• by Adam Buckman , Featured Columnist, March 5, 2015

When USA Network billed this “event” miniseries as a mystery, they weren’t kidding.

Set primarily in Jerusalem, the mystery story that unfolds in this miniseries -- titled “Dig” -- comprises many elements that are nothing if not wide-ranging.

They include: A newborn, red-haired calf secreted in a remote Scandinavian barn and coveted by a group of Hasids; an ancient breastplate that possibly enables anyone who possesses it to communicate with God; a strange outpost in the New Mexico desert where a lonely 13-year-old boy is preparing for his bar mitzvah; a murder in Jerusalem’s ancient quarter; an archaeological dig beneath the city’s most sacred sites; a cloning subplot; covert activities within the United States Embassy in Jerusalem; and the appearance of at least three different young women with red hair in disparate locations.

These elements pile up in the first two episodes of this 10-part “event,” which premieres tonight (March 5) at 10 Eastern on USA Network. USA generously provided three episodes of “Dig” to preview, and I watched the first two, which was enough for me to decide that I liked it.

The fact that this miniseries means to tell its story from beginning to end in 10 episodes implies that the connections between these many parts will be fully explained and revealed by the time it concludes. If the producers and writers of “Dig” can pull off this feat, then it will be well worth the wait.

“Dig” is apparently a big deal for USA Network, which has been promoting it widely.

It is the kind of “event programming” that TV networks are producing and airing in increasing numbers these days. If you live and/or work in New York (and presumably some other big cities too), you’ve seen the “Dig” billboards on payphone kiosks and the sides of buses -- the ads showing the back of a young woman with red hair with a talismanic tattoo between her scapulae.

Whether all the pre-publicity and promotion for “Dig” will draw viewers in numbers great enough to justify the investment made to produce and promote it is anybody’s guess.

It does look expensive, which is to say, it looks great. The cast includes rugged Jason Isaacs as a U.S. FBI agent assigned to Jerusalem, Anne Heche as his supervisor in the American Embassy there, Regina Taylor as an embassy operative, and Lauren Ambrose as a confused young woman (one of the red-haired ones) who lives and works at the mysterious compound in New Mexico.

The challenge for USA, as with any such highly promoted TV event, is how to mount enough pre-launch publicity so that “Dig” will stand out in people’s minds all the way until 10 p.m. Thursday night when they’re trying to decide what to watch on TV. Or, an extension of that challenge might be: How do you get them to remember this series at least enough to get them to press the DVR button on it or, at some later time, look for it on Hulu or some other content provider and watch it then?

Yes, we all know there are plenty of alternatives for watching TV shows these days for anyone who doesn’t wish to watch a show at its appointed airtime. But there are also many more shows to choose from, whether you watch them when they’re scheduled or plan your own schedule for watching them later. It all tends to pile up, doesn’t it? 

In an era when so much programming (i.e. content) is competing for your time and attention, you could place your trust (at least a little) in a TV critic who sampled the show and is telling you it looks pretty good.

“Dig” premieres Thursday night (March 5) at 10 Eastern on USA Network.