Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Feb. 15: Great movie, nice continent

1) “Casablanca” (1942), 8 p.m. ET, Turner Classic Movies. The Oscar season has concluded now, but not on TCM. Its “31 Days of Oscar” – continuing through March 2 – peaks with Humphrey Bogart (shown here) and Ingrid Bergman in this bittersweet, black-and-white wartime drama. It won Academy Awards for best picture winner, director Michael Curtiz and its script. The American Film Institute puts it at No. 3 all-time, behind only “Citizen Kane” and “The Godfather.” Read more…

Best-bets for Feb. 14: Charlie leads Valentine flurry

1) “Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown” and “A Charlie Brown Valentine,” 8 and 8:30 p.m., ABC. Valentine’s Day turns out to be a cartoon event. Holiday specials are scattered throughout the day on PBS Kids, then reach ABC at night. One is a 1975 classic with the usual crises – no cards for Charlie Brown, no love for Lucy, a mix-up involving Sally and Linus. “A Charlie Brown Valentine” was created in 2002, after Charles Schulz’s death. Charlie(shown here with Sally) finally dares to call the little red-haired girl. Read more…

Best-bets for Feb. 13: Drama and comedy cohabit

1) “Grown-ish,” 8 p.m., Freeform. This well-crafted comedy-drama leans way to the drama side tonight. Nomi(Emily Arlook, at right with Yara Shahidi) takes the first ultrasound of her pregnancy; that’s followed by celebration … arguments … and life-changing questions. It’s a smart and serious episode, peppered by some comedy, with Sky in the midst of a serious debate: Is her new boyfriend black or white? Read more…

Best-bets for Feb. 12: All-champ “Survivor”

1) “Survivor” opener, 8-10 p.m, CBS. For its 40th edition, “Survivor” is bringing back 20 champions (shown here) … including Sandra Diaz-Twine, who’s won it twice. This goes as far back to Ethan Zohn, who won the third edition, in 2001 … and is as recent as the 2018 winners, Nick Wilson and Wendell Holland. It also includes Rob and Amber Mariano: He proposed (and she said yes) in 2004, when they were the two finalists. She won; seven years later, he won. Now they have four daughters, ages 5 to 10. Read more…

Best-bets for Feb. 11: Jailhouse grit, Valentine fun

1) “For Life” debut, 10 p.m., ABC. Isaac Wright has a real comeback story: Convicted via New Jersey’s drug-kingpin law, he faced life imprisonment. As a paralegal, he helped 20 fellow inmates win freedom or reduced sentences … then won freedom for himself. Now he’s a defense lawyer and he’s the consultant for this solid series, which adjusts the story slightly: The protagonist (Nicholas Pinnock, shown here) becomes a lawyer, but remains in prison; with a progressive warden, he leaves with a guard and tether to argue cases. Read more…

Best-bets for Feb. 10: Elusive romance

1) “Bob (Hearts) Abishola,” 8:30 p.m., CBS. As Valentine week begins, this terrific show makes a quick detour. Last Monday, Bob was bitter when his mom resumed control of the company, with Abishola (her nurse, his loved one) as her assistant. He quit the job and the romance and had a drunken spree with a forklift. Now, cleaned up, he takes Abishola to dinner (shown here) … and is ready to say he loves her. Read more…

Best-bets for Feb. 9; Oscars … and much more

1) Academy Awards, 8 p.m. ET, ABC. For the second straight year, here’s no host. Last year was salvaged by music from Queen and Lady Gaga, but it was still dull and humorless. This year? The music is promising again, with nominated songs done by Elton John, Randy Newman, Chrissy Metz and the immensely talented Idina Menzel and Cynthia Erivo. Viewers will recognize some of the nominated films (“Joker,” “Ford v. Ferrari,: “Once Upon a Time in America,” shown here with Brad Pitt) and actors (Pitt, Tom Hanks, Renee Zellweger, Leonardo DiCaprio, Al Pacino). Read more…

Best-bets for Feb. 8: From here to Oscardom

1) Oscar eve shows, On the night before the Academy Awards, cable offers past gems. Turner Classic Movies’ Oscar marathon is topped by “From Here to Eternity” (1953, shown here with Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr) – winner of eight Oscars, including best picture and (in support) Frank Sinatra and Donna Reed – at 5:45 p.m. ET.. FX has back-to-back best-picture nominees – the great “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” (2017) at 5:30, had seven nominations, winning for Frances McDormand and Sam Rockwell; “Hidden Figures” (2016), at 8 p.m., had three nominations. Read more…

Best-bets for Feb. 7: Mac is back

1) “MacGyver” season-opener, 8 p.m., CBS. There’s an action surplus on CBS; “MacGyver” finally returns, nine months after its last new episode. Now the team can again tackle an impossible mission: At an elegant party (shown here), it team must slip off, find crucial information and transmit a copy without being noticed. There’s no Phoenix Foundation to help; our heroes are working with a quirky British ex-spy, played, by Henry Ian Cusick of “Lost.” Read more…

Best-bets for Feb. 6: It’s a debut-stuffed night

1) “Tommy” debut, 10 p.m., CBS. TV loves to show an outsider, tackling new turf. Here’s a prime example: “Tommy” Thomas, the new Los Angeles police chief, is female … and gay … and from New York. She’s an instant anomaly. In the wrong hands, this could have been riddled with cliches. “Tommy,” however, is written by Paul Attanasio, who drew Oscar nominations for “Donnie Brasco” and “Quiz Show” and then created “House.” It stars Edie Falco (shown here), a four-time Enmy-winner. Resisting cliches, they give us deeply layered characters. Read more…