Lady detectives: Can they handcuff the Emmys?

WOMEN detectives are probably getting a better ride in the realm of fiction than they are in police departments. They've been rocking popular culture since Clarice Dyke debuted in an eponymous novel in 1883 and, at this point, most crime procedural dramas on television know better than to cruise for ratings without women on the force.

All the major networks plus TNT have prime-time crime shows with women either carrying the hour or sharing the spotlight with a male partner. All of NBC's hardy "Law & Order" spinoffs feature coed crime teams, and the original version even has a woman, Lt. Anita Van Buren (S. Epatha Merkerson), telling the guys what to do.

The female crime fighter has evolved into such an honored staple of television that several at a time can often be found in Emmy's list of five dramatic actress nominees in any given year. Indeed, Kyra Sedgwick, whose career has surged with her role as LAPD Deputy Chief Brenda Johnson on TNT's "The Closer," says her character resonates with audiences because "she's what every woman would like to be -- someone who doesn't apologize for her power."

Of course, women who make a living carrying a gun or hanging around others who do are sometimes a wee bit complicated, and that goes double for their small-screen counterparts. But, for better or worse, even fictional girls will be girls, with all the peculiarly female neuroses that come along with that. Who knew eating disorders could be so entertaining?

So here, over the next few pages, is a bevy of lady crime stoppers on television, with a guide to things about them that keep audiences coming back for more.

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