First comes the violence, or at least the threat of it, in the expanded 75-minute, fourth-season finale of "The Sopranos." Then comes the sex, or at least the promise of it, with a new "American Undercover" documentary called "Cathouse," about life in a legal Nevada brothel.

"Cathouse" is produced and directed by Patti Kaplan, who's responsible both for the longrunning HBO series of late-night specials known as "Real Sex" and the same network's stripper-reality series, "G-String Divas."

I can't claim to have seen every episode of those previous efforts, but I can't claim to have missed them all, either. My overall sense is that "Real Sex" is a newsmagazine about sexual subjects, with attitude but without judgment.

"G-String Divas," on the other hand, was an attempt at a reality show with nudity, but getting up close and personal with these particular subjects had the unwanted effect of making them less, rather than more, appealing.

"Cathouse," which introduces us to the proprietors, employees and customers of Nevada's Bunny Ranch, is somewhere in between. It has the nonjudgmental stance of "Real Sex," but no real sex. It uses the hidden-camera technique of "Taxicab Confessions" and "G-String Divas" to capture candid action, but doesn't come close to showing all the action.

Not that there's anything wrong with that. "Cathouse" shows the negotiations leading up to a private "party" (a rate of $1,000 an hour seems to be the mean), and observes or interviews the customers and "working girls" (the preferred term at this legal house of prostitution) afterward. Otherwise, what goes on behind closed doors remains a closed subject.

Information, though, is indeed gleaned here. We hear X-rated movie actress Sunset Thomas explaining why she comes to the Bunny Ranch to encounter her fans one-on-one (the answer: $45,000 per week), and learn that between 15 and 20 women call the Bunny Ranch every day looking for employment. After "Cathouse" airs, because of its Thursday afternoon ladies' teas and seemingly genial atmosphere, expect a temporary spike in those numbers.

Just as with political debates, viewers are likely to leave "Cathouse" thinking whatever they thought coming in.

All I'll say is that, in terms of structure, it's like a reality restaurant show where you see people ordering from the menu and relaxing after the meal, but never get to see anyone take a bite.

Originally published on December 5, 2002