Saturday night's action-packed television line-up has been bolstered significantly with the local airing of Sammo Hung's Martial Law (ATV Home, 8.35pm) series.
Since it began in the United States last September, the CBS programme has steadily climbed in the ratings making the portly Hong Kong native a star. The Nielsen ratings show Martial Law has averaged about 11.2 million viewers per episode, making it the most-watched new programme of the season.
The programme benefited greatly by the mid-season addition of Arsenio Hall. The chemistry of Hung (pictured above) and the former American chat-show host boosted its popularity and it was picked up by CBS for a second season.
Last week's debut episode introduced Hung's character, Sammo Law, a famed Shanghai detective on loan to the Los Angeles Police Department. While his US colleagues at first dismiss him for his portly appearance and poor command of English, they are quickly won over by his martial arts skills.
Tonight, Sammo goes on his first assignment to bust an international crime syndicate wreaking havoc on the world's diamond market. The programme is available in English on televisions with Nicam.
Action is in abundance on Star World's Saturday line-up. Xena: Warrior Princess (Star World, 8pm) has a huge following among children, men and lesbians, as several viewers told me the last time I wrote about the series' statuesque star, Lucy Lawless.