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A guide to notable programs by BRUCE FRETTS. (Times are Eastern standard and are subject to change.)
SERIES
An agreeably goofy homage to '60s espionage shows, SPY GAME (ABC, Mondays, 8-9 p.m.) revives the nifty gadgets and cool acronyms of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. and The Avengers. E.C.H.O. (Emergency Counter Hostilities Organization) agents Lorne Cash (Linden Ashby) and Max London (Allison Smith) battle post-Cold War foes with kitschy karate high kicks set to ''Secret Agent Man''-style music. Ashby's a bit of a stiff, but Smith is nothing short of shocking: This curvy, leather-clad redhead bears no resemblance to the squeaky-clean blond teen Smith played on Kate & Allie. Fun cameos from Avenger Patrick Macnee and I Spy Robert Culp help stir the nostalgic spirit. Can Hercules and Xena cult king Sam Raimi's latest creation find a network audience? With young viewers hooked on Melrose Place and anyone old enough to remember I Spy watching Cosby, that may prove to be a Mission: The combination of cartoonish violence, anachronistic jokes, and voluminous cleavage (both male and female) has made Hercules and Xena huge hits in syndication. Now THE NEW ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD (TNT, Mondays, 10-11 p.m.) tries to replicate the formula on cable. Johnny Depp look-alike Matthew Porretta brings little panache to the title role; he wisely opts not to attempt an English accent (unlike Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves' Kevin Costner), but he's not going to make anyone forget Errol Flynn. The rest of the cast is equally anonymous: bland Anna Galvin as Maid Marian, Fabio wannabe Richard Ashton as Little John, and token fat guy Martyn Ellis as Friar Tuck. This Robin Hood strains for campy humor but winds up delivering even fewer laughs than Mel Brooks' Robin Hood: Men in Tights, if that's possible.
In addition to having the hardest name to spell, Zeljko Ivanek may be the most versatile guest actor on television. He's equally adept at comedy and drama, having recently appeared as the doggie shrink who tried to coax Eddie out of his depression on FRASIER (NBC, Tuesdays, 9-9:30 p.m.) and as the hostage-taking neo-Nazi militiaman on CHICAGO HOPE (CBS, Mondays, 10-11 p.m.). Devotees of the X-FILES (Fox, Sundays, 9-10 p.m.) remember him as Roland, the autistic-savant janitor driven to murder by the cryogenically preserved brain of his mad-scientist brother. And he's accomplished all this while maintaining his recurring role as state's attorney Ed Danvers on NBC's Homicide: Life on the Street (currently on hiatus). An on-again, off-again love interest for Sgt. Kay Howard (Melissa Leo), Danvers got engaged to another woman earlier this season, only to witness her slaying. He was thirsty for revenge -- till the accused killer hung himself in his cell. The look of horror on Ivanek's face when he heard the news was one of the most powerful shots in Homicide's history.
MOVIES
A trio of actresses step behind the camera to direct comic shorts for LIFETIME WOMEN'S FILM FESTIVAL (Lifetime, March 9, 8-10 p.m.). First is Hal Hartley staple Adrienne Shelly's Lois Lives a Little, a drab tale of a Jewish hausfrau's romantic fantasies redeemed only by hilarious performances by stand-ups Joy Behar and Judy Gold as her nosy mah-jongg pals. Anne DeSalvo (Arthur) scores with the witty Women Without Implants, casting herself as a flat-chested female who ponders breast augmentation (the stellar supporting cast includes Cathy Moriarty, Kathy Najimy, and Julie Hagerty). Best of all is Silence of the Lambs alum Kasi Lemmons' Dr. Hugo, featuring Chicago Hope healer Vondie Curtis Hall (Lemmons' real-life husband) as a '50s physician who pays a house call to a lonely married lady (Diagnosis Murder's Victoria Rowell). Beautifully observed, Dr. Hugo bodes well for Lemmons' big-screen filmmaking debut, Eve's Bayou, starring Samuel L. Jackson and slated for release in October.
