You know a season premiere has done its job when you have to watch the damn preview screener three times to fully absorb it. I did this with the kickoff of Season 2 of Damages (which returns to FX Wednesday at 10 p.m.) and I am thrilled to report it was worth every manipulative, brain-bending moment.

On the surface the FX drama is a "legal thriller," but that generic description does the show a grave injustice. The second season, like the first, is a textured, complex and nearly genre-redefining example of storytelling at its finest. There's nothing like it anywhere else on TV; heck, stories this engrossing are seldom seen at the local arthouse movie theater.

Season 2 technically begins one month after the Enron-ish Arthur Frobisher case has been won by Patty Hewes & Associates, the firm led by and named for its lead defense attorney, played with evil glee by Emmy winner Glenn Close. I say the show "technically" begins a month after the case because the ep's first scene actually takes place six months into the future, perpetuating the show's clever back-and-forth time continuum used so well in the first season.

Ellen Parsons (the droll Rose Byrne, whose startingly thin appearance I have to assume is purposeful, since her all-sleeveless wardrobe only accentuates her boniness) is mourning the death of her fiance David, whom she suspects was murdered by Frobisher (Ted Danson). This we know because we see her attending grief counseling, during which she daydreams about killing Frobisher (who's in a hospital bed recovering from being shot by an ex-employee) when she isn't shooting nasty looks at fellow griever Wes Krulik, played by show newcomer Timothy Olyphant. Like everyone on the show, he may or may not be someone Ellen can trust.

Some guys Ellen can probably trust are the two FBI agents she's working with (Mario Van Peebles alert!) in order to bring Patty down for attempting to have her killed last season. Which brings me to the best part about this show: the devilish cat and mouse dance that plays out so beautifully between Patty and her smug protege. In one scene Patty voices her concern for Ellen's well-being and suggests she take some time off; in another, she shoots down Ellen's burgeoning interest in criminal law with a sharp barb: "I'm not running a law school around here."

Hands-down the most exciting development in this new season is the addition of William Hurt, who plays scientist Daniel Purcell, with whom Patty shares a sordid past. Hurt is perfect, as he always is, and he's the first of many fine other actors to join the cast this season. Watch for fellow Oscar-winner Marcia Gay Harden, Wire alums John Doman and Clarke Peters, and longtime indie-dude Kevin Corrigan in future episodes -- and see the Damages cast turn into the finest acting company on the tube.

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