Jonathan West

In order to find out if a future world ruled by the Avatars will indeed be a utopia as they claim it will, Piper (Holly Marie Combs) trades powers with Phoebe (Alyssa Milano). Unfortunately, the demon Zankou (Oded Fehr) interrupts the transference process -- and as a result, the girls' powers are dispersed to a wide variety of mortal "innocents," who wreak considerable havoc with their ill-gotten magic skills. Elsewhere, Brody's (Kerr Smith) true intentions are revealed in a violent fashion, prompting Paige (Rose McGowan) to glean "firsthand" information regarding Brody's tortured past. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

As the result of a misbegotten spell cast at her high-school reunion, the "present" Phoebe (Alyssa Milano) disappears, replaced by her former teenage-delinquent self. Making matters worse, this younger, wilder Phoebe intends to use her magic skills for all the wrong reasons. This turn of events is particularly painful for Paige (Rose McGowan), who now wishes she'd never asked what Phoebe was like back in school. Meanwhile, Piper (Holly Marie Combs) consults her dad, Victor (James Read), to find out why Chris (Drew Fuller) is avoiding her. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Some dangling plot strands left over from season three of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation were tied up in season four; others were not, and of course, new complications ensued throughout the latter season's 23 episodes. Facing surgery to correct (or at the very least forestall) his hereditary hearing loss, CSI team leader Gil Grissom (William L. Petersen) emerged from the operation somewhat better off, though his hearing was still not 100 percent. Struggling to overcome the death of her husband and relieved that injuries sustained by her daughter were not fatal, team member Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger) nonetheless faced several other crises, not least of which was the discovery that unsavory casino owner Sam Braun (Scott Wilson) was her biological father; a hefty check given to Catherine by Braun for her indirect assistance in helping him beat a murder rap also caused a great deal of soul-searching on her part, not to mention an embarrassing situation when she came up for her annual departmental review. And the already seething tensions between Catherine and her fellow CSI'er Sara Sidle (Jorja Fox) were exacerbated by decisions made from the top pertaining to job assignments and promotions. Sara's inner demons threatened to overwhelm her by the end of season four, culminating in a drunk-driving charge that figured into the season-ending cliffhanger. The regular cast remained intact, though there were hints that at least two of them would be gone before season five began due to contract negotiations. New to the series was Xander Berkeley as Nevada sheriff Rory Atwater, who was prominently featured in at least one episode that, in true CSI tradition, was "ripped from today's headlines." Some critics carped that the series' storylines were more gratuitously kinky than in previous seasons, with episodes involving modern-day vampires, a cult of fur fetishists, and the like. Also, there were those who felt that the personal problems of the major characters tended to impede the investigations to an excessive degree. But most viewers didn't mind, as witness the excellent ratings posted by CSI throughout season four. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The freshman season of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation had ended with a dramatic rescue, as the head of the Las Vegas crime-lab unit, Gil Grissom (William L. Petersen), was saved from becoming the latest victim of a serial killer by the quick thinking of Gil's second-in-command, Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger). Clearly, the relationship between Gil and Catherine was destined to go beyond the "just friends and co-workers" stage during season two. With the series' ratings riding high -- so high that it was now network television's number one cop drama -- the producers saw no reason to make any radical changes in the format or cast. The list of regulars remained intact, with Eric Szmanda (as Greg Sanders) and Robert David Hall (as coroner David Robbins) graduating from recurring characters to weekly co-stars. The success of CSI encouraged the producers to develop a spin-off series, this one set in Miami and starring David Caruso and (briefly) Kim Delaney, two alumni from NYPD Blue. The pilot for CSI: Miami was telecast as the CSI: Crime Scene Investigation episode titled "Cross-Jurisdictions" on May 9, 2002. Nominated for several Emmy awards during the 2001-2002 season, CSI copped one Emmy, shared jointly by makeup artists Nicholas Pagliaro, John Goodwin, and Melanie Levitt. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Created by Anthony Zuiker, the CBS cop series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, which first aired on October 6, 2000, could be described as "Quincy for the 21st century." Set in Las Vegas, the weekly, 60-minute series focused on the activities of that city's Crime Scene Investigations Bureau. Working the overnight shift, the principal characters deployed state-of-the-art forensic technology to solve unsolvable crimes. Whenever scientific analysis failed, however, the lab's "criminalists" relied upon good, old-fashioned logic -- logical to them, if not to their superiors. So efficient was the CSI team that it was rated the number two such crime lab in America. The series' main protagonist was Gil Grissom (William L. Petersen), once the youngest coroner in the history of the L.A. police department, who after 15 years with the Vegas PD, was put in charge of the crime lab when its former skipper, the mercurial Captain Jim Brass (Paul Guilfoyle), was transferred back to the homicide division. Grissom's elite ensemble included his second-in-command, onetime exotic dancer Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger), who juggled her professional responsibilities with her home duties as a single mother; ex-grave digger Warrick Brown (Gary Dourdan), the only member of the team who was born in Vegas and, as such, the most savvy member when it came to the ins and outs of the casino industry that figured so largely in the proceedings; Warrick's friendly rival, the warm and outgoing Nick Stokes (George Eads), late of the Dallas PD; and the brilliant but somewhat distant Sara Sidle (Jorja Fox), who was initially brought in from San Francisco to investigate the murder of her predecessor, rookie criminalist Holly Gribbs (a case that had lost Captain Brass his position as head of the lab). Each of these worthies brought a distinct specialty to their work: Willows was a blood-splatter analyst, Brown an audio-visual expert, Stokes a hair-and-fiber specialist, and Sidle a materials-and-element analyst.

