Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for April 10: “Eve” exits strongly, “61st” enters grimly

1) “Killing Eve” series finale, 8-10 p.m., BBC America. This has always been a great (but odd) series. It shouldn’t surprise that the finale (which reruns Monday on AMC) is sometimes weird and generally superb. As it starts, Villanelle is in the Scottish woods with another hitwoman … Konstanin is grooming a young assassin … Carolyn is pensive about her old days in The Twelve … and Eve (shown here with Villanelle in a previous episode) is convinced The Twelve must die. There are odd detours, a big (but quick) finish and then a final jolt. Read more…

Best-bets for April 9: lies, laughs and commandments

1) “The Ten Commandments” (1956), 7-11:44 p.m., ABC. Back in 1956, this was considered a movie marvel – an epic that traced the life of Moses (Charlton Heston, shown here), even managing to part the Red Sea. It won an Oscar for special effects and was nominated for six more, including best picture. By modern standards, it’s a bit stiff; still, it’s become an Eastertime tradition, this year airing on the eve of Palm Sunday. Read more…

Best-bets for April 8: Beach music (no, not Beach Boys)

1) “Now Hear This” season-opener, 9 p.m., PBS. In the first two seasons, Scott Yoo (shown here) traveled Europe, visiting places where classical masterpieces began. But this year he stays in the U.S. … and finds ample greatness. This hour traces Amy Beach, who (in 1896, at 29) was the first American woman to have a symphony published and performed. Yoo (a violinist) and his wife Alice Dade (a flutist) sample gorgeous music from Beach and other women. Read more…

Best-bets for April 7: opening day for baseball, every day for “Flatch”

1) “Welcome to Flatch,” 9:30 p.m., Fox. In its slow, droll way, “Flatch” can be both funny and poignant. Pretending to be a documentary about small-town life, it often views two cousins (shown here in a previous episode), drifting through their post-school life. Tonight, Kelly gets a rare chance to be with her dad; Shrub has two milestones – asking a girl for a date and (unrelated) seeing a naked female. There are also key moments for the pastor and his ex-wife, who edits the newspaper. Read more…

Best-bets for April 6: tough time for cops, crooks and hippos

1)“Snowfall,” 10 p.m., FX, rerunning to 11:05 p.m. and 12:15 and 1:20 a.m. At a perilous point in its story, “Snowfall” pauses for an odd interlude. Last week, Jerome finally proposed to Louise … who secretly ordered a hit that could set off gang warfare. Trouble looms … but first, there’s an odd twist at the wedding. Some viewers will love it, some won’t, but it has great performances – especially by Damson Idris (shown here in a previous episode), whose character (Franklin) is usually stoic. Read more…

Best-bets for April 5: crises for Ben and Pam

1) “Benjamin Franklin” conclusion, 8 p.m., PBS, rerunning at 10. The Declaration of Independence rippled with youthful zeal. Thomas Jefferson, 33, wrote the first draft; tweaking was done by John Adams, 40 … and Franklin, 70 (shown here in artist’s rendering). Franklin’s convivial manner then was key in getting French help for the revolution and in soothing anger during the Constitutional Convention. Ken Burns’ superb film shows a man who lived to 84 and belatedly opposed slavery. Read more…

Best-bets for April 3: Grammys vs. “Idol” and “Eve”

1) Grammy awards, 8 p.m., CBS. After a nine-week delay, the show booms ahead with Trevor Noah hosting. Performers include H.E.R. (shown here), Billie Eilish, BTS, Olivia Rodrigo, Jon Batiste, Lil Nas X, Brandi Carlile, John Legend and J Balvin, plus country’s Carrie Underwood, Chris Stapleton and Brothers Osborne. A Stephen Sondheim segment has Cynthia Erivo, Ben Platt, Rachel Zegler and Leslie Odom Jr.; there are also gospel, bluegrass and Latin-tropical moments. Read more…

Best-bets for April 2: It’s final-four time

1) Basketball, 6:09 and 8:40 p.m. ET, TBS, TNT and TruTV. We’re down to the final four in the college tournament … only one of which was top-seeded in its quadrant. That’s Kansas, which faces Villanova (a No. 2 seed) in the opener. Then another No. 2 seed – Duke, whose coach (Mike Krzyzewski, shown here) is in his final season, going for his sixth national title – faces a surprise, the 8th-seeded North Carolina. Read more…

Best-bets for April 1: crime shows and an opera

1) “Fire Shut Up in My Bones,” 9 p.m., PBS. Long before his big-city fame – including as graphic director and columnist for the New York Times – Charles Blow grew up in an impoverished family in rural Louisiana. That became the subject of his memoir, adapted into this opera (shown here).  The Metropolitan Opera’s first work by a Black composer (Terence Blanchard), it opened the Met’s post-Covid season. The result ripples with passion, pain and powerhouse music. Read more…