TELEVISION: THE BEST TELEVISION OF 1996

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9 Relativity (ABC) At first this new drama from Ed Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz seemed a tad too precious, a touch too eager to wrap up its conflicts with tidy bows. But the series, focused on a pair of new young lovers, quickly managed to ground itself more firmly in the rhythms of a real relationship. Poignant but not overwrought, Relativity has become one of TV's finest hours.

10 Taking on the Kennedys (PBS) This documentary about the 1994 congressional race between young Patrick Kennedy and Kevin Vigilante, an accomplished physician, has all the populist wit of a Michael Moore piece without the contrivances. We learn that Vigilante didn't stand a chance against an opponent who wooed voters with the musk of Camelot.