"Cold Case" (2003) More at IMDbPro »TV series 2003-????

"Cold Case" features fictional cases that have been unsolved for years. The stories are touching, even though we know these situations are not real. The show never ceases to amaze me and touch me in ways most television shows cannot. Somehow it seeps under your skin because you know thousands of people in the real world live with the things that go on in the episodes. Kathryn Morris gives a stellar performance each week and always has the audience rooting for her to kick some butt. The editing is unique, as well, and I think the strongest tactic the show uses is how they always wrap up the case and the episode by arresting the person as they are now, but never failing to cut to show what they would look like if they had gotten arrested when they first committed the crime. The victim almost always appears vindicated at the end. This of course works best when they go back to cases some ten or more years earlier. This is a new show, and it has certainly broken out of the mold. It is not just another formulaic crime drama. The fact that each episode is about the individual case and not the saga of the detectives makes it easy to tune it at any time and get heavily involved. CBS has done it again - their demographic is no longer just middle aged middle class individuals. With shows like this they are proving they can reach a wider, savvier audience. Jerry Bruckheimer is back on top to stay,