1) “Grown-ish” (shown here) season-finale, 8 p.m., Freeform. This episode starts and ends with big, Hollywood-style scenes – one involving a college protest, the other an on-and-off romance. Then it tacks on an epilogue, jolting us toward next season. There are some meandering moments in between, but mostly this is an episode well worth catching. Read more…
1) “A Grammy Salute to the Sound of Change,” 9-11 p.m., CBS. Starting Sunday, viewers can savor Cynthia Erivo’s awesome vocal skill. In National Geographic’s “Genius: Aretha,” she ranges from gospel to disco. First, catch her here, singing John Lennon’s “Imagine.” There’s much more: John Fogerty does “Fortunate Son” and “Promised Land” … Gladys Knight (shown here) and others do Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On?” Greats songs are done by Andra Day, Billy Porter, Yolanda Adams and more. Read more…
1) “Mayans M.C.” season-opener, 10 pm., FX. One of TV’s best (and roughest) dramas is finally back. It’s been 16 months since the previous season ended. Now this border town is filled with soldiers; the bikers have lost their drug sources. Dita Galindo convinced EZ and Angel (shown here in a previous episode) to kill her, making it look like a suicide. Their dad (Dita’s ex-lover) is despondent; so is her son, the drug boss. The result – acted and directed with subtle skill – is deep and dark and brutal; the final minutes are especially nasty Read more…
1) “The Bachelor” finale, 8 p.m., ABC. Tonight, Matt James can choose Michelle Young (a Minnesota teacher, shown here with James) or Rachael Kirkconnell (a Georgia designer), in a show filmed prior to the controversy: James is the first Black bachelor; Kirkconnell has attended a pre-Civil War South party and allegedly mocked classmates who like Black men. Host Chris Harrison suggested leniency; for the 10 p.m. follow-up, he’s replaced by Emmanuel Acho, author of “Uncomfortable Conversations With a Black Man.” Read more…
1) Grammy awards, 8-11 p.m.ET, CBS (5 p.m. PT, rerunning at 8:30). After 40 years, Ken Ehrlich – creator of the “Grammy moments” mash-ups – has retired from producing the show. He avoided comedians, but now now Trevor Noah hosts. Performers include Billie Eilish (shown here), BTS, Taylor Swift, Harry Styles, Cardi B, Dua Lipa, Post Malone, Brandi Carlile, Brittany Howard and Megan Thee Stallion, plus DaBaby, Lil Baby, Bad Bunny, Doja Cat, Black Pumas and country’s Miranda Lambert, Maren Morris and Mickey Guyton. Read more…
1) “Genius: Aretha,” opener, 9 and 10:08 p.m. Sunday, National Geographic; rerunning at 11:05 p.m. and 12:12 a.m. Few humans could match the awesome range and talent of Aretha Franklin. Cynthia Erivo (shown here) can. In these first two hours (of a four-night, eight-hour run), she ranges from gospel and soul to jazz and a gripping ballad. She’s also a gifted actress, in a story that bounces between Franklin’s youth and early career, but has a sameness – type-A guys (her dad and her husband) intruding on greatness. Read more…
1) “Kids Choice Awards, 7:30-9 p.m., Nickelodeon, rerunning at 9:30. Kenan Thompson hosts and Justin Bieber (shown here) performs – a year later than expected. Bieber was scheduled for last year, until the show was delayed two months and done virtually. This one will also be virtual, but he’ll sing “Anyone” and (with Quavo) “Intentions.” His wife Hailey will appear; so will Kim Kardashian, Lin-Mamuel Miranda, Gal Gadot, BTS, Millie Bobby Brown, Anthony Anderson, Jennifer Garner, Tiffany Haddish and more. Read more…
1) The Maltese Falcon” (1941), “Casablanca” (1942) and “Citizen Kane” (1941), 8 p.m., 10 p.m. and midnight ET, Turner Classic Movies. A great era im filmmaking is celebrated here.. Each movie was shot stylishly in black-and-white, with a smart script and strong characters. Humphrey Bogart stars in the first two; Orson Welles stars in “Kane,” which he also directed. The American Film Institute puts it No. 1 on its all-time list, with “Casablanca” No. 3 and “Maltese Falcon” No. 31. Read more…
1) “Coronaversary.” It was a year ago today that the World Health Organization declared a pandemic. Now Joe Biden plans a speech at 8 p.m. ET; in Eastern and Central time zones, the networks will nudge their schedules back 20-30 minutes. That’s on a big night for ABC (shown here), when its dramas return. And a “Jimmy Kimmel Live: Coronaversary Show” is set for about 11:55 p.m. ET on ABC. Pete Buttigieg, who guest-hosted the show a year ago, will be there, with Kimmel, Joel McHale and music guest Adam Duritz. Read more…
1) “Chicago P.D.,” 10 p.m., NBC. Easily the best of NBC’s three Chicago dramas, “P.D.” sometimes surprises us with a great episode. It did that at the end of last season, when Atwater (LaRoyce Hawkins, shownhere) reported on a bad cop; now it finds a way to isolate him with Ruzek (Patrick John Flueger) and a White cop arrested for shooting a Black student. Here are the show’s best characters – one Black, one White, both fiercely honest but with differing perspectives. The result is beautifully written and acted. Read more…
