Daily Best Bets

1) “This Is Us” season-opener, 9 p.m. Tuesday, NBC. One of TV’s best shows starts its sixth and final season. It has already drawn 38 Emmy nominations, including four for best drama series. It has won four Emmys, for Sterling K. Brown (shown here) as Randall, the businessman-turned-councilman, and for guest stars. Now Randall, Kevin and Kate – their lives in flux – celebrate their 41st birthday. That’s followed by an exceptionally good “New Amsterdam,” partly set in London, where Helen and Max have their clinic. Read more…

1) “Frozen” (2013), 8-10 p.m., ABC. Heading into the holiday weekend, it’s a strong movie night. That’s led by this gorgeous film (shown here), which won Oscars for best animated feature and for the song, “Let It Go.” Also at 8 are two strong choices for grown-ups: TNT has “Black Panther” (2018); it’s a superb action epic, despite a final battle scene that seems to be eternal. And USA has “Knives Out” (2019); Rian Johnson directed his own witty, Oscar-nominated script, mixing mystery and humor. Read more…

1) “‘The Price is Right’ 50th Anniversary Special,” 8-10 p.m., CBS. “Price” really began 65 years ago, but CBS ignores the NBC and ABC years. This rerun, from September, marked the start of the 50th CBS season. Up to then, two million people had been in the studio audience and 68,000 had been called as contestants. They’d won $300 million in prizes, including 8,400 cars; they’d tried 108 games. This season, with Drew Carey (shown here) hosting, added two more games, including one guessing 1972 prices. Read more…

1) “This Is Us” and “New Amsterdam, 9 and 10 p.m. Tuesday, NBC. Next Tuesday (Jan. 4) is a big day for NBC: “This Is Us” starts its final season and “New Amsterdam” returns after a five-week break. First, we can catch up, watching the previous episodes. At 9 p.m., the family gathers for what’s supposed to be the wedding of Kevin and Madison (shown here in an earlier episode); there are flashbacks and surprises. At 10, Max and Helen are heading to London to start their new life; then a superbug hits the New York hospital. Read more…

1) “The Year: 2021,” 9-11 p.m., ABC. What kind of year has it been? Well, the Capitol was breached, chaos ensued(shown here), people were killed and maimed … and that was in the first week. Later, unemployment plunged, inflation climbed, COVID was stifled and then rebounded. Two giant recovery bills passed and a third stalled. Robin Roberts hosts this overview, which has ABC News people plus pop-culture figures, from country music’s Jimmie Allen to “Love Island” narrator Matthew Hoffman. Read more…

1) “Insecure” series finale, 10 p.m., HBO, rerunning at 11:23 p.m. and 12:45 a.m.. These five years have seen Issa Rae’s career soar. Once confined to short-form humor (YouTube and, later, “A Black Lady Sketch Show”), Rae (shown here, center, in a previous episode) created and starred in “Insecure,” getting two Emmy nominations for best comedy actress and one for best comedy series. She also wrote a book and did movies, including a serious drama, “The Photograph.” Tonight, her character looks back at what got her where she is. Read more…

1) “Downton Abbey” (2019) and “Call the Midwife Holiday Special,” 7 and 9:07 p.m., PBS. The “Downton” movie has the elegance of the series (shown here), plus bigger stakes. The king is coming, amid schemes large (an assassination attempt) and small (the royal staff trying to seize control of household duties). That’s followed by a warm “Midwife,” set in Christmas of 1966. Medical crises complicate the wedding of Lucille, a Jamaican nurse, and Cyril, a Guyanese mechanic, student and church leader. Read more…

(Here are the five TV best-bets for Friday, Dec. 24; feel free to use in any form – all or some, print and/or web)

1) “A Christmas Story” (1983) marathon, 8 p.m., TBS and 9 p.m., TNT. This modest movie does everything right. It captures a 1940s holiday through the hopes and fears of a boy (shown here) who simply wants a BB gun. Done with droll humor, it’s become a tradition for these networks. It runs every two hours for 24 hours, so one of the two will start it at the top of each hour. Read more…

1) “Ghosts,” 8:31-11 p.m., CBS. In a rough season for comedies, “Ghosts” has done well. So CBS polled viewers and will rerun their five favorites here. First (shown here), Pete wants to see his wife, who’s still alive; at 9:01, Thorfinn wants a Viking funeral, now that his bones have been found; at 9:30, Samantha – the only living person who sees the ghosts – helps them play Dungeons & Dragons with her husband Jay. At 10, a music fan researches Alberta’s life; at 10:30, Hetty accidentally inhabits Jay’s body. Read more…

1) “Kennedy Center Honors,” 9-11 p.m., CBS. Each year, this celebrates the greats with smart films and potent performances. To honor Joni Mitchell, Bette Midler, Justino Diaz and Motown founder Berry Gordy, we get great songs from Andra Day, Kelli O’Hara, Billy Porter, Norah Jones and more, including a superb finale with Stevie Wonder (shown here in a previous performance. But the surprise is the tribute to “Saturday Night Live” producer Lorne Michaels. From Steve Martin to three “Weekend Update” desks, it ripples with wit. Read more…