1) “Batwoman,” 8 p.m., CW. In last week’s final minute, Kate (that’s Batwoman) had a startling notion: Maybe nasty Alice (Rachel Skarsten, shown here) is Kate’s long-dead sister, having become evil but not become dead. We’ll get an answer quickly, followed by ongoing arguments between Kate and her dad. He’s a one-note character, but “Batwoman” redeems itself with gorgeous visuals and its compelling lead character. Read more…
1) “Chicago Fire,” “Chicago Med” and “Chicago P.D.,” 8-11 p.m. Wednesday, NBC. It’s crossover time, flipping the order of the first two shows. Things start with firefighters and paramedics, rushing to a bacteria outbreak at a Bears game; a fire at a university causes Sevaride to suspect there’s something bigger. Then “Med” has an apartment complex under quarantine; Will comes across a bioterrorism suspect. That leads to “P.D.”(shown here) and a massive manhunt. Read more…
For years, neighbors in a Chicago suburb knew they were being watched.
Sometimes it was subtle – an odd car parked outside at all hours, workmen on the phone lines at 3 a.m. Sometimes it wasn’t; men showed up, flashed FBI badges and asked questions for an hour.
“We had all this paranoia in the neighborhood,” recalled Assia Boundaoui (shown here), who has made a PBS film about it. “People didn’t trust each other. We were constantly censoring ourselves.” Read more…
1) “The College Admissions Scandal” (shown here), 8 p.m., Lifetime, rerunning at 11:03. With the subtlety of a scream and the nuance of an avalanche, “Scandal” eyes a big story. It’s still watchable, because the reality is both shocking and perversely funny; the approach, however, is inept. Ducking the real stories (including Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman), this has fictional parents – then makes one a hideous Cruella/Maleficent type, burying the drama in excess. Gretchen Carlson’s follow-up is at 10:03. Read more…
1) “The Blacklist,” 8 p.m., NBC. The season opened last week with dazzling twists and illusions. Red woke up in a French hospital, nearly paralyzed … or he (and we) thought that happened. It was a fake hospital (in Maryland), an elaborate ruse by the Russian spy whose existence is a secret — even to her daughter Elizabeth, who’s scrambling to find Red. Now the illusions build. At this point, Red has escaped and been re-captured. It’s a brilliant and explosive (shown here) hour, with surprises to the end. Read more…
1) “Perfect Harmony,” 8:30 p.m., NBC. This may be the first time we’ve seen a small church choir belt out “We Are the Champions,” celebrating a trophy for being most improved. “Harmony” is like that, pulling odd twists. Bradley Whitford, already a triple Emmy-winner, provides the core as a crabby choirmaster, but others are also first-rate. Tonight, Ginny (Anna Camp, shown here) unleashes her inner Dolly. And Spencer Allport, as her son, has some droll lines, sort of like Jake in early “Two and a Half Men.” Read more…
In many teen shows, the parents are after-thoughts. They’re there to say “no” … and to be ignored.
An exception has been “Riverdale” and Fred Andrews, the good-guy dad played so convincingly by Luke Perry (shown here).
Seven months after Perry died, Fred’s death fills the season-opener .It’s a tribute to the character and the man who played him. “Luke came in and… just was Fred Andrews,” producer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa said last year. Read more…
In the new “Nancy Drew” series, Nancy does double duty; she’s a waitress who solves crimes.
That seems like a lot … except to aspiring actors. They’re forever leaping between day jobs – waiters and waitresses, usually – and auditions.
Kennedy McMann (shown here), the new Nancy, varied slightly, working as an afterschool nanny. “I would be, like, ‘Hey, guys, you know what’s a fun playtime? Help me learn my lines.’” Read more…
1) “Riverdale” season-opener, 8 p.m., CW. Alongside its flaws (big ones, sometimes), “Riverdale” has had a key strength: It’s had some profoundly decent characters — Archie Andrews, his dad Fred and their neighbor Betty Cooper – at its core. Luke Perry, a small-town Ohio guy, gave Fred real depth and believability; his death in March (at 52, after two strokes) is approached tonight (shown here) with quiet respect. This hour could be considered too one-note; still, that note is deeply moving and well-deserved. Read more…
1) “Finding Your Roots” season-opener, 8 p.m., PBS. After growing up among Hollywood privilege, Mia Farrow (shown here in her movie days) and Anjelica Huston each lost a parent at 17. The deaths — Farrow’s dad, Huston’s mom – left them knowing little about half their roots. Now they get unsettling news: Farrow’s grandfather sent his wife to a mental home, where she died at 27. Huston’s ancestor fathered four slaves; his will freed them … but not until they were 30. It’s a fascinating hour that also traces Isabella Rossellini. Read more…
