1) “MTV Video Music Awards,” 8 p.m. ET, CBS, MTV and Paramount+. After 40 years on MTV, this adds CBS, with LL Cool J hosting. There are special awards for Mariah Carey (shown here) and Ricky Martin. They’ll perform, as will Post Malone, Jelly Roll, Sabrina Carpenter, Doja Cat, Tate McRae and more, including an Ozzy Osbourne tribute with Steve Tyler and Joe Perry.
2) ‘”The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon” opener, 9 p.m., AMC; also at 10:19 and 11:38 Some 25 years after co-creating “The Office” in England, Stephen Merchant has maybe his best role ever. He’s “the last man in England,” surviving zombies. And he’s the one hope for Daryl and Carol, in an episode that’s visually and emotionally powerful.
3) Football, 8:15 p.m., NBC. It’s the first Sunday of the pro season, stuffed with so many games that CBS pre-empts “60 Minutes.” The night ends with this collision of two division leaders from last year: The Buffalo Bills (13-4 in the regular season) host the Baltimore Ravens (12-5).
4) “Task” opener, 9 p.m., HBO. Back in 2021, “Mare of Easttown,” starring Oscar-winner Kate Winslet, drew steep praise. Now the same writer is in the same turf (blue-collar Pennsylvania) with Mark Ruffalo, an Emmy-winner and four-time Oscar-nominee. Ruffalo plays a former priest, now a deeply empathetic FBI man, desperate to solve home invasions.
5) “Marlow Murder Club,” 9 p.m., PBS. A two-parter begins with a stranger’s body found in a cul-de-sac, revealing suburban-style rage. That’s in a night of well-crafted mysteries. “Professor T” (8 p.m.) probes a school inspector’s death. “The Unforgotten” (10), with the third of six episodes, discovers the murder victim’s brutal past.
— Mikle Hughes, TV America