La Femme Nikita: Season 5 (2001)

TV. For psychological and tactical drama in a world that has terrorists, La Femme Nikita is an order of magnitude smarter and tauter than 24 has ever been. No matter what anyone -- superior or peer -- said or did within Section or outside, as a covert operative you never knew if it would prove terminal to your career because of the densely layered psychological manipulation and political maneuvering. It was not even clear at times whether Nikita or Michael truly loved each other or were merely following orders. As Nikita learned to outgame her superior and then his superior, and then to uncover (and begin to share power with) who was really in charge of Section, things continued to get interesting. No one can ever replace Alberta Watson as Madeleine, however, or Eugene Robert Glaser as Operations, or Roy Dupuis as Michael. This is, I continue to think, the best television series I have ever seen. It made counterterrorism operations highly realistic -- unlike what we see in 24 or, for that matter, D.C. 5 stars.