Best-bets for April 26: fun with Carol, “Lies” and more

1) “Carol Burnett: 90 Years of Laughter + Love,” 8-10 p.m., NBC. On Burnett’s 90th birthday, we get a cascade of clips, songs and praise. That’s a fine idea, even if the mix is wrong. There’s way too much praise (repetitious and sort of monotonous) and way too few clips of Burnett and friends in her series (shown here) and specials. Even with the mis-blend, however, this is a delight. It includes music from Katy Perry, Billy Porter, Kristin Chenoweth, Jane Lynch and more. Read more…

1) “Carol Burnett: 90 Years of Laughter + Love,” 8-10 p.m., NBC. On Burnett’s 90th birthday, we get a cascade of clips, songs and praise. That’s a fine idea, even if the mix is wrong. There’s way too much praise (repetitious and sort of monotonous) and way too few clips of Burnett and friends in her series (shown here) and specials. Even with the mis-blend, however, this is a delight. It includes music from Katy Perry, Billy Porter, Kristin Chenoweth, Jane Lynch and more.

2) “True Lies,” 10 p.m., CBS. Almost 30 years ago, Tom Arnold was Arnold Schwarzenegger’s co-star in the “True Lies” movie. Now he’s back as a (slightly) different character – once a government operative, now a loner with a booby-trapped lawn and life. A crisis reunites him with his lover/foe (Kate Vernon). It’s a fun hour, despite seemingly having magic bullets that only strike villains.

3) “The Flash,” 8 p.m., CW. Long ago (well, three years and three months ago), “Arrow” ended with its hero dying and saving the world. Now he’s back, for this episode. When Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) died, he became the Spectre. Now he returns in that form, after poison endangers Flash and friends.

4) “Nature,” 8 p.m., PBS. It’s sort of like Earth Day re-appears today on PBS. First is this hour, filled with splendid views of a richly populated coral reef (near Guatemala) that was only discovered a decade ago. Then is a “Nova” hour, looking at wide-ranging efforts to trim our carbon footprint; that ranges from Texas oil fields to restaurant kitchens.

5) “Schmigadoon,” Apple TV+. If you’re parodying great musicals, it helps if you can write great musical numbers. That’s what Cinco Paul does; this episode’s opener – a solo by a nervous Melissa (Cecily Strong) — is a gem. Then things crumble in funny ways. Melissa and Josh thought they’d won; instead, she’s in peril, setting up next week’s season-finale. Also streaming today: a new “Ted Lasso” on Apple and the start of the “Saint X” mystery on Hulu.

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