1) “Gospel,” 9-11 p.m. today and Tuesday, PBS. Henry Louis Gates goes back to the start of a splendid artform. We see the preachers (including Aretha Franklin’s father) with a rich musicality and the singers with a message. He introduces the early masters — writer Thomas Dorsey, singer Mahalia Jackson (shown here), etc. — and, on Tuesday, modern forces who merge rock, gospel and show-biz flair.
2) “The Bachelor,” 8-10:01 p.m., ABC. Warmng up for Valentine’s Day (Wednesday), ABC has two straight “Bachelor” nights. Today, in Malta, includes the season’s largest group date, plus the start of a cocktail party that turns messy. On Tuesday, that party wraps up and the show moves to Spain.
3) “Bob (Hearts) Abishola,” 8:30 p.m., CBS. One of TV’s best shows starts its final (alas) season, with a pivotal move: Like many immigrants, Abishola insists that her son get great grades and go to a top school. Now she learns he’s canceled his plans to go to Harvard; Bob hopes he can intervene before she goes ballistic.
4) More season-openers. In a post-Super-Bowl flurry, CBS starts most of its shows this week. That begins with “The Neighborhood” at 8 (at his new business, Marty clashes with his dad and takes an interest in an employee), “Bob” at 8:30, “NCIS” at 9 (Torres confronts the man who tormented his family) and “NCIS: Hawaii” at 10 (LL Cool shows up, in his old “NCIS: Los Angeles” role).
5) MORE: At 8 p.m., AMC has the brilliant “Knives Out” (2019), NBC continues the “America’s Got Talent: Fantasy League” semi-finals and Showtime reruns the first two episodes of the second season of “Halo,” from Paramount+. At 9, National Geographic debuts “The Space Race” (see separate story). At 11, Jon Stewart returns to Comedy Central’s “Daily Show”; he’ll anchor on Mondays only.
— Mike Hughes, TV America