The criminalists generally worked in sub-teams to investigate the myriad of baffling cases which came across their desk in each episode (usually two crimes were depicted and solved per week). During the series' first three seasons on the air, there were no significant cast changes, though former recurring characters Greg Sanders (Eric Szmanda) and Dr. David Robbins (Robert David Hall) were gradually elevated to weekly-regular status. In many ways, however, there was an unbilled "major character" in the form of the series' fluid camerawork, deploying quickie montages, juxtaposed images, and dreamlike scene transitions -- all complemented by a driving but low-key background music score. Cinematographers like Michael Barrett and Frank Byers and editors like Alex Mackie and Alec Smight were as responsible for the "look" of CSI as were the series' producers, directors, and stars. As of 2002, the highly rated series had been nominated for a myriad of Emmy Awards, scoring one win for makeup artists Nicholas Pagliaro, John Goodwin, and Melanie Levitt. 2002 was also the year that the producers cooked up a spin-off series, CSI: Miami. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Kira is surprised to discover that her perennial nemesis Gul Dukat (Marc Alaimo) has been demoted. She is even more surprised by her own acquiescenes when Dukat enlists her aid in restoring his former status. Together, the two former opponents do battle against a Klingon warship which had previously destroyed a vital Cardassian outpost. Originally telecast February 5, 1996, "Return to Grace" was scripted by Hans Beimler from a story by Tom Benko. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Duncan Regehr guest stars as Shakaar, a celebrated Bajoran resistance leader. Upon being appointed head of the Bajoran government, Kai Winn (Louise Fletcher) asks Kira to help her recover some much-needed agricultural equipment, currently in Shakaar's possession. Instead, Kira defiantly casts her lot with Shakaar's cause and becomes an outlaw herself. First made available to local syndication on May 22. 1995, "Shakaar" was written by Gordon Dawson. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this drama, a divorced dad fights for visitation rights with his daughter after she and her mother are relocated to an unknown locale as part of the Federal Witness Protection program. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

James Brolin costars with his son Josh in the made-for-cable Finish Line. The film's ad copy says it all: "His father made him run. The steroids made him win." In a justifiably melodramatic fashion, the film, based on a true story, examines the win-at-any-cost mentality of high school athletes and their parents. As is proven in the wrenching finale, that cost is a precious one. Finish Line premiered January 11, 1989, on the TNT cable service. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

While on a dig in Peru, a shady archaeologist uncovers a strange creature, which he dubs a "Munchie." He brings the animal home, but it begins to mutate and procreate--with disastrous results--soon after a con artist kidnaps it. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide