Kidnapped (2007)

Turns out one of the best new shows of 2006 was Kidnapped, the serialized story of a snatched New York City rich kid that NBC pulled from its schedule after only five episodes — a crime nearly as heinous as the one in the show. Seeing all 13 episodes on DVD...holy cow, what prime-time viewers missed! Great, gnarly performances by Timothy Hutton and Dana Delany as the wealthy but scrappily tough parents of the victim (Will Denton), and — playing the guys most involved in solving the crime — Jeremy Sisto (Six Feet Under) and Delroy Lindo as perfect hard-boiled, screwed-up heroes. Plus, they never got to see Giancarlo Esposito as a pitiless internal-affairs cop, or the full flowering of Mykelti Williamson's bodyguard character, or Tom Noonan (Manhunter, Heat) as an eerily quiet, sadistic murderer interrogating Sisto in a most painful manner. Created by Jason Smilovic, who worked on the also underrated Karen Sisco (2003), Kidnapped slithers more insidiously than a rattlesnake; nearly everyone had his or her motives or curses. You think the case is wrapped up in episode 12 — then you watch No. 13. It' s a killer.