1) “House of the Dragon” season-opener, 9 p.m. Sunday, HBO and HBO Max. This is epic filming — TV on a mega-movie scale. At one point, the show had expected to close its second season with the Battle of the Gullet. Now, instead, it uses that to give the third season a huge start. Dragons, ships and warriors collide in the water between two kingdoms.
2) More epics. But what if you don’t have HBO … or you want extra mega-fantasy? The “Lord of the Rings” film trilogy is on cable’s TruTV — Saturday at 2, 6 and 10 p.m.; Sunday at noon, 4 and 8. Epic action blends with great characters and craftsmanship. Thee films combined for 30 Oscar nominations and 17 wins, including (for the third) best picture.
3) “Becoming Katharine Graham,” 9-11 p.m. Tuesday, PBS. Graham was a rich socialite, a friend of Kennedys and Reagans. Then her life transformed at 46; her husband’s death left her in charge of the Washington Post. She steered it through Watergate, the Pentagon Papers and more. It’s a great story and (despite an awful music score) an interesting film.
4) More documentaries. PBS has two more new ones — a sterny compelling look at a Holocaust hero (10 p.m. Monday) and a gorgeous view ofAustralian wilds (10 Wednesday). It also reruns the first half of a George H.W. Bush profile, 9-11 p.m. Friday; at that same time (on Juneteenth), History debuts “The Clash of Nations: Joe Louis vs. Max Schmeling.”
5) Multi-“Simpsons.” There are two episodes this week: On Wednesday, Disney+ has a new one, with Marge envisioning alternate Homers. That’s streaming-only, celebrating the fact that Disney now has all 37 seasons, plus the movie and shorts. And at 8 p.m. Sunday, Fox reruns an episode that asks an eternal question: Is Bart bad or good?
6) “Las Culturistas Culture Awards,” 9-11 p.m. Wednesday, Bravo. This started as a whimsical podcast with former college pals — Bowen Yang of “Saturday Night Live” fame and Matt Rogers of comedy semi-fame. Then came the awards, which reached Bravo last year, with lots of winners showing up. Categories are random; the mood is festive.
7) “Surviving Earth,” 8 p.m. Thursday, NBC. Last week’s opener saw an endless heat wave. Now we jump ahead a bit: 232 million years ago, a lush era had ended; rains abated as new creatures — including early mammals and dinosaurs — roamed. With great special effects, it’s a fairly good hour, followed by a splendid “Americas” rerun visiting the Amazon.
8) “Elsbeth,” 10 p.m. Thursday, CBS. This delightful show ends each season with a big episode — a quirky fashion show the first year, a prison musical the second. Here’s a rerun of the third-season finale, with Patti LuPone, 77, a three-time Tony-winner. She plays a legendary cabaret star, now living amid a hotel’s faded elegance; Michael Urie plays a philanthropist.
9) More, cable. “The Vampire Lestat” (9 p.m. Sunday, AMC), starts with some clever volleys of verbal wit. Then it’s back to blood, gore and centuries of personal pain. If you prefer fun, the National Geographic Channel reruns a hilarious hour about terrible animal parents. That’s 1:25 p.m. Sunday, followed by James Cameron’s terrific “Secrets of” films.
10) ALSO: Sports still gobble much of the schedule. This week, Fox has 16 World Cup games, including U.S.-Australia at 3 p.m. ET Friday. And ABC leaves room for possible playoff finals — basketball, Tuesday and Friday; hockey, Wednesday. Still, both have time for reruns, from “1% Club” (8 p.m. Monday, Fox) to “High Potential” (8-11 p.m. Saturday, ABC).