‘District’ Hands Plot to ‘Agency’

You know a murder case is going to be tough when it takes the investigative resources of two TV shows to crack it, and tonight at 10 on CBS, “The Agency” takes up where “The District” left off in the conclusion of a two-part network “crossover.”

On Saturday, a CIA agent’s murder in Washington forced the “The District’s” gruff police chief, Jack Mannion (Craig T. Nelson), and his minions to play host to CIA Director Tom Gage (Beau Bridges) and his “Agency” agents. The inevitable clash of heads led to dialogue such as, “Jack, I’m not the enemy. I’m here to help you!”

But as the case jumps shows, it also grows darker, with evidence of secret funds and blackmail adding to implications of CIA involvement in the murder and a subsequent cover-up. Mannion begins wondering just how far up the CIA’s orders are coming from, and whether the reptilian Homeland Security Liaison Robert Quinn (Daniel Benzali) has a green light to orchestrate the whole thing.

Viewers, however, may be most engrossed by a harrowing segment involving a family under CIA protection whose identity has been compromised and must be relocated. But first, Agent Terri Lowell (Paige Turco) must find a way to help the family escape at nightfall from a pitch-black house with the unseen enemy lurking outside.

This subplot should have crossed over to next week’s “Fear Factor.”