"NCIS: New Orleans" sets up shop in the Big Easy

The stars and producers of "NCIS: New Orleans" are betting that the crime drama's setting, in one of America's most distinctive cities, will exert its own magic with viewers.

"It's really about the DNA of the city and the whole Gulf Coast," said executive producer Jeffrey Lieber.

"The mysteries are sort of infused with a kind of culture and soul -- which is not to say anything about 'NCIS' -- but you feel the city in every beat and starting to inform the characters as well," Lieber said during a panel discussion with TV critics.

"NCIS: New Orleans" is taped, both on location and at a studio, in the Big Easy and its surroundings. CBS offered viewers a taste last season, using a two-episode arc on "NCIS" to test its potential and then greenlighting the new series with star Scott Bakula.

The original "NCIS," starring Mark Harmon and set in Washington, D.C., is shot at a studio north of Los Angeles. The LL Cool J/Chris O'Donnell spinoff is taped on the Paramount lot and on location in Los Angeles.

In "NCIS: NOLA," to use its network nickname, Bakula plays Dwayne Pride, a special agent with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. He's based in the New Orleans field office that handles cases involving military personnel.

"We're killing ourselves trying to make a great show and provide a great hour of entertainment. Obviously, people have many, many choices these days to turn to," Bakula said on the set. "We want them to stay and watch 'NCIS' and then follow with us."

Lucas Black, Zoe McLellan, CCH Pounder and Rob Kerkovich also star.

"I'm used to this heat out here," Black said, grinning. "It's kind of fun for me to see some of the people that come from Los Angeles. They struggle out here in this humid weather."

"NCIS: New Orleans" debuts Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET on CBS, immediately following TV's top-rated drama "NCIS," which airs at 8 p.m. ET.