1) “Animal Control,” 9 p.m., Fox. This is a solid formulas for big laughs – frisky ostriches, a nasty weasel and Joel McHale. An ex-cop working animal-control, McHale’s character is a darkly acerbic soul, partnered with a cheerful ex-snowboarder. (They’re shown here.) His workplace includes a sexy single, a reluctant homebody (Ravi Patel), a charmingly clumsy clerk (Vella Lovell of “Mr. Mayor”) and more. The result is a fun blend of sharp dialog and big sight gags.
2) More comedies. Thursday is a good comedy night, if you switch channels. At 8, CBS has “Young Sheldon,” with Paige (McKenna Grace), a young genius, luring Sheldon to a frat party; it follows with “Ghosts” and the first date between Thorfinn and Flower. Then switch to Fox for “Animal Control” and “Call Me Kat”: Kat and Max are now living together and hosting a Super Bowl party.
3) “Next Level Chef,” 8 p.m., Fox. After a big Super Bowl start, this settles into its regular slot. The pace is hyperactive, with complex cooking words bounding around like medical phrases in “ER.” Fortunately, there are also some interesting people. Tini Younger, 21, flopped in school (a learning-disability was discovered late), then soared on social media. Alex Morizio, 48, thrived in school; he’s a doctor and a home chef. They offer appealing contrasts.
4) “Poker Face,” Peacock. As one of the best new shows in years, “Poker Face” keeps changing form each episode. This one has a unique ending and a fresh setting – a small-town race track. Charles Melton (Reggie on “Riverdale”) plays the young hot-shot, with Tim Black Nelson (an indie-movie favorite) as the angry old champ. Natasha Lyonne is terrific, as usual, as the crimesolver.
5) Movies: We can choose lush romance or big-laugh comedy. For the former, Hallmark reruns two pretty-places films – “Caribbean Summer” (2022) at 6 p.m., “A Paris Proposal” (2023) at 8; Turner Classic Movies has the triumphant musical “West Side Story” (1961) at 8 p.m. ET. And for laughs, Peter Sellers is superb on MGM+, with “The Pink Panther” (1963) at 8 p.m. and sequels (1975 and 1976) at 10 and 11:55.