1) “Dancing With the Stars” opener, 8-10 p.m., ABC; continues Wednesday. Some people start this with no dance experience. Others? Jenna Dewan and Julia Stiles have starred in dance movies; Dewan (shown here in “Step Up”) is a trained dancer; Stiles had two months of intense training. Now they’re in an interesting line-up, alongside Paralympic champ Ezra Frech and more.
2) “R.J. Decker” season-opener, 10 p.m., ABC. Here the first scripted show of the new broadcast-network season. “Decker” began at mid-season, did well, and now gets a good spot. Scott Speedman plays R.J., a photographer who was framed and sent to prison. Now he’s a private detective; tonight former prison colleagues lure him into a heist.
3) “America’s Got Talent” semi-finals, 8-10 p.m., NBC. Four acts have already jumped to the Sept. 22 finals — two singers (ages 14 and 16), a magic act and dancing robots. Now 12 more compete for six spots,, to be revealed Wednesday. There are three singers and three magic acts, two dance acts and two dog acts, a comedian and an aerialist.
4) “Password,” 10 p.m., NBC. It’s a busy stretch for Alan Cumming. He’s just won his third straight Emmy, for hosting “Traitors” on Peacock; on Thursday, he hosts a variation of that show on NBC. And here, he faces Jimmy Fallon in a battle of wits and words.
5) ALSO: It’s a night of key reruns: Fox has the “Kitchen Nightmares” season-finale (8-10 p.m.) and others have reruns: CBS has the “Survivor” finale, from 8-11 p.m.; PBS profiles Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid at 9 p.m., followed by a fascinating look at writer Julia Alvarez at 10.
— Mike Hughes, TV America