In which I become a Vincent D'Onofrio fan

The day-to-day business of my life requires that I make certain hard choices about leisure time. One of the choices that I've made (though it seems more of a necessity than a choice) is not to watch television at home, except for the occasional DVD. Whenever I visit my parents' place, however, my fingers itch for the remote and I find myself basking in the glow of everything-but-the-kitchen-sink cable television.

That's how I discovered Law and Order: Criminal Intent (in reruns). It appears, based on my very cursory online "research" into this show, that the character Vincent D'Onofrio plays is based partly on Sherlock Holmes. It's been a long time since I devoured Conan Doyle's tales of the great sleuth, but D'Onofrio's character doesn't strike me as particularly Holmesian -- except, perhaps, in his uncanny ability to read characters and situations based on subtle clues. Even then, D'onofrio appears to be more of a psychologist than Holmes, and he seems to relish the hunt -- to enjoy entrapping and humiliating his prey -- more openly than the cold-blooded uber-detective of Baker Street. He's obviously the focus of the show in a way that differs from the original Law and Order and its other incarnation.

Part of what makes D'Onofrio's character fun to watch is the way he often ferrets out the secret source of pride or ego or self-delusion, the preservation of which means more to the murderer than not getting caught. There's just the faintest whiff of sadism about it -- as though the character has found a socially acceptable way to wield his intellect as a weapon.

It's very watchable. I get chaos restored to order, murder "outed," and a really smart detective sticking it to the bad guys -- all in the space of an hour.