Gannett News Service

Must-see

NYPD Blue, 10 p.m., Channels 9, 2.

After a nine-week rest, Blue finally returns. It promptly reminds us that it's one of TV's best series. The break was part of ABC's plan to avoid reruns in this time slot while giving Line of Fire a fair chance. Line was first-rate; this Blue episode is even better.

The hour opens amid bedroom semi-passion between Clark (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) and his girlfriend (Chandra West), a beauty who's on medication. Soon, Clark and Sipowicz (Dennis Franz) are dealing with murder and Russian mobsters. Then the case reaches powerfully into the precinct station, complete with a bomb.

William Francis McGuire is superb as the overwhelmed civilian who gets caught in the middle. Still, the top moments involve McDowell (Charlotte Ross) and Sipowicz.

Here are two steel-strong people, unaccustomed to showing fear. Now one is trapped and the other is scrambling. It's a great hour.

Other choices

Friends, 8 p.m., Channels 5, 22. Scrubs has moved to Tuesday, so in order to get viewers into the habit of watching NBC on Tuesday nights, the network has inserted some of its best Thursday comedies. In this case, it has "supersized" 40 minute episodes of Friends, Will & Grace and Scrubs. Fraiser will return next week.

This Friends episode, airing for the second time in five days, has Danny DeVito as the stripper at Phoebe's bachelorette party.

Gilmore Girls, 8 p.m., Channel 64. Love gets complicated for mom and daughter. Lorelei (Lauren Graham) is supposed to pretend she likes a guy - except it's the guy she's been secretly romancing. Her daughter Rory (Alexis Bledel) finally confronts Jess (Milo Ventimiglia), the ex-boyfriend who left. All of this is surrounded by a town festival, and that adds up to a terrific hour.

American Idol, 8 p.m., Channels 19, 45. The show finally has its 32 semifinalists. Tonight, viewers will hear eight and vote two into the finals.

Will & Grace, 8:40 p.m., Channels 5, 22. Dave Foley (NewsRadio) guest stars as a gay man who is Will's client.

Scrubs, 9:20 p.m., Channels 5, 22. Michael J. Fox plays an obsessive doctor who creates woes for Cox.