Crossing Jordan
Crossing Jordan is an American television crime/drama series that airs on NBC. It stars Jill Hennessy as a crime-solving medical examiner. The show uses an ensemble cast approach featuring a group of Jordan's co-workers and police detectives assigned to the various cases. It was created by Tim Kring. Many consider it to be a "modernized" version of the late 1970s hit NBC drama Quincy, M.E.
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Main Characters
- Dr. Jordan Cavanaugh (Jill Hennessy), a young, attractive medical examiner from Boston who solves crimes during the course of her investigations. Jordan is emotionally scarred due to her mother's murder when she was a child in the 1970s. Jordan's issues with trust ensure that serious relationships don't have a chance with her except for that of Woody Hoyt, the homicide detective that has stayed true to Jordan for 3 seasons, giving in to her unorthodox investigating techniques. However, when Woody was shot in the fourth season's finale Jordan was forced to confess her true feelings for Woody, unfortunatly for both the character's and viewers it seemed that Jordan's confession may have come too late.
- Dr. Garret Macy (Miguel Ferrer), Jordan's boss. Macy must deal with Jordan's erratic behavior as well as his confused family (he has a teenaged daughter, Abby, but is divorced from his wife) and his own personal demons. Garret has an affinity for jazz. He's been known to have had romantic entanglements with Lily Lebowski, Renee Walcott, Charlie Davis, and obviously, his ex-wife, Maggie Warner.
Supporting Cast
- Mahesh “Bug” Vijayaraghavensatyanaryanamurthy (Ravi Kapoor), a brilliant but shy forensic entomologist from Liverpool. He has feelings for Lilly but they aren't recipitated. Bug and Nigel are best buddies unlucky in love. Det. Framus (Sandra Bernhard) has been a recent aquisition to the recurring character list, she calls him "Buggles" which Bug hates.
- Lily Lebowski (Kathryn Hahn), a good-hearted grief counselor working in the medical examiner's office. Lily and Garret used to be romantically involved, but their developing relationship ended when Garret went back to his ex-wife for a brief period. Lily and Garret remained friends ever since. Lily is thought by Bug to possibly be adopted due to her blood type being different to that of her newly deceased mother.
- Nigel Townsend (Steve Valentine), a wise-cracking British criminologist often known for his dry humor and his knowledge of everything from coffee to textiles. Nigel ran away from the Royal Navy, where he was a counter-intelligence officer. Nigel is also thought to have feelings for Jordan, this is shown through his willingness to do whatever she asks despite the possibility of losing his job as a consquence. He was also never on speaking terms with his father who still lives in England until some time before the episode "Murder in the Rue Morgue" where he mentioned to Jordan that he was glad that he and his father are back in touch and that he regets the fact that they weren't for so long.
- Detective Woody Hoyt (Jerry O'Connell), a police detective from Wisconsin who often works with Jordan on her cases. Woody is also known to harbour romantic feelings for Jordan, who resists, preferring friendship because she is afraid and friendship is safer, in her view. However, on Jordan's birthday ("Embraceable You", Season 4), Woody gave her a diamond ring, a gesture which--according to Nigel--shows that Woody wants more from their relationship, but Jordan declines the ring. Premiered in the episode "Wrong Place, Wrong Time", he became a regular in Season 4. On the final episiode of season 4 (Jump Push Fall) Woody was shot by a cop killer, he survived it and this prompted Jordan to tell Woody that she really is in love with him. This was a very big step in the right direction (a view held by many fans) for their relationship but Woody turned her down, seeing her final declaration of romantic feelings as pity rather than true feelings being pushed to the surface by fear of losing Woody forever.
Recurring Characters
- Max Cavanaugh (Ken Howard) - Jordan's ex-cop father, who disappeared in the finale of season 3 and reappeared in the episode "It Happened One Night" (recurring). Ken Howard's appearance in the show was changed from regular cast to guest star.
- DA Renee Walcott (Susan Gibney) - The District Attorney who constantly clashed with Jordan. She also had a romantic relationship with Garret Macy, but it ended when she had an affair with her ex-husband and became pregnant (coincided with Susan Gibney's pregnancy). She returned later in Season 4.
- Dr. Sidney Trumaine (Eugene Byrd) - A new medical examiner who has a recurring role.
- Det. Matt Seely (David Monahan) - A detective who is the son of a newspaper mogul, he has the tendency not to think before he speaks, subsequently annoying the characters on the show. He has shown particular interest in Lily Lebowski, and this relationship is being tentatively explored.
Previous Recurring Characters
- Dr. Trey Sanders (Mahershalbaz Ali) - a medical examiner who left after the premiere season.
- Dr. Elaine Duchamps (Lorraine Toussaint) - A medical examiner who died of E. Coli in the episode "Perfect Storm"
- Dr. Peter Winslow (Ivan Sergei) - A recovering drug addict who appeared in Seasons 2-3.
- Dr. Devan Maguire (Jennifer Finnigan) - A pathology resident who appeared in ten episodes, including one in which Jordan did not appear. She died in a plane crash from Boston to Washington D.C. in the episode "Fire In The Sky"
Show Information
Crossing Jordan premiered in 2001 on NBC. It originally aired Friday and Sunday, its current air date. The scientific aspects of the show are comparable to CSI: Crime Scene Investigation but come with a rock and roll sensibility owing to Jordan's psychological Sturm und Drang.
