BBC AMERICA'S `MARS' IS A FUN PLACE ... IF YOU CAN FIND IT.

Byline: David Kronke Television Critic

Readers occasionally call after a review of a BBC America series and complain that their cable service doesn't provide the network.

I'm not the guy to grouse to; the cable company is.

Particularly if it deprives you of ``Life on Mars,'' a fairly ingenious concoction, a wry twist on the cop-show genre. ``Life on Mars'' stars John Simm as Sam Tyler, a contemporary Manchester detective investigating a serial killer. When his partner -- and ex-girlfriend -- disagrees with his theory of the crimes, she does some snooping of her own and disappears.

Before Sam can catch her abductor, he's walloped by a passing car with David Bowie's ``Life on Mars'' emanating from his iPod. When he awakens, ``Life on Mars'' continues to play, but now from a tinny car radio. Sleek, contemporary Manchester has transformed to rubble and smoke-belching factories; his smart suit has been replaced by bell-bottoms, a shirt with a flared collar and a macho leather jacket.

Sam is told he's in the year 1973, and concludes he is one of three things: an honest-to-goodness time traveler, in a coma and dreaming, or outright bonkers -- none a good option with a murder to prevent in 2006.

His new boss is Gene Hunt (Philip Glenister), a throwback cop in every way: Think Starsky or Hutch, if they were desiccated, corrupt drunks. Were Hunt to place a personal ad, it would read something like this:

Likes: Punching the lights out of perps and suspects; random intimidation; jumping to wrong conclusions; driving recklessly with sandwiches crammed in my mouth; pubs. Dislikes: Procedural investigations.

Naturally, Hunt and his boys-will-be-boys squad have little use for Sam's cerebral crime-solving skills. But then it appears that a serial killer much like the one Sam is hunting in 2006 is loose in 1973, and both methods of detection will be necessary.

One of the many clever conceits of ``Life on Mars'' is how it plays in many ways like a '70s cop show, from its visual palate consisting mainly of browns, greens and umbers (except for reds, which pop out vividly) to its often-cheesy action sequences (rolling over car hoods, jumping over desks as a literal leap to action, two guys punching one crook simultaneously).

Yet there are also Sam's desperate efforts to figure out what has happened to him, usually in sequences involving a famous BBC test pattern featuring a quixotic little girl who comes to life to provide esoteric advice regarding how to escape to his real reality.

As the series progresses, a few episodes play a little too much as regular crime melodramas, with clumsy plotting or clues too easily tipped to viewers. But the season finale returns to the brilliance of the first episodes, as Sam discovers what accounted for the disappearance of his father when he was a young child.

Glenister is the show's breakout star as Hunt, whose arrogant swagger, poorly bottled rage and cranky wit have reportedly transformed him into a hero among current British policemen.

When he's taken hostage by a lunatic, who proceeds to empty the contents of his flask onto the floor, Hunt barks, ``That is a single malt! What kind of monster are you?''

David Kronke, [phone]

david.kronke(at)dailynews.com

LIFE ON MARS Three and one half stars

What: An accident propels a contemporary British cop back to 1973, where policing methods were akin to ``Starsky and Hutch.''

Where: BBC America.

When: 10 tonight.

In a nutshell: A bravura mix of drama and parody.

CAPTION(S):

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Photo:

(color) Philip Glenister, left, and John Simm star in the quirky ``Life on Mars,'' premiering at 10 tonight on BBC America.