Tube Notes

By Mike Hughes
Gannett News Service

Tonight's Must-See

"Robbery Homicide Division" premiere (CBS) or "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" season-opener (NBC); both 9 p.m. "Robbery Homicide Division" is from producer-director Michael Mann. Like his "Miami Vice," it uses its city beautifully. In this case it's L.A. The pilot ranges from a trendy Asian nightclub to a creepy impersonal chunk of suburbia. All of it is wrapped into a compelling story. Tom Sizemore stars. Still, it's hard to compete with the "Law & Order" people. Their "SVU" gets a sensational performance from Sharon Lawrence, who plays a prostitute who killed in self-defense.

Of Note

"John Doe," 8 p.m., Fox. Last week's superb premiere introduced a guy who knows everything except his identity. Tonight, he solves a crime while a cop probes the woman who identified him.