thursday
One reader suggested I encourage everyone who enjoys these picks to buy me a birthday gift as a thank you. Well, it’s a nice thought and I surely wouldn’t complain if anyone did it (in fact I’d thank you profusely). But I also understand if you’d rather not (I feel silly just mentioning it!). . . and if you’d rather not, why not email me to tell me about a show you’ve discovered ‘cuz of the picks or something. That stuff can really make my day (the two emails I received yesterday along those lines are still making my day today).
Jane Kaczmarek (of Malcolm in the Middle) and Bradley Whitford (of The West Wing) are on The Rosie O’Donnell Show (syndicated, check your local listings) together. Cool. I want more actors who are couples in real life to do shows together (yes, I’m thinking of Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy). It’s a rerun and it’s pretty good. That guy who plays Dawson on some Creek show is also on the show.
Cartoon characters are used to illustrate the mental state of the folks on China Beach (History Channel, 1pm and 6pm). Boy do I love this series.
Marcus and Dr. Franklin visit Mars on Babylon 5 (Sci-Fi, 6pm, letterboxed).
Is anyone else annoyed with the way most summer reruns are all over the map? They’ll show an episode from late in the season and follow it with an episode from very early in the season and then just jump around. With some sitcoms, the order won’t matter, but for most dramas, it can be really maddening. Especially for those who are trying to catch up with shows they missed the first time around.
Tonight’s episode of Gilmore Girls (WB, 7pm) is from early in their season (second or third episode, if I recall correctly). It’s “The Lorelais’ First Day at Chilton” and it’s a good episode, of course. Have I mentioned this is one of the best series of last season? Funny and smart and fun.
Conclusion of the two-hour pilot episode of Miami Vice (TNN, 7pm and 11pm).
The second part/conclusion of Gormenghast (PBS, check your local listings).
A man dies on an airplane and that is just the beginning on tonight’s C.S.I. (CBS, 8pm). I’m told by those who’ve seen it that it’s a pretty cool episode. There’s another episode at 7pm which involves both a kidnapping and a hit-and-run incident.
Cher guest stars on Will & Grace (NBC, 8pm).
“Dragster” episode of Junkyard Wars (TLC, 8pm and 11pm), followed by Robotica (TLC, 9pm and midnight).
Dan gets in trouble for singing “Happy Birthday” on the air in the “Intellectual Property” episode of Sports Night (Comedy Central, 9:30pm).
Fans of Homicide: Life on the Street (Court TV, 10pm) knew that Edie Falco and Lee Tergesen were great long before others caught on. They’re both in tonight’s rerun and in plenty of episodes to come. This is another sublime episode of The Best D@mn Show on TV.
Sean Hayes, Brian Wilson on The Late Show w/ David Letterman (CBS, 10:35pm).
William H. Macy, Kobe Bryant, Sisquo on The Tonight Show (NBC, 10:35pm).
Marlon Wayans, Don Zimmer, Green Day on Late Night w/ Conan O’Brien (NBC, 11:35pm).
“Ordnance Tactics” episode of Sports Night (Comedy Central, 12:30am).
If you missed the “unplugged” episode of The Tonight Show (NBC, late late night check your local listings, 1:30am in some markets), you can catch it on the late rerun tonight. To conserve energy, they did an episode mostly in the dark. With guest Arsenio Hall and some noctournal animals and Ed Begley, Jr. and an audience full of folks with flashlights.
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