TV SERIES · 1990

Law & Order

CrimeDramaMysteryThriller45 min per episode

Each case begins with a serious crime in New York City, where detectives gather evidence, question witnesses, and make an arrest before the story shifts to the Manhattan district attorney’s office and the fight to secure a conviction. Jerry Orbach’s veteran detective gives the investigative half its dry, seen-it-all center, while Sam Waterston is one of the prosecutors pushing cases through court. S. Epatha Merkerson adds authority on the police side as the squad’s lieutenant. Built around stories that echo public controversies and tabloid headlines, the series follows both the street-level investigation and the legal arguments that decide what justice looks like.