1) “Council of Dads” return, 9 p.m. Thursday, NBC. The debut saw a cancer-stricken dad ask three friends to help his kids if he died; he did. That aired after the “This Is Us” season-finale, which had similar warmth and passion; it reruns at 8 p.m., leading to the second episode, another good one. One “dad” tries too hard, another doesn’t try hard enough, the third feels guilty. Also, the eldest daughter (shown here) has married and plans to move to New York City. Stick around, there’s a sharp plot twist at the end.
2) “Better Things” season-finale, 10 p.m. Thursday, FX. This wonderfully odd show is full of strange bits, many of them unrelated and some of them great. Last week’s episode (rerunning at 10:30 p.m. today) started with a brilliant piece by Hannah Alligood as Frankie. The finale has another masterful moment, a brilliant monolog by writer-director-star Pamela Adlon. There are cheery scenes related to a ballgame and serious ones related to last week, when she reluctantly invited her ex-husband to dinner.
3) “The Good Witch” movies, all day Saturday, Hallmark Movies and Mysteries; and series season-opener, 9 p.m. Sunday, Hallmark. This started in 2008 as a pleasantly bland movie, with Catherine Bell as a sweet, small-town witch. There were seven such films (running from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday) before the show switched to its new form: Cassie – widowed, with a teen daughter – fell for the handsome new doctor. They’ve been together in five movies (8 p.m. to 6 a.m.) and in the series.
4) “Prodigal Son” season-finale, 9 p.m. today, Fox. Last week ended with a jolt: Eve – Malcolm’s lost love, whose sister was the mysterious “girl in a box” he saw as a boy – was slain. Malcolm visited the killer in the hospital, hoping to prove he was hired by Nicholas Endicott, the evil mogul. And then? The killer was killed and Malcolm was arrested; this is clearly a setback. Tonight, this dark (and well-acted) drama sees him trying to clear himself, expose Endicott and finally solve the “girl in a box” mysteries,
5) “Secrets of the Dead” return, 8 p.m. Tuesday, PBS. The Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris has always loomed large. In fiction, the hunchback hid there; in real life, it held the funerals of presidents and the coronation of Napoleon. The fire, a year ago, has led to a four-year repair project. Yes, that’s imposing; still, this compelling film shows that Notre-Dame is in constant renewal. Construction started in 1160 and took a century; a 20-year remodeling began in 1844. Details, including gargoyles, came gradually.
6) “The Masked Singer,” 8 p.m. Wednesday, Fox. With six of the 18 singers left, this is booting (and unmasking) real talent. Early on, it had lots of ringers – Tony Hawk, Sarah Palin, Rob Gronkowski and more; it also ousted two respected singers, Dionne Warwick and Chaka Khan. And last week it booted Bret Michaels, who (solo and with Poison) has sold 40 million records. “Masked Singer” has been a ratings success, so Fox has a 9 p.m. after-show with Nick Cannon and (via social distancing) guests.
7) “What We Do In the Shadows,” 10 p.m. Wednesday, FX. At first, Guillermo seemed gentle and harmless; for 10 years, he’s been the ever-subservient aide (called a “familiar”) to do-nothing vampires in Staten Island. Then he learned that he’s descended from vampire-hunters; he’s been using his skills to protect his masters. Now he infiltrates a vampire-hunter club. The result isn’t for everyone, but many people will consider this an odd delight … which is true of other FX shows, including “Better Things.”
8) “Blindspot” season-opener, 10 p.m. Thursday, NBC. With productions halted by the virus, many shows are ending their seasons early. That leaves networks scrambling to fill voids; NBC had planned to run this final, 11-episode season this summer, but now is nudging it earlier. Last season, “Jane Doe” and her former FBI colleagues were on the run from corrupt officials. She was outside when a rocket hit their hideout. In this heavy-handed episode, we learn who survived and ee a daring rescue mission.
9) “Blue Bloods” season-finale, 10 p.m. Friday, CBS. Here’s one of those early-ending series; it wraps up (three episodes early) with a three-generation tale. Sean, 16, tracks a DNA report of a mysterious relative. His father Danny, a police detective, probes the murder of a witness. Meanwhile, the police commissioner – that’s Danny’s father and Sean’s grandfather – gets a woman’s request that her son be transferred to safer duty. Also, Jamie (Danny’s brother) and his wife find a baby outside the station.
10) “Billions” season-opener, 9 p.m. Sunday, Showttime. The battle resumes between two brilliant and bitter men. Bobby Axelrod (Damian Lewis) is now a billionaire 10 times over; Chuck Rhoades (Paul Giamatti) is New York’s attorney general, determined to bring him down. Rhoades’ estranged wife works for Ax; also, Tayior Mason seems to work for both. As the season stars, Ax is at a sweat lodge and Rhoades is at his dad’s wedding. Neither is happy, but torrents of brilliant dialog soon follow.