Best-bets for Oct. 8: Mysteries end; Cruella returns

1) “Professor T” season-finale, 8 p.m., PBS. This is basically a case-of-the-week series, with clever crimes solved by a criminology professor. Along the way, however, it has planted secrets among the police: Lisa (Emma Naomi, shown here) had a secret romance with Dan; their boss has a secret one with an undercover cop. Dan raged about Lisa’s secret shot at promotion … while he was secretly moonlighting with thugs. It all explodes tonight, in a terrific finish. Read more…

1) “Professor T” season-finale, 8 p.m., PBS. This is basically a case-of-the-week series, with clever crimes solved by a criminology professor. Along the way, however, it has planted secrets among the police: Lisa (Emma Naomi, shown here) had a secret romance with Dan; their boss has a secret one with an undercover cop. Dan raged about Lisa’s secret shot at promotion … while he was secretly moonlighting with thugs. It all explodes tonight, in a terrific finish.

2) “Unforgotten” season-finale, 9 p.m., PBS. Unlike the other Sunday mysteries, this follows a single story (a tangled “cold case”) for the six-week season. This has spanned generations – from a once-powerful British official to young convicts. A potent hour is followed by the Van der Valk” finale.

3) “Cruella,” 8-11 p.m., ABC. A movie centering on the “101 Dalmatians” villain? That sounds warped, but it’s executed beautifully. Craig Gillespie – who directed the wonderful “I, Tonya” and has drawn praise for “Dumb Money” – made this one. Set in early-1970s London, it has the look and sound of the near-Beatles era. Two Emmas star – Stone as the young Cruella and Thompson as an evil baroness.

4) “Krapopolis,” 8:30 p.m., Fox. True heroism is rare these days and we see why. For stealing fire and giving it to the masses, Prometheus was chained to a rock, where an eagle kept chewing his liver. Now Tyrannis takes his chief scientist to free him; also, Ty’s giant half-sister vows to find and torment her birth father. It’s an inconsistent episode that includes some very funny moments, in a night of all-new animation, from 8-10 p.m.

5) “The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon,” 9 p.m., AMC. One week from the finale, we finale learn (via flashbacks) how Daryl ended up on a slow boat to France. Now he’s trying to get the special boy to safety, while others try to capture or eat him. And Isabelle (the thief-turned-nun) squirms in her old world. It’s a taut, brutal hour. Side note: “When Calls the Heart” (9 p.m., Hallmark) is also a week from its finale, but has fewer or no zombies.
— Mike Hughes, TV America

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