1) “Tough as Nails” debut, 8 and 9 p.m., CBS. Here is tough-guy Americana – a retired Marine with four combat tours, a scaffold-builder, two firemen and more. And here are tough women, too – a farmer, a welder, an ironworker … and Michelle Kiddy (shown here), baggage-handler who is 62 and described as “5-foot-nothing.” That’s the charm of this working-skills show. which Phil Keoghan co-produces (with his wife), directs and hosts. The bad news is the repetition of cliches; the good news is a solid human core.
2) “The 100,” 8 p.m., CW. As last week ended, Clarke and her team charged in to rescue their friends. But now she confronts the cult leader – and gets an instant history lesson. Flashing back 97 years, we see the start of the apocalypse … and the first batch of people re-inhabiting Earth. The result doubles as a pilot for a prequel series. It’s tangled and complicated, but beautifully filmed, introducing an impressive young actress (Iola Evans, shown here, center) with virtually no film experience, who would star in the prequel.
3) “Married at First Sight,” 8-11 p.m., Lifetime. Next week, we’ll see five sets of strangers marry. The show gives them eight weeks together, then has them decide whether to stay. (In the first 10 seasons, about two-thirds have said yes.) First, we get a two-part preview: From 9-11 p.m., a panel discusses the show and meets past couples. At 8, we see the matchmaking process and see the couples – a medical student with a theater artistic director, a computer guy with a flight attendant, etc.
4) “Agents of SHIELD,” 10 p.m., ABC. Don’t you hate it when you get stranded somewhere? Or, worse, stranded some time? Mack and Deke are stuck in 1982, unsure if anyone will retrieve them. Mack processes his parents’ death; life is peaceful … until, of course, the killer robots arrive.
5) “China: Power and Prosperity,” 10 p.m., PBS. Here’s a look at China’s surging impact on the economy, technology and communications. Creating it involved 70 on-camera interviews, PBS says, some of which were previously shown in a 10-part “PBS Newshour” series.