Mike Hughes on TV

1) “The Good Doctor” season-opener, 10 p.m., ABC. Some shows ignore the COVID crisis, but others embrace it. Here’s the latter; working with infected patients makes everyone wary. Dr. Shaun Murphy (Freddie Highmore, shown here with Hill Harper) loves Lea, but can’t be near her; Dr. Reznick, banned from surgery, navigates around the clinic, putting herself and others at risk. There’s more, in this start of a two-parter: Dr. Park prepares to return to Phoenix; Dr. Brown mourns Dr Melendez, who was killed in the season-ending earthquake. Read more…

1) “Masterpiece: Roadkill” opener, 9 p.m., PBS. We meet Peter Laurence (Hugh Laurie, shown here) in a moment of victory. He successfully sued a newspaper that accused him of corruption. All is fine … except the newspaper may have been right. Also, he’s cheating on his wife … he’s distant with his daughters … he’s surrounded by schemers … and there are big twists ahead. We don’t know whether to like or hate him; we still won’t know when the four-parter ends, but there are big surprises along the way. Read more…

1) Halloween lite. There’s a long wait before trick-or-treating, so cable fills it. FX has all 31 “Simpsons Treehouse of Horror” (shown here) episodes — some family-friendly, some not — from 9 a.m. to 12:30 a.m. Freeform has two each of “Twitches” (7 and 9 a.m.), “Halloweentown” (11 a.m. 1 p.m.) and “Addams Family” (5:10 and 7:15 p.m.) films, plus “Hocus Pocus” (3 and 9:20 p.m.) and the reboot of “Ghostbusters” (11:30 p.m.). Disney has “Zombies” movies at noon and 2 p.m. and a “Halloween House Party” at 5. Read more…

1) “Jazz at the Lincoln Center: A Swingin’ Sesame Street Celebration,” 9 p.m., PBS. From the start, “Sesame Street” has had sharp humor, vibrant visuals and great music. “I grew up loving the show,” Wynton Marsalis says. He’s guested on it and his trumpeter (Kenny Rampton) is in the “Sesame” band. Now the Jazz at the Lincoln Center Orchestra, led by Marsalis, offers a zestful hour of music, from “Sing” to “Rubber Duckie.” The “Sesame” stars – Bert and Ernie (shown here) and such – add dabs of humor. Read more…

1) “City So Real,” 7 p.m. to 1 a.m. ET, National Geographic. Here is an epic documentary, tackling an entire city (Chicago), with all its passion and quirks. It starts on July 4, 2018, a half-year before the mayoral primary. Some 21 candidates announce, 17 file petitions, 14 make the ballot. But it also involves the flavor of the city, from bars to barbershops. “Real” originally ended with the election, but Geographic added a fifth part – showing the new mayor encased in protest (shown here) and pandemic. Read more…