when a former medical student attempts to kill her as he has several other voluptuous women. The chief Medical examiner for the state of Massachusetts is Dr. Maura Isles, played by Sasha Alexander (NCIS, Dawson's Creek). Isles is a no nonsense woman dedicated to doing her job well and due to her profession those who know her tend to call her "Queen of the Dead". Rizzoli & Isles develop a good teamwork attitude and solve crimes each week but the one that haunts them both involves Charles Hoyt, a man who was expelled from med school for fondling the female corpses. Rizzoli has scars on her hands from a time when Hoyt stabbed them with scalpels, pinning her to the floor. Hoyt's role is a recurring one so watch for more of that vile character played well by Michael Massee, an actor who plays villains particularly well.

"Lost" is one of the world most popular TV series. The show is the winner of Emmy and Golden Globe. At the heart of the story - the accident happened with the passengers of Oceanic Flight 815 Oceanic Airlines, flying from Sydney, Australia to Los Angeles, USA, crashed and caught on the tropical island full of mysteries and secrets, somewhere in the Pacific. Each episode contains a storyline on the island, and the secondary, which tells about the key characters in a series of other time of life (in the first three seasons - the past, in the fourth - of the past and future). The fifth season of the series also contains two storylines, the first one is developing on the island immediately after the events of the fourth season, and the second - after three years in the U.S.. The series was created by JJ Abrams, Damon Lindelof and Jeffrey Lieber, and is filmed primarily in the island of Oahu, Hawaii. The pilot episode was shown on ABC on Sept. 22, 2004 and collected at screens for nearly 19 million people. Since then it has been shown for six seasons. Currently, the series executive producers are Abrams, Lindelof, Carlton Cuse, Bryan Burk, Jack Bender and others. Music composer is Michael Giacchino. Due to the large ensemble cast and the cost of filming in Hawaii "Lost" TV show is one of the most expensive in television history. Successful and among the critics and the public, "Lost" collected an average audience of 16 million people during the show the first season in the U.S.. He has won numerous awards including an Emmy for best drama series in 2005, the prize for best American TV series of the British Academy Television Awards in 2005, a Golden Globe for best drama in 2006 and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Ensemble in a Drama Series.

An American crime drama, The Killing is based on a Danish television program titled Forbrydelsen which means The Crime. American writers say they used the original as a "blue print" but gave it a distinctly Americanized flair with characters that will be more appealing to the viewing audience. The setting for The Killing is Seattle, Washington and the show revolves around police investigators and their daily work load. Each episode will center on one day of an investigation into the homicide of a small girl and follows along with the investigating officers as they track down clues and work to solve the case before the trail runs cold. A dark show, The Killing is brutally honest in many respects regarding the why's and how's of a murder. The police deal with brutality and mayhem but never get used to it entirely. Cast members include Mireille Enos as detective Sarah Linden, Billy Campbell as politician running for Mayor of Seattle Darren Richmond, Michelle Forbes portrays Mitch Larsen (mother of the murdered girl Rosie), Brent Sexton as Stan Larsen (father of Rosie), and Joel Kinnaman who plays the part of Stephen Holder, Sarah Linden's partner and fellow detective

Based on the Italian fifteenth century Borgia dynasty, the made for the Showtime network series titled The Borgias follows Rodrigo Borgia (Jeremy Irons) rise to power and the Papacy. Called the original crime family, the Borgias amassed great wealth, influence, and power as family patriarch Rodrigo committed nearly every sin imaginable as he gained power and vast wealth. Such successors as The Godfather (Mario Puzo) and The Prince (Niccolò Machiavelli) were inspired by the original "bad family" the Borgias and made for entertaining viewing. But the originals were greedy evil people who had no morals. It is at the height of the Renaissance period that we find the Borgia family intriguing to watch and perhaps learn from. Besides Jeremy Irons there are many fine actors in the cast including Francois Arnaud as Cesare Borgia, Holliday Grainger as Lucrezia Borgia, David Oakes as Juan Borgia, and Derek Jacobi portraying Cardinal Orsini. Look for this entertaining television series and see the original "Godfathers of crime".