1) “Wicked: One Wonderful Night,” 8-10 p.m., NBC. The second “Wicked” movie is still two weeks away, but here’s a special. The Dolby Theatre becomes an Emerald City set, where a 37-piece orchestra backs Ariana Grande (shown here), Cynthia Erivo, Bowen Yang, Michelle Yeoh and more. There are also interviews, dance numbers and film clips. Read more…
Some New Yorkers, we’re told, hate moving to Los Angeles.
There’s all that annoying warmth and sunshine and open space. They can’t wait to get back to real life.
They might go west, Rachel Sennott said, with their “guard up, being, ‘I hate it here. I’m going back to New York; I miss how cold I was …. I want to carry my laundry up the stairs.’ Then you slowly relax into it.”
At least, she did. Now she writes, produces, stars in and sometimes directs the comedy “I Love LA” (shown here), at 10:30 p.m. Sundays on HBO and Max. Read more…
1) “Nature,” 8 p.m., PBS. Pigeons (shown here), it seems, are the ultimate urban survivors. They’re gifted physically — they can zoom vertically from the ground, like a helicopter — and mentally. They learn how to ride subways and escalators; they know which discarded bags have the best snacks. This delightful hour follows them in London and New York City. Read more…
1) “The Lowdown” finale, 9 p.m., FX, rerunning at 10:17. A great show (shown here) ends in unexpected ways. “Lowdown” has built a complex plot, with murder, schemes and a land-grab. All of that is wrapped up quickly, leaving more time for the rest — a beautifully written and played portrait of a truth-teller (Ethan Hawke), scrambling to re-assemble his makeshift life. Read more…
1) “St. Denis Medical” season-opener, 8 and 8:30 p.m., NBC. Back from a sunny vacation, Alex (shown here) vows to retain her joy; that’s not easy. It’s a funny episode — as is the second one, with a security issue. After opening the season with no primetime comedies, NBC bounces back. It has two Friday (“Happy’s Place” and “Stumble”) and another next Monday. Read more…
1) “I Love LA” debut, 10:30 p.m., HBO and Max. After moving from New York to Los Angeles, Rachel Sennott had a job (playing Kyra Sedgwick’s daughter in “Call Your Mother”) and bad timing: It was 2021 and Covid made it tough to meet people and forge a new life. She partly re-creates that time in a Gen-Z comedy (shown here) about a makeshift life. Read more…
1) “Wicked: One Wonderful Night,” 8-10 p.m. Thursday, NBC. Coming soon (Nov. 21) is the second of Universal’s two “Wicked” movies. First, NBC (Universal’s corporate mate) has this concert special. The Dolby Theatre gets an Emerald City look; there, a 37-piece orchestra backs Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Bowen Yang, Michelle Yeoh (shown here) and more. Read more…
1) “Saturday Night Live,” 11:30 p.m., NBC. After resting for a week, “SNL” starts its second string of three new shows. Miles Teller hosts; he’s done it once before and also had a good spot in the “SNL50” special. Brandi Carlile (shown here), an 11-time Grammy-winner, has her third turn as the music guest. Read more…
1) “The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror,” 7 a.m. to midnight, FXX. Here’s a fun Halloween marathon. In random order, we get 34 half-hours of the annual cartoon (shown here); most have three weird shorts — sometimes gross, often funny, always imaginative. For more laughs, the original “Ghostbusters” is 3 and 8 p.m. on Bravo, with the sequel at 5:30 and 10:30; a 2016 reboot is 8 p.m. on TBS. Read more…
1) “Elsbeth,” 10 p.m., CBS. Airing on Halloween eve, this show amps up its oddness. A neighborhood trick-or-treat night has gone (very) wrong. Elsbeth is on the case — but wants to wear costumes all week; she’s into “My Fair Lady,” ranging from ragged-flower-girl to (shown here) belle-of-the-ball. It’s a fairly good hour, with Annaleigh Ashford as guest star. Read more…
Best-bets for Sept. 26: “Farm Aid” is back; so is “SNL” 
Best-bets for Sept. 25: quick reruns of new shows 
Best-bets for Sept. 24: Hellish reality and college fun 
