1) “The Winchesters” debut, 8 p.m., CW. On “Supernatural,” Sam and Dean followed the family tradition of smiting demons. But how did their parents start this? We go to 1972, when John meets Mary (shown here0. He’s tall, handsome and a Vietnam vet; she’s short, attractive and kicking creatures. He’s instantly impressed. This opener is smartly written, filmed and acted – far better than than debut of “Professionals,” at 9 p.m. Read more…
1) “Kevin Can F Himself” series finale, 9 p.m., AMC. This keeps cleverly juggling opposite formats. At times, it’s a deliberately bad sitcom, with bombastic husband Kevin, wise wife Allison (Annie Murphy, shown heree) and audience laughter; at other times, it’s a dark drama about Allison’s agony. Eventually, she faked her death and disappeared. Now we see the impact on those who know she’s alive and those who don’t. There are surprises, deep emotions and a fiery finish. Read more…
1) “NCIS: Los Angeles” season-opener, 10 p.m., CBS. The 14th season begins with another crisis for Sam and Callen (shown here in a previous episode): Someone has bombed a building where combat drones were assembled. The team must find out who did it … while also dealing with troubling news about a body found in Syria. Read more…
1) “Saturday Night Live,” 11:29 p.m., NBC. Maybe we worried too much about which stars had left; we should have fretted about writers leaving. Except for “Weekend Update,” last week’s season-opener was short on wit. This material couldn’t have been saved by Kate McKinnon and Aidy Bryant … or even by Belushi or Murray or Wiig and such. Let’s hope it improves now, with Brendan Gleeson as host and Willow (shown here), formerly Willow Smith, as music guest. Read more…
1) “Fire Country” debut (shown here), 9 p.m., CBS. In a year when wildfires have ripped through California, that provides a backdrop for this solid series. Bode (Max Thieriot of “SEAL Team”) is a prisoner who joins the firefighters to shorten his sentence – then is sent to the town where his troubles began. This opener requires a mountain of coincidences, but mixes strong drama with blazing action. Read more…
1) “Alaska Daily” debut, 10 p.m., ABC. This could become the next great broadcast-network drama. The opener is pretty good; next week’s hour – extending these stories and adding a new one –is superb. Tom McCarthy won an Oscar for his “Spotlight” script, based on a real newspaper investigation; now another real newspapers probe is the root here. Hilary Swank (shown here, right), a double Oscar-winner, plays a star reporter, taking her tarnished career to Anchorage. Read more…
1) “The Real Love Boat” debut, 9 p.m., CBS. For 10 seasons, “Love Boat” had fictional romances and more. Now the title is revived for a dating show. It starts with a dozen singles, including a nurse, a teacher, a firefighter and a shoe-designer. They cruise to Barcelona, Rome and more, adding and subtracting people along the way. Jerry O’Connell and Rebecca Romijn, married for 15 years, host and the real-life captain, social director and barttender (shown here) are regulars. Read more…
1) “Making Black America: Through the Grapevine” opener, 9 p.m., PBS. During slavery, we learn, Black society was already forming. About 10 percent of African-Americans were free; they had clubs and literary societies … attended by some people who couldn’t read. After the war, Black towns sprang up. Henry Louis Gates (shown here) — whose “Finding Your Roots” has Tony Danza and Terry Crews at 8 p.m. — hosts this low-key, four-week series. Read more…
1) “The Good Doctor” season-opener, 10 p.m., ABC. Last season was supposed to end joyously: Shaun, the autistic surgeon, married Lea, his good-hearted, techie neighbor.(They’re shown here in a previous episode.) But while the reception continued on the hotel roof, two people were stabbed on a lower floor. Now that escalates; there’s a lockdown, while tempers flare during emergency surgery. Shaun’s reactions feel forced, but it’s still a strong start to the season. Read more…
1) “Interview With the Vampire” debut, 10:06 to 11:25 p.m., AMC. In a huge plunge, AMC bought rights to 18 Anne Rice novels. “Mayfair Witches” is next, but first is this nine-parter. “Interview” is lushly filmed, sharply written and beautifully acted. (Shown here are Jacob Anderson and Sam Reid, as Louis and Lestat, the blond vampire who turned him.) For more than half the opener, it feels like top-grade “Masterpiece Theatre”; then it explodes into sex and violence, which will repel some viewers and fascinate others. Read more…
