One of the most successful television programs of all time has been the "Law & Order" series, which stayed on the air for over twenty years through hundreds of episodes.
It has also spun off numerous franchises, from "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" to "Law & Order: Los Angeles.
" Fans of the show have stated that there a number of different things they like about the show, which has likely been the key to the franchise's long success.
With satellite TV, there is bound to be an episode on your cable dial somewhere for you to enjoy.
"Law & Order" episodes, at least once the series matured, always begin in the same way.
Before the credits even roll, a crime is committed.
The crime is usually partially obscured in some way because trying to figure out who was responsible is part of the fun of watching the show.
There is then the opening credits, and the all-important "Law & Order" theme music.
The first scene is usually in the police station, with quickly moving cameras following detectives around as they discuss what is known about the case.
Detectives immediately begin following up on various leads, with every scene preceded by "Law & Order's" famously weird "dun-dun" sound.
So far, this sounds like a pretty standard detective show, but the charm of "Law & Order," at least to many of its fans, is that it takes a somewhat kitschy approach to the whole crime solving process.
There are certain conventions every show follows.
Usually there is at least one scene where the detectives visit a co-worker, an old landlord, or a pawnbroker who hasn't seen the suspected criminal in months, but is able to recall every detail of their interaction.
Twists and turns in a case that might take two or three years to uncover in real life are discovered in a matter of days, to keep the show under an hour.
Every show also concludes with detectives interrogating the suspect until he or she finally breaks down and admits committing the crime.
Part of the fun of "Law & Order" is that many of the headlines are also ripped from current events, in a way that's often glaringly obvious, from steroids in sports, to political scandals, to viral Internet videos.
Pretty much every vaguely interesting social phenomenon of the last twenty years has appeared in a "Law & Order" episode, and for that reason it's also a sort of bizarre, high-definition mirror of our culture.
Celebrity guest criminals are also an important part of "Law & Order.
" In that way, it reminds some people of the old "Batman" series with Adam West that was on TV many years ago.
Whoopi Goldberg, Martin Short, and Ludicrous have all played celebrity perpetrators over the years on "Law & Order.
" Generally, the more famous a celebrity on "Law & Order," the greater the chances that they get away with the crime.