1) “Saturday Night Live” season-finale, 11:29 p.m., NBC. The 49th season concludes and “SNL” starts preparing for a big-deal 50th. Tonight, Jake Gyllenhaal – now beefed up for his “Road House” remake (shown here) on Amazon Prime – has his third turn as host. Sabrina Carpenter – a former Disney star, now 25 – has her first as music guest. Read more…
1) “Audra McDonald at the London Palladium,” 9-10:30 p.m., PBS. Broadway’s all-time leader (with six Tonys) fills the night with show tunes, backed by a 40-piece orchestra. Some viewers will wish she spent less time in the upper octaves. Still, McDonald (shown here in a previous concert) finds lots of fun and has powerhouse moments, including several songs about diversity, plus the triumphant “Climb Ev’ry Mountain.” Read more…
1) “Young Sheldon” series-finale (shown here), 8 and 8:30 p.m., CBS. This is one of the best hours of the season, or of any season. It manages the rare feat of being funny and subtly moving. Propelling it is the death, a week ago, of Sheldon’s father. The reactions vary widely, bur perfectly fit each wonderfully complex character. As a bonus, the second half-hour peeks at the nowadays Sheldon and Amy. Read more…
1) “Nature: Saving the Animals of Ukraine,” 8 p.m., PBS. Encased in horror, people still rush to the rescue. “To save animals is to remain human,” says Asha Serpinska, 77. Evacuees (shown here) clung to cats and dogs. Lions were rescued from private zoos. A 13-year-old house cat survived a 60-day ordeal. It became a national hero; so did a little dog who finds land mines. It’s a richly human story. Read more…
1) “Tonight Show” anniversary. 9-11 p.m., NBC. After some stumbles, NBC had a fresh idea: Jimmy Fallon — then 39, boyish and upbeat — took over “Tonight” on Feb. 17, 2014. Ratings soared, then feel due to Covid, strikes and other shows’ focus on Trump-era satire. Now Fallon (shown here) is No. 3 in ratings, but thriving. In prime time, he’s had three game shows plus this clip-filled special. Read more…
1) So You Think You Can Dance,” 9:02 p.m., Fox. This starts with a four-person routine that makes one thing clear: These are remarkably gifted dancers, working with great choreographers. (They’re shown here in a previous week.) One dancer faces sharp pain, but all four – Madison Alvarado, 21; Dakayla Wilson, 19; Anthony Curley and Easton Magliarditi, 18 – dance brilliantly. Three advance to next week’s finale. Read more…
1) “Interview With the Vampire” season-opener, 9 p.m., AMC. After deep mourning for her daughter, who died at 5, Anne Rice created Claudia, who has the body of a child (when she became a vampire), the soul of an adult. She was 5 in the book, 11 in the movie and 14 here. Now she’s been recast: Delainey Hayles (sown here) is richly emotive, in a sometimes-brutal hour in 1940s Romania. Read more…
1) “Saturday Night Live,” 11:29 p.m., NBC. Maya Rudolph has been a steady force on “SNL.” She was in the cast for seven years, then made at least 20 guest stops, winning an Emmy for her portrayal of Kamala Harris. She’s also starring in the terrific “Loot” (shown here) on Apple TV+. Still, she’s only hosted twice (winning another Emmy for one of those). Here’s her third turn, a week before the season finale; Vampire Weekend is the music guest. Read more…
1) “Doctor Who” season-opener, Disney+. In its 61 years, this show has had stops, starts, cancellations, revivals … and 14 stars. It has also had bursts of British wit … especially since Russell Davies became showrunner in 2005. Now the time-trekking show has a new streaming home, plus the 15th Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa, 31, a Rwanda native) and a new companion (Millie Gibson, 19); they’re shown here. Read more…
1) “Next Level Chef” finale, 8 p.m., Fox. This started with five professional chefs, five who just did social media and five who cooked at home. Then the pros faded quickly; only one reached the final seven. That’s Zach Laidlaw, 34, who is now in the final three. He faces Christina Miros (shown here with Gordon Ramsay), 35, a home chef, and Gabi Chappel, 29, a social media chef. One of them will win $250,000 and a mentorship. Read more…
