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2 TV ENCORE By Kyla Brewer TV Media A s the summer swelters on, game shows and reality TV programs rule prime time. But for those who prefer more tradi- tional TV fare, TNT serves up a police procedural with a fresh cast and plenty of drama. Taye Diggs ("Private Practice") and Kathleen Robertson ("Boss") star as Terry English and Hildy Mulligan, homicide inspectors investigating the mur- der of all-star quarterback Normandy Parker in a new epi- sode of "Murder in the First," airing Sunday, July 24, on TNT. Set in San Francisco, the show was created by 10-time Emmy winner Steven Bochco ("NYPD Blue") and Eric Lodal ("Laredo"), the latter of whom left the show midway through the second sea- son for undisclosed reasons. As in previous seasons, season 3 follows a single, complicated investigation instead of wrap- ping up a new mystery each week like many other prime-time dramas. When "Murder in the First" debuted in 2014, Bochco explained his preference for examining a single case through- out the season to the L.A. Times. "What's fun about the sin- gle storyline is you get to develop characters, to really make them well examined," said the producer. Three seasons in, English and Mulligan are much more than stereotypical prime-time cops. Their personal lives are every bit as fascinating as the cases they tackle, from his grief over the Avelle Mechanical 2 x 3" Pear Tree Gallery 3 x 2" Rans Funeral 2 x 3" On the Cover death of his terminally ill wife to her struggles as a single mom. This season is expected to be particularly heartbreaking as Mulligan faces a potentially life- threatening illness. The stress over what might happen to her daughter overwhelms her, even as the Parker case looms. Season 3 had originally been slated to begin June 19, but due to the tragic Orlando Pulse nightclub shooting, the debut was pushed to June 26, out of respect for the victims and their loved ones. The same thing hap- pened with TNT"s "The Last Ship." With a little more than 1.3 million viewers, numbers were down for this year's season pre- miere, but it's important to note that the June 26 opener aired opposite the finale of the HBO juggernaut "Game of Thrones," so there was bound to be a dip. "Murder in the First" has shown tremendous potential since its debut in 2014, when it ranked among cable's top 10 prime-time dramas. Season 1 pulled in more than five million viewers per episode over multi- ple platforms, including about 3.76 million live viewers. The 12-episode second season clocked in with more than two million average live viewers, and in December 2015, TNT announced "Murder in the First" had been renewed for a 10-epi- sode third season, along with fellow hit dramas "Major Crimes" and "The Librarians." Although English and Mulligan are undoubtedly the focus of the series, Diggs and Robertson are supported by a strong cast. Currie Graham ("Raising the Bar") stars as chief prosecutor Mario Siletti, who's struggling in the wake of a tragic car accident this season. "Once Upon a Time's" Raphael Sbarge works alongside the two leads as philosophical homicide detective David Molk, who's been partnered up with Edgar Navarro, played by Lombardo Boyar ("The Bernie Mac Show"). Their SFPD squad is supervised by Ian Anthony Dale ("Hawaii Five-0") as Lieut. Jim Koto. The returning cast also includes Mimi Kirkland ("Safe Haven," 2013) as Hildy's young daughter, Louise. Back in March, news broke that Michael Gaston ("The Leftovers") had joined the third season cast of "Murder in the First." He portrays defense attor- ney Alfred Arkin, billed as a "warm family man." The role marks a reunion for Gaston and Bochco, who previously worked together in Bochco's "Blind Justice" for ABC. He isn't the only "Murder in the First" rookie, either. The cast also welcomes Corey Reynolds ("The Closer") as assistant district attorney Martin Reardon. Sara Paxton ("Darcy's Wild Life") stars as Alicia Barnes, a troubled 22-year- old pop star who'd caught Parker's eye before his untimely death. Eighties movie icon Anthony Michael Hall ("The Dead Zone") has been tapped to play Barnes's father, Paul. The cast is top notch, and it also helps that Bochco is no stranger to police dramas, with such legendary TV series as "NYPD Blue" and "Hill Street Blues" under his belt. He was also behind hits such as "L.A. Law" and "Doogie Howser, M.D." In fact, the producer and writer is such a luminary in the television industry that some credit him with changing the face of prime-time television dra- mas by pioneering the large ensemble cast and continuous story arcs. His legacy continues in "Murder in the First," which returns with a new episode Sunday, July 24, on TNT. In the episode, a suspect in the Parker case is murdered, giving some weight to English's conspiracy theory. Meanwhile, Siletti's legal troubles become even more complicated because of a ruin- ous civil suit, which threatens to fracture the fragile peace he's made with his family. Also, Mulligan attempts to move on by going on a date. TNT will make the episode available on demand the day after broad- cast for anyone who might miss it, and other season 3 episodes will also be available if fans want to rewatch or play catchup. 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