Seasons of Love (1999)

It's a meeting of miniseries giants as Peter Strauss (Rich Man, Poor Man) and Rachel Ward (The Thorn Birds) dig in to their roles as a Civil War vet/farmer and his wife in this two-parter. Rip Torn and Hume Cronyn supply crusty support as their salt-of-the-earth Ohio neighbors. Although the frontier trappings and studied pacing suggest a staid, Sarah, Plain and Tall-style drama, Seasons offers enough soapy plot points — a forbidden love, a tragic death, an adulterous affair — to keep viewers planted for the whole four hours. After a month loaded with overhyped ''events'' (NBC's The '60s, ABC's Stephen King's Storm of the Century), this understated sleeper is a post-sweeps treat. B+