Laurel’s TV Picks

Best Bets

New Bones (FOX, 7pm)
New Good Eats (Food Network, 7pm and 2am)
New How I Met Your Mother (CBS, 7:30pm)
New House (FOX, 8pm)
New Medium (NBC, 9pm)
Ewan McGregor, Morrissey on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson (CBS, 11:37pm)

News & Notes

Thanks to reader Mark for “subscribing” to TVPicks.net at the $10/month rate– that’s awesome and very much appreciated!

Apologies to those of you who receive the picks via email– I guess my picks for Friday were sent out via email on Saturday. Eek! That’s not terribly helpful. It’s an automated process and I do try to keep an eye on it (by subscribing to the list myself), but I hadn’t noticed the emails didn’t go out on Friday as scheduled.

If you haven’t received picks via email (or feed) by afternoon on a weekday, I recommend checking the website as the picks may very well be there and something may have gone awry with the email list, feed, or wahtever. If you use Twitter, follow tvpicks to be notified as soon as the picks go up.

Daytime

“Hall of Fame Guests: Where Are They Now?” on Oprah (syndicated, check your local listings). Follow-ups with some memorable guests.

Primetime Grid

Primetime

Baseball: Yankees at Cleveland (ESPN, 6pm). Followed by Baseball Tonight (ESPN, 9pm or so).

NBA playoff action: Celtics at Hawks (TNT, 7pm), Lakers at Nuggets (TNT, 9:30pm).

Another new Antiques Roadshow (PBS, check your local listings) from Louisville.

Series premiere of Carrier (PBS, check your local listings). It’s about life abord the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz, you can read more about the show on the PBS website and find out when it airs in your area.

Alton Brown makes cupcakes in the “Honey I Shrunk the Cake” episode of Good Eats (Food Network, 7pm and 2am). Mmm, cupcakes.

Booth and Brennan investigate the murder of a woman in this new episode of Bones (FOX, 7pm). An infant is found (alive!) at the crime scene and they end up caring for it, of course, rather than having social services or some other agency whisk it away. I expect there’ll be “baby in the lab” hijinks.

Michelle Trachtenberg (who was “Dawn” on Buffy the Vampire Slayer) guest stars on a new Gossip Girl (CW, 7pm; also on Sunday at 5pm). She’s doing a four episode arc on the show as an old friend of Serena’s. And Blair hatches a plan to sabotage someone because she’s like that.

The guys buy a time machine (not a real one, but a prop from an old movie or TV show) on a new episode The Big Bang Theory (CBS, 7pm). This prompts Penny to tell the guys that their obsession with comic and toys is “pathetic” and I’m sure that goes over well. Or not. Is it incredibly geeky that I’m really curious about what they buy?

David Tennant (of Doctor Who) appears on the season finale of Top Gear (BBC America, 7pm and 10pm). Plus an older episode airs at 8pm and 11pm.

A special Star Wars themed episode of Deal or No Deal (NBC, 7pm - 9pm) with special guests Carrie Fisher, Chewbacca, R2-D2, and Darth Vader. Vader gets to be the banker. Here’s a link to the Philly Phanatic battling Darth Vader . . . just because I can (with a hat tip to my friend Timprov for sending me that link a while back). And here’s Vader and company doing the YMCA at the same game. Disturbing stuff, eh?

Two new episodes of Little People, Big World (TLC, 7pm and 10pm, 7:30pm and 10:30pm).

New Petfinder (Animal Planet, 7pm, 10pm, 2am).

Rusty and Casey try to start dating again on a new Greek (ABC Family, 7pm; also Tuesday at 11pm and next Monday at 6pm).

New episodes of Designed to Sell (HGTV, 7pm and 11pm) and Curb Appeal (HGTV, 7:30pm and 11:30pm).

Barney actually feels guilty for breaking the “Bro Code” on a new How I Met Your Mother (CBS, 7:30pm). The “Sandcastles in the Sand” music video from last week is available on iTunes as a free download, in case you want to see the whole thing again (and again); it’s also available on the official site for the show. As for the development at the end of last week’s episode? Well, I’ve been betting on those two ending up together for a long time (since late in season one or early in season two).

House (FOX, 8pm) finally returns with a new episode. Hooray! This really is one of my favorite shows. House thinks that a patient is “too nice” and that this must be a symptom of a medical condition of some sort. House may be jealous of how much time someone else is spending with Wilson. And Cuddy wants House to give his team performance reviews– that should be interesting.

Junior and Kris make some big plans which are derailed when someone is injured on a new Wildfire (ABC Family, 8pm and 11pm).

Alan plans or at least helps to plan his mother’s wedding on a new Two and a Half Men (CBS, 8pm). And Charlie continues to pursue his future step-sister. Robert Wagner and Jenny McCarthy guest star (again).

“Dairy Cow Midwife” is the latest in a long line of Dirty Jobs (Discovery, 8pm and midnight). Preceded by a rerun of the “Floating Fish Factory” episode at 7pm and 11pm.

“Specialists delve into the New Orleans underground to see how it stands in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and to assess whether the city would be ready for a similar storm in the future” on a new Cities of the Underworld (History Channel, 8pm and midnight).

One new episode of Jon & Kate Plus 8 (TLC, 8pm and 11pm) followed by reruns of three others.

Lindsey returns to town for Jamie’s birthday party and Dan tries to insinuate himself back into the lives of his family on a new One Tree Hill (CW, 8pm). This episode was directed by Paul Johansson who plays “Dan” on the show.

Sam asks a complete stranger to be her date to Todd’s exhibit on a new episode of Samantha Who? (ABC, 8:38pm - 9:08pm). Guest stars include Jerry O’Connell (of Carpoolers, Crossing Jordan), Kiele Sanchez, and Rick Hoffman. DVR/VCR Alert: Note that the episode is now scheduled to run from 8:38pm to 9:08pm.

Allison gets a new used car, but then she has visions about the car’s past on a new Medium (NBC, 9pm). Allison also meets Joe’s business partner for the first time. Kelly Preston continues her guest stint on the show.

A rookie makes a big mistake in this new episode of Verminators (Discovery, 9pm and 1am). Plus: bedbugs!

A hazardous materials evacuation drill, a surprise Coast Guard inspection puts a terminal behind schedule, and other stuff happens too (I’m sure) on a new episod eof America’s Port (National Geographic, 9pm and midnight).

A body is found in a sinkhole on a new CSI: Miami (CBS, 9pm). John Schneider (of Smallville, The Dukes of Hazzard) guest stars.

New episode of The Hills (MTV, 9pm, 10pm, 1am).

Season finale of High School Confidential (We, 9pm, 10pm).

Alex courts a promising new junior editor at a Dave Matthews Band concert on a new episode of The Paper (MTV, 9:30pm; also Tuesday at 2pm and 6:30pm).

Late Night

Former President Jimmy Carter on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (Comedy Central, 10pm and midnight).

Feist on The Colbert Report (Comedy Central, 10:30pm and 12:30am).

Gwyneth Paltrow, Richard Lewis, the Roots with Chrisette Michele on The Late Show with David Letterman (CBS, 10:35pm).

Helen Hunt, Gov. Bobby Jindal, Duffy on The Tonight Show (NBC, 10:35pm).

Ewan McGregor, Morrissey on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson (CBS, 11:37pm).

Marisa Tomei, Anthony Anderson, Santogold on Late Night with Conan O’Brien (NBC, 11:37pm).

Randy Jackson, Julie Bowen, Back Door Slam on a rerun of Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC, check your local listings).

Lake Bell, Chuck Prophet on Last Call with Carson Daly (NBC, check your local listings).