Mike Hughes on TV

TONIGHT'S MUST-SEE: Emmy awards, 8-11
p.m. ET, NBC.

Jimmy Fallon hosts, bringing quirky
humor and a real passion for TV and award shows.

There are plenty of key newcomers this
year. “The Good Wife” is up for best drama, “Glee” and
“Modern Family” are up for best comedy and all three have lots of
acting nominations.

For extra drama, there's the question
of whether Conan O'Brien can win for his short-lived “Tonight”
stay at NBC. To do it, he'd have to end a seven-year “Daily Show”
streak.

TONIGHT'S MIGHT-SEE: “Masterpiece
Mystery,” 9-10:30 p.m., PBS (check local listings).

Inspector Robert Lewis seems to have
undergone a remarkable transformation. Once the quiet assistant to
Inspector Morse, he became a hesitant police inspector.

Not any more,. Tonight he shows powers
of Sherlock/Poirot proportions. He's proclaimed a genius.

And rightly so: This is a colorful tale
of old rock-and-rollers, with Joanna Lumley giving a bravura
performance. Death and misbehavior pile up; somehow, Lewis penetrates
it all quite cleverly.

Other choices include:

– “Washington Watch,” 11 a.m., TV
One. This special edition was taped in New Orleans. Elsewhere, the
fifth anniversary of Hurricanbe Katrina will be the subject on
“Sanjay Gupta, M.D.” (7:30 a.m., CNN), plus morning shows, the
Weather Channel and NBC's “Meet the Press” and nightly news.

– “Casino Royale” (2006), 8-11
p.m., ABC. The action is exciting, the dialog is clever and Daniel
Craig is a first-rate James Bond. The plot, alas, is a general mess.

– Football, 8 p.m. ET, Fox. With NBC
otherwise occupied, Fox gets the football spotlight. It has the
Pittsburgh Steelers at the Denver Broncos.

– “The Cove” (2008), 9-11 p.m.,
Animal Planet. Here is an unrelenting look at the industry that
captures and (mostly) slaughters dolphins. Ric O'Barry and colleagues
used stealth, technology and sheer nerve to get chilling footage; the
result won an Academy Award for best documentary feature.

– “Border Wars” season-opener, 9
p.m., National Geographic. Last year's episodes (rerunning from 4-9
p.m. and 11 p.m. to midnight) were based in Arizona. Now things move
to Texas, with no let-up. The opening hour finds a body in the Rio
Grande, a huge drug stash in the woods and a house filled with
would-be immigrants. One says he's lived in New York for a dozen
years, then returned home to see his ailing mother. Now he can't get
back to his wife, children and job.

– “Rubicon,” 9 p.m., AMC. Tonight
brings peeks at the personal lives of Will's enigmatic boss Kale and
his vulnerable assistant Maggie. All of that is intriguing, but
doesn't get him (or us) closer to answers.

– “True Blood,” 9 p.m., HBO. Bill
tries, unsuccessfully, to win back Sookie's trust.

– “Hung” and “Entourage,” 10
and 10:30 p.m., HBO. This is a night for supporting characters to
crumble. Tanya falls apart in “Hung,” after failing to return
money. Ari has a spectacular failure in “Entourage,” in the
middle of a classy restaurant.

– “Secrets From a Stylist,” 10
p.m., HGTV. Fresh from her “Design Star” win, Emily Henderson
decorates the new home of “Glee” co-creator Ian Brennan.

– “Mad Men,” 10 p.m., AMC.
Peggy's unhappy with her new creative partner.

TONIGHT'S MIGHT-SEE: “Persons
Unknown” finale, 8 and 9 p.m., NBC.

Let's give NBC credit for giving this
show a full summer run. Others were jumpy, with CBS (“The Bridge”)
and CW (“18 to Life”) dumping shows with absurd speed.

NBC stuck with this so-so show about
strangers, inexplicably held in an abandoned town.

In tonight's first hour, they search
for Janet and Ulrich, then find their supplies are gone. The second
hour includes a van crash and an escape attempt, then partly wraps
things up.

TONIGHT'S MIGHT-SEE II: “The Wish
List,” 9-11 p.m., Hallmark.

Sarah (Jennifer Esposito) is precise
and organized, a list-maker. Now she's made a list of all the
qualities her perfect guy should have.

Soon, she meets a handsome doctor (Mark
Deklin) who has most of them … and a cheeky coffee-shop guy (David
Sutcliffe) who has few. Viewers will probably guess the rest, but
they'll root for likable people in a lightly entertaining tale.

Other choices include:

– “Sanjay Gupta, M.D.,” 7:30
a.m., CNN, continues Sunday. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina,
Gupta reported from Charity Hospital, where New Orleans doctors
worked under brutal conditions. Now he returns to the closed hospital
with Ben