Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for March 20: scary coup, funny turtle and two finales

1) “Wild Cards” season-finale, 8 p.m,, CW. For the new, low-budget version of CW, this has been a bright spot, wth likable people in clever plots. But there are only 10 episodes in the first season and talks have dragged on about a second. Giacomo Gianniotti (shown here) plays a cop, working with a semi-reformed scam artist (the delightful Vanessa Morgan). Now he’s drawn into a case from her shaky past. Read more…

Best-bets for March 19: grim dramas and a St. Patrick’s surprise

1) “Extended Family,” 8:30 p.m., NBC. After a quarter-century as a writer-producer-actor, Mike O’Malley gets to craft the ultimate St. Patrick’s Day episode. Yes, it’s two days late and (sometimes) a tad silly. But ii does double-duty: It has the usual cliches – Jim’s dad (shown here), after all, has an Iriish bar in Boston – but follows with a sharp reality check. Read more…

Best-bets for March 18: a surge of non-fiction

1) “Photographer,,” 8 and 9:21 p.m., National Geographic Channel. After triumphing with “Queens,” Nat Geo again shows it knows great photography. This six-part, three-Monday series starts with Cristina Mittermeier (whose photo is shown here) and Paul Nic, a married duo whose photos make them activists for the ocean. That’s followed by Anand Varma and egg embryo photos. Others will range from fashion to war. Read more…

Best-bets for March 17: big day for PBS and basketball

1) “Nolly” opener, 9 p.m., PBS. In real life, “Nolly” Gordon was a British TV pioneer, a talkshow host and program executive with a soap opera built around her. Fame and awards followed. It was a makeshift era, captured brilliantly by writer Russell Davies (“Doctor Who”) and Helena Bonham Carter (shown here). “Nolly” is funny and warm … and then, mid-way in the first of three parts, takes a sudden shift. Read more…

Best-bets for March 16: Awardees soar; Pac-10 crumbles

1) “NAACP Image Awards,” 8-10 p.m., CBS, BET and VH1. Queen Latiifah returns as host, with special honors for musicians (New Edition, Frankie Beverly), designer June Ambrose and 25-year-old poet Amanda Gorman. There are awards for TV, music, books and movies – with best-picture nominees “American Fiction,” “Rustin,” “Oppenheimer,” “They Cloned Tyrone” and the vibrant “The Color Purple” (shown here). Read more…

Best-bets for March 14: “Grey’s” leads ABC’s three-drama night

1) “Grey’s Anatomy” season-opener, 9 p.m., ABC. Here’s one of the last shows to return post-strike … and one that people really missed. It’s the 20th season, tying the show with “Gunsmoke” for No. 3 among dramas (trailing only two “Law & Order” shows). The season starts with a doctor (Teddy) and patient (Sam) in peril. Meredith re-thinks her research and the young interns (shown here is Adelaide Kane as Jules Millin) face a tough case Read more…

Best-bets for March 13: “Alien,” “Animal,” “Amazing”

1) “Resident Alien,” 10 p.m., Syfy. This may be the first show in which someone says: “I’m so sorry; we don’t normally have bird guests.” She unthinkingly cooked chicken for Harry and his new lover, whose alternate form (shown here with his alternate form) is as a blue bird, and … Well, one of TV’s best (and strangest) shows has one of its best episodes, mixing broad humor with subtle dialog and sci-fi plot twists. Read more…

Best-bets for March 11: “Queens” concludes, “Bachelor” gets intimate

1) “Queens” conclusion, 8, 9 and 10:03 p.m., National Geographic. This splendid series views the females that dominate animal society. At 8 p.m. is a moving portrait of an elephant herd (shown here) as it trudges toward elusive water, while protecting a baby. from fierce predators. That’s followed by hours in Ethiopia (wolves and simians) and along the coast, with bears and orcas. Read more…