The show was put on hiatus for the 2003-2004 season due to Hennessy's real-life pregnancy, but returned to the airwaves on March 9, 2004. The previous cliff-hanger plotline was dropped in a new episode which featured a humorous sub-plot which paid homage to Alfred Hitchcock's 1954 film Rear Window. The murder victim's name was even Alex Corvald--a reference to Thovald of the film.
Crossing Jordan is produced by Tailwind Productions in association with NBC Universal.
In Australia, the show screens on the Seven Network in a primetime slot against Cold Case on the Nine Network.
Episode List
Season 1
1. [1-01] Pilot (09/24/2001)
2. [1-02] The Dawn of a New Day (10/01/2001)
3. [1-03] The Ties That Bind (10/08/2001)
4. [1-04] Born to Run (10/15/2001)
5. [1-05] You Can't Go Home Again (10/22/2001
6. [1-06] Believers (10/29/2001)
7. [1-07] Sight Unseen (11/12/2001)
8. [1-08] Digger (1) (11/19/2001)
9. [1-09] Digger (2) (11/26/2001)
10. [1-10] Blue Christmas (12/10/2001)
11. [1-11] Wrong Place, Wrong Time (01/07/2002)
12. [1-12] Blood Relatives (01/14/2002)
13. [1-13] Miracles & Wonders (01/21/2002)
14. [1-14] Four Fathers (01/28/2002)
15. [1-16] Acts of Mercy (02/04/2002)
16. [1-17] Lost and Found (02/25/2002)
17. [1-18] Crime & Punishment (03/04/2002)
18. [1-19] With Honor (03/18/2002)
19. [1-20] For Harry, with Love and Squalor (04/08/2002)
20. [1-21] The Gift of Life (04/15/2002)
21. [1-22] Someone to Count On (04/29/2002)
22. [1-23] Secrets & Lies (1) (05/06/2002)
Season 2
24. [2-01] There's No Place Like Home (09/23/2002)
25. [2-02] Bombs Away (09/30/2002)
26. [2-03] The Truth Is Out There (10/07/2002)
27. [2-04] Pay Back (10/14/2002)
28. [2-05] As If by Fate (10/21/2002)
29. [2-06] One Twelve (11/11/2002)
30. [2-07] Scared Straight (11/18/2002)
31. [2-08] Don't Look Back (12/02/2002)
32. [2-09] Prisoner Exchange (12/09/2002
33. [2-10] Ockham's Razor (01/06/2003)
34. [2-11] Family Ties (01/13/2003)
35. [2-12] Perfect Storm (01/27/2003)
36. [2-13] Strangled (02/03/2003)
37. [2-14] Wild Card (02/10/2003)
38. [2-15] John Doe (02/24/2003)
39. [2-16] Conspiracy (03/17/2003)
40. [2-17] Cruel and Unusual (03/31/2003)
41. [2-18] Fire and Ice (04/07/2003)
42. [2-19] Dead Wives Club (04/14/2003)
43. [2-20] Sunset Division (04/21/2003)
44. [2-21] Pandora's Trunk (1) (04/28/2003)
45. [2-22] Pandora's Trunk (2) (05/05/2003)<P>
Season 3
46. [3-01] Devil May Care (03/07/2004)
47. [3-02] Slam Dunk (03/1/2004)
48. [3-03] Till Death Do Us Part (03/14/2004)
49. [3-04] Is That Plutonium in Your Pocket, or Are You Just Happy to See Me? (03/19/2004)
50. [3-05] Dead or Alive (03/21/2004)
51. [3-06] Second Chances (03/28/2004)
52. [3-07] Missing Pieces (04/04/2004)
53. [3-08] Most Likely (04/18/2004)
54. [3-09] All the News Fit to Print (04/25/2004)
55. [3-10] Revealed (05/09/2004)
56. [3-11] He Said, She Said (05/16/2004)
57. [3-12] Dead in the Water (05/23/2004)
58. [3-12] Oh, Brother Where Art Thou? (06/06/2004)<p>
Season 4
59. [4-01] After Dark (09/26/2004)
60. [4-02] Out of Sight (10/03/2004)
61. [4-03] Intruded (10/10/2004)
62. [4-04] Deja Past (10/17/2004)
63. [4-05] Justice Delayed (10/24/2004)
64. [4-06] Bad Moon (10/31/2004)
65. [4-07] What Happens in Vegas Dies in Boston (11/07/2004)
66. [4-08] Fire from the Sky (11/14/2004)
67. [4-09] Necessary Risks (11/21/2004)
68. [4-10] A Stranger Among Us (01/02/2005)
69. [4-11] Murder in the Rue Morgue (01/09/2005)
70. [4-12] Family Affair (01/30/2005)
71. [4-13] You Really Got Me (02/13/2005)
72. [4-14] Gray Murders (03/13/2005)
73. [4-15] It Happened One Night (03/20/2005)
74. [4-16] Skin and Bone (03/20/2005)
75. [4-17] Locard's Exchange (04/10/2005)
76. [4-18] Sanctuary (04/24/2005)
77. [4-19] Embraceable You (05/01/2005)
78. [4-20] Forget Me Not (05/08/2005)
79. [4-21] Jump Push Fall (05/15/2005)