Will & Grace strode into its third season with the kind of cultural cache TV executives would kill for. These 22 episodes are littered with hip celebrity guest stars, from Ellen DeGeneres to Sandra Bernhard to Cher, and the performances of the core quartet--Debra Messing, Eric McCormack, Karen Mullally, and Sean Hayes--became more comically exaggerated as they risked pushing their characters (already riddled with neuroses and snippiness) into the realm of caricatures. But due to clever writing and confident, full-throttle performances, it doesn't matter. Even when Jack and Karen's high-handed behavior go beyond anything recognizably human, audiences love them all the more; no matter how high-strung Will and Grace become, their well-honed rapport keeps them engaging and lovable.
