1) “Deliverance” (1972), 8 p.m. ET, Turner Classic Movies, or “I Am Burt Reynolds” (2021), 8 p.m., CW. One channel has Reynolds’ best film (shown here), the compelling story of a river trip gone bad. Another has an excellent biography: Reynolds went to college to play football and meet women. After an injury, he detoured and became No. 1 at the box office. Read more…
1) “Stumble,” 8:30 p.m., NBC. After two straight hilarious episodes, here’s one that’s merely quite funny. Amid a town blackout, the cheer team can’t practice. Its coach fidgets, schemes and ignores her husband’s free-time suggestions. We miss seeing most of the cheer kids, but there’s a dazzling moment (shown here) near the end. Read more…
1) “Next Level Chef” opener (shown here), 8 p.m., Fox. Eight professional chefs battle for five spots. (And yes, we mean “battle”; in the early minutes, two women have an intense tug-of-war over a tuna carcass.) The next two weeks will have similar competition for home chefs and for internet chefs. Read more…
1) “Dirty Talk: When Daytime Talk Shows Ruled TV” finale, 9:02 p.m., ABC. This wraps a three-week look at a dark time for daytime TV. Once the benign world of Oprah and Phil, it was overrun by rate, accusations, paternity tests and (shown here) onstage fights. Read more…
1) “American Masters,” 9-10:30 p.m., PBS. The first half-hour is compelling and deeply moving. Using his words (plus photos and stylish art), it tells of the Holocaust experience of Elie Wiesel (shown here) and the dark years after he was freed at 16. The final minutes are also moving. Some middle portions (a modern classroom, a Reagan controversy) run too long. Read more…
1) “American Idol” opener, 8-10 p.m., ABC. Half her life ago, Carrie Underwood, 21, was the fourth “Idol” winner. Now, 21 years later (show here), she’s sold 95 million records … won eight Grammys … and starts work as an “Idol” judge. This season, the show will be once a week, not twice. Read more…
1) Football. The Broncos (shown here) host the Patriots at 3 p.m. ET on CBS; then it’s Rams-Seahawks at 6:30 on Fox, with both winners going to the Super Bowl. The Rams were 12-5 in the regular season; others were 14-3. But the Broncos’ quarterback is injured; veteran back-up Jarrett Stidham will face the team that drafted him in the fourth round, seven years ago. Read more…
1) “Kingdom,” 8 p.m., BBC America. David Attenborough (shown here in a previous film) remains the consummate voice of nature films. Shortly before he turns 100 (May 8), he narrates two epics from BBC crews. This six-parter follows families of lions, leopards, hyenas and dogs, competing (sometimes violently) for turf. And a five-part gem on animal parenthood starts Feb. 4 on PBS. Read more…
1) “Stumble,” 8:30 p.m., NBC. This has quickly evolved into a terrific comedy. Fresh from last week’s hilarious sexual-relations lecture, it now has a small-town talent show (shown here). Courteney — the transplanted New Yorker — is flummoxed. Her husband, a folksy coach recovering from a concussion, fits in;Taran Killam plays him with subtle perfection. Read more…
1) “Hell’s Kitchen” finale, 8 p.m., Fox. The show’s 24th champion will be either Jada Vidal (shown here) or Ellie Parker. Last week, they drafted the other chefs for their teams and began planning fancy dinners — one a Cuban-Asian fusion, the other steakhouse-style. Tonight, one will land a major chef job. Read more…
