Criss Angel has a new home. Literally.

His A&E series, "Criss Angel: Mindfreak," isn't going anywhere -- it's the cable channel's highest-rated series.

But when the third-season shoot begins today at the Luxor, Angel won't even have to leave the pyramid -- because his permanent address is now the Luxor's presidential suite.

In addition to more real-meets-surreal illusions, the 26 half-hour segments (plus a one-hour finale) will feature "a kind of comical side," with "behind-the-scenes stuff," Angel reports. "People are more interested in what it's really like to put this thing together, along with showing them illusions."

Among the illusions he plans for this season: "dematerializing" while in the driver's seat of a speeding Lamborghini and floating to the top of the Luxor's atrium.

A shooting schedule will be posted weekly in the show's production office (located in the Luxor Galleria shopping area) during the 22-week shoot, enabling locals and tourists alike to participate in the production.

"For me," Angel says of the ever-changing crowds, "that's a buffet that never ends."

Farewell to Pair-a-dice: Just as Criss Angel settles in for an extended Vegas run, Fox Reality's "Rob and Amber: Against the Odds" marks its final week in Pair-a-dice.

The show follows the Las Vegas life of "Survivor" and "Amazing Race" alumni Rob and Amber Mariano -- and Rob's quest to become a professional poker player.

This week, "we're doing some wrap-up scenes," explains executive producer Linda Ellman.

Following 10 weeks in Las Vegas, the Marianos head home to Pensacola, Fla., for the holidays -- while the editing crew reduces about a thousand hours of footage into 10 half-hour episodes for the show's January debut.

Foreign intrigue: Two Japanese productions showcase Strip headliners for their viewers back home.

"That the World Lives," an hour-long special for Fuji Television, focuses on Cirque du Soleil -- and the MGM Grand's "Ka" -- in advance of an upcoming tour. And David Copperfield (who opens Thursday at the MGM Grand) takes over the spotlight on a TV Tokyo special designed to promote his visit to Japan next month.

Also on the overseas front, the British-based "Globe Trekker" travel series (seen in more than 40 countries -- including the U.S., where it airs on PBS) also visits, capturing footage for an upcoming one-hour episode.

In the cards: The third season of the syndicated "Ultimate Poker Challenge" is under way at Binion's -- representing the first month of a year-long shoot at the Glitter Gulch landmark. Audiences are invited to catch the competition, which begins at 4 p.m. Saturdays through Tuesdays.

Carol Cling's Shooting Stars column appears Mondays. Contact her at 383-0272 or e-mail her at ccling@review >journal.com