Do The 'Hustle'

First off, let me apologize for putting the tune of the '70s disco staple in your head. I'm sure you will be hearing it all day.

Tonight marks the return of one of TV's best, if most unheralded, programs. If you liked "Ocean's 11" for its sense of coolness, the big con and tongue-in-cheek flavor, then you will love "Hustle" (AMC, 10 p.m.), one of the cleverest programs on television.

Returning tonight for its fourth season, "Hustle" follows a group of con artists who specialize in the long con - which usually involves using the mark's own greed against him. This group of merry men steal from the rich and give to themselves, but they only con really bad people, so it balances out.

The team used to be led by the suave Mickey Bricks (Adrian Lester), England's top con man, but Lester is sitting this series out, so it remains to be seen how the series fares without him. However, the rest of the cast - veteran con man Albert (Robert Vaughn), the sultry Stacy (Jaime Murray), tech wiz Ash (Robert Glenister) and not-quite-as-clever-as-he-thinks Danny (Marc Warren) - is back. Tonight, they try to sell a mark (guest star Robert Wagner) the Hollywood sign. Hey, they already sold London Bridge in Season 1, so anything is possible.

"Hustle" is from the same production team that brought us to other fantastic U.K. series already much-praised in this blog, "Life On Mars" and "MI-5," so the pedigree is there. "Hustle" may be the most accessible of the three, bringing a lot of charm and humor with it.

WEDNESDAY'S BEST BETS: As reported yesterday, tonight's episode of "Bones" (Fox, 8 p.m.), originally a first-run episode about the death of a college basketball star, has been yanked because of the Virginia Tech shootings. In its place, however, is a rerun of what was the series' finest episode, when Bones and Hodgins were buried alive in a car. It's followed by the "American Idol" results show, featuring a performance by Martina McBride.

Internet site mania.com is reporting "Jericho" (CBS, 8 p.m.) will be renewed for another season, though no official word from the network has come out yet. Regardless, it's new tonight.

ABC is airing new episodes of "According to Jim" and "Notes From the Underbelly" tonight beginning at 8 p.m., with a new "Lost" at 10 p.m. At 9 p.m., the network is re-running last week's terrific installment of "Lost" that featured the fabulous Elizabeth Mitchell once more. Mitchell should earn an Emmy nomination for her work this year.

New sketch show "Thank God You're Here" (NBC, 8 p.m.) settles into its regular timeslot, replacing the already-missed "Friday Night Lights." New episodes of "Crossing Jordan" and "Medium" follow; those, I can miss.