Month: July 2023

1) “Big Brother” opener, 8-9:30 p.m., CBS. This is what CBS has been pointing toward for months: Its summer shows get a late start, letting them sprawl into a reality-stuffed fall season. Tonight, Julie Chen (shown here) introduces the new housemates. The show continues at 9 p.m. Thursdays and 8 p.m. Sundays. Another reality show (“Secret Celebrity Renovation”) arrives at 8 p.m. Friday, with two more next week and several others (old and new) this fall. Read more…

1) “Southern Storytellers” finale, 9 p.m., PBS. We see talented people – writers Jesmyn Ward and Michael Waldron, singer-songwriters Justin Moore, Thao Nguyen and “Tank” Ball – express love of the South; we also see Natasha Tretheway (shown here) discuss love and hate. She was born (to parents whose mixed marriage was illegal in Mississippi), in town dominated by Robert E. Lee’s statue. The statue has been removed; a new memorial denotes her time as U.S. poet laureate. Read more…

1) “Cruel Summer” finale, 10 p.m., Freeform. Flashing between three times, each six months apart, we’ve seen teens transform. Megan (Sadie Stanley, shown here) and Luke went from platonic to passionate; then she hardened, covering up details of the night he died. This has required deft writing and acting; now, at last, we learn which people (directly and indirectly) were responsible for his death. Stick with this one to the final twist; it’s a strong finish to a surprisingly good tale. Read more…

1) “Dark Winds” season-opener, 9 p.m., AMC. Under his stoic exterior, police Lt. Joe Leaphorn has deep layers of emotion. A mining explosion killed his son – his only child, because many Navajo women (including his wife, now a nurse) were sterilized after giving birth. Now he has a case that may be linked to the explosion. Like the first season, this is a six-week story, beautifully crafted and perfectly played, especially by Zahn McClarnon (shown here) as Joe. Read more…

1) “Dawn” finale, 8-10 p.m., Lifetime. The first three movies (rerunning at 2, 4 and 6 p.m.) battered Dawn emotionally. Now she has actually found joy – a warm husband, a sweet-16 daughter Christie (shown here) and a comfy estate. This, of course, must change. The final film offers tragedy, then propels Christie to New York and to the eerie plantation where she was born. Surrounded by relatives who are berserk, even by soap standards, she gropes for a normal life. Read more…

1) “Family Law,” 8 p.m., CW. This is the sort of hour “Law” does well – blending courtroom tales with personal stories of the family, while jugging heavy and light. Abby (Jewel Staite) and her brother Daniel handle a complex “mail-order bride” case, at the same time that she’s breaking the divorce news to her kids and he’s trying online dating. Another story involving her dad (Victor Garber, shown here with Staite) is quite goofy and some of the “solutions” are iffy. Overall, however, this is a solidly involving hour. Read more…

1) “Ghosts,” 8 and 8:30 p.m., CBS. Jay’s sister first visited under wobbly circumstances: Fresh from a break-up, she was enamored with a video contact … who turned out to be dead Trevor. Now she’s back at Christmastime (yes, these are reruns), with a guy friend (they’re shown here); Sam, having seen too many holiday films, wants to stir a romance. It’s a funny two-parter that displaces “Young Sheldon” for a week. Read more…