“Law & Order” Season 13 (2002-03, NBC), episodes 1-3 — In its 13th year, “Law & Order” (9 p.m. Wednesdays, NBC) still surprises me every time I tune in. How can such a mainstream, plot-based show be so compelling? For one thing, it moves lightning-fast. For another, the actors are great — the weak links from last year, Elisabeth Rohm and Jesse L. Martin, have brought an edge to their characters, while Fred Thompson is a vast improvement over Dianne Wiest as the head district attorney (and he gets great lines like “Well, my prints put my head in the fridge last night, but that doesn’t mean I finished off the Cherry Garcia”). But the real reason for “L&O’s” success is the Hot Dog Factor. I bet Lenny and Ed single-handedly keep some of those street vendors in business. The realistic touches are invaluable to the show’s success.
— John Hansen, “The Golden Age of TV is over (but at least we have ‘Firefly’),” NDSU Spectrum, Oct. 25, 2002