Mike Hughes on TV

1) “The Voice” season-opener, 8-10 p.m., NBC. Yes, there is a real TV season trickling in. And now we have one of the ratings leaders, starting with two nights and four hours of auditions. Blake Shelton will be there, as usual; he’s already had seven winners in 18 seasons. But Kelly Clarkson (shown here) has had three winners just five seasons. The others are John Legend (one win in three seasons) and Gwen Stefani, Shelton’s life partner, with no wins in four seasons. Read more…

1) “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” (1986), 8 p.m., CBS. Maybe this is the time to settle back with a fun film. CBS — which has temporarily revived its Sunday-night movies — has this popular tale, with Matthew Broderick (shown here) giving himself a personal vacation. Freeform has its usual lighe Halloween films and TNT has two 2018 films — “Oceean’s 8” at 5:30 p.m. and “Crazy Rich Asians” at 8; both have so-so stories, redeemed by a bright, breezy look and feel.  Read more…

1) “Saturday Night Live,” 11:29 p.m., NBC. For the third straight week, the show has a skilled comedy pro as host. The season opened with comics who sometimes act (Chris Rock and Bill Burr) and great results. Now comes Issa Rae, who received Emmy nominations this year for both a comedy series (“Insecure”) and a sketch show (“The Black Lady Sketch Show”). It’s her first time at “SNL”; Justin Bieber (shown here) has his fourth time as music guest; in one, he doubled as host Read more…

1) “Great Performances: Grammy Salute to Legends,” 9 p.m., PBS. Most music shows have beautifully adjusted to the pandemic … but not this one. It does have a few good moments – from Sam Moore, Yola and Brandi Carlile – and one great one – a Roberta Flack tribute, gorgeously sung by Cynthia Erivo (shown here in a previous performance) and Leslie Odom, Jr. Then things fall apart — badly written film tributes, so-so introductions and endless acceptance speeches … including separate ones from every member of Chicago. Read more…