Top-10 for week of July 19: Finales, nature … then the Olympics take over

1) Olympics opening ceremony, 7:30 to midnight ET Friday. After a five-year wait – a year longer than usual – the Olympics are here. A few sports – soccer, softball, archery, rowing –will begin Wednesday on the NBC Sports Network; others will wait for the ceremony, which could be spectacular. (The 2016 ceremony is snown here.) There will be no in-person spectators, but there will be 11,000 athletes from 206 countries – ranging from 600-plus Americans to one each from Nairu, Tuvalu, Aruba and South Sudan. Also NBC has previews all day, except 4-7 p.m. Read more…

1) Olympics opening ceremony, 7:30 to midnight ET Friday. After a five-year wait – a year longer than usual – the Olympics are here. A few sports – soccer, softball, archery, rowing –will begin Wednesday on the NBC Sports Network; others will wait for the ceremony, which could be spectacular. (The 2016 ceremony is snown here.) There will be no in-person spectators, but there will be 11,000 athletes from 206 countries – ranging from 600-plus Americans to one each from Nairu, Tuvalu, Aruba and South Sudan. Also NBC has previews all day, except 4-7 p.m.

2) Olympic coverage, Saturday and Sunday. Now the deluge begins, split into daytime (9 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET Saturday, 8 to 6 Sunday), prime (7:30-11:30 p.m. Saturday, 7-11:30 Sunday) and late (midnight to 2 a.m.). Favorites for Americans include: team gymnastics (prime time, men Saturday and women Sunday) … beach volleyball (men daytime both days, women prime Sunday) … and swimming (day and prime, both days). There’s much more, including men’s basketball, U.S.-France, Sunday daytime.

3) Serengeti documentaries. Sprawling across 12,000 square miles of Tanzania, the Serengeti has been a wonderland for nature films. Now the “Serengeti” mini-series – with Emmy nominations for its narration and its gorgeous cinematography – reruns from 2-10:38 p.m. today on Animal Planet; its final portion reruns from 9-11:32 p.m. Tuesday on Science. At 9 p.m. Wednesday, PBS reruns “The Serengeti Rules,” an Emmy-winner for best nature film. Also “Serengeti II” just arrived on Discovery+.

4) “The Bachelorette,” 8-10 p.m. today, ABC. Seven men remain, trying to be among the four who take Katie Thurston, 30, to their home towns. Two still haven’t had a one-on-one date – Brendan Scanzano, 26. a firefighter trainee; Mike Planeta, 31, a gym owner . The others: Blake Moynes, 30, wildlife manager; Greg Grippo, 27, sales rep; Justin Glaze, 26, investment salesman; Michael Allio, 36, business owner; Andrew Spencer, who’s had three pro-football seasons as a defensive back in Austria.

5) “Bob (Hearts) Abishola,” 8:30 p.m. today, CBS. Ater stuffing its summer with reality shows, CBS bunched its three Chuck Lorre comedies on Mondays. Now each has one of its better reruns. First, Bob is determined to buy a ring for Abishola; her uncle – who considers himself a master at haggling – helps, sort of. Then “Young Sheldon” sees freshman orientation go astray. And on “United States of Al” (9:30), Al and Riley speak to a veterans’ group; the laughs are sparse, but there are moving moments.

6) Season-finales, 8 p.m., CW. Four shows wrap, before the Olympics. It’s “All American” on Monday (Billy learns Spencer’s secret) … “The Flash” on Tuesday (with a fierce foe, the Flash needs everyone – including his future children) … “Kung Fu” on Wednesday (Olivia learns what’s needed to open the forge) … and “Charmed” on Friday (Macy is near death). Also: On Friday, “Judge Judy” has its last new episode. It’s been around for 25 seasons; Judy Sheindlin, 78, will start a new show this fall.

7) “Olympic Dreams,” 8 p.m. Wednesday, NBC. When the Jonas Brothers were growing up in New Jersey, NBC claims, they wanted to be Olympians. Instead, they had to settle for being rock stars. (Also, Nick became a movie star, sometimes is a “Voice” coach and married international beauty Priyonka Chopra). Now they’re back to that original idea: Kevin, 33, Joe, 31, and Nick, 28, will train for Olympic events with their idols. Then – with sibling rivalry in hyperdrive – they’ll start to compete.

8) “Grown-ish,” 8 p.m. Thursday, Freeform. Here’s a dizzying change: The season’s first two episodes were a wild resort party in Mexico; Zoey and Aaron had a first date, got married, got unmarried (it was never made legal, they learned) and stayed together. This was slick and fun. Then, we’re told, the pandemic hit and the fall semester went virtual. Tonight, we jump to spring semester … and the show shifts from a bright comedy to a fairly good drama. Times are rough for Zoey and two of her friends.

9) “Good Girls” finale, 9 p.m Thursday, NBC. A once-promising show ends without getting to wrap things up. This was intended as the fourth-season finale; then – too late – NBC decided there won’t be a fifth. Beth is wedged between Rio (who wants her to continue counterfeiting and laundering) and his cousin Nick (a corrupt official who wants her elected to the city council). Two cops, working on their own, want the women to raid Nick’s office. It’s a precarious plan … and a messy way to end a series.

10) “Ted Lasso” season-opener, Friday, Apple TV+. Last week, Apple debuted the delightful “Schmigadoon.” Now it has a new episode of that and starts the second “Lasso” season. The first drew 14 Emmy nominations, including best comedy and best actor – Jason Sudeikis, playing an American coaching football in England. Also streaming Friday is “Playing With Sharks” on Disney+. It’s an excellent profile of Valerie Taylor, from a Gidget-looking beach kid to an 85-year-old shark activist.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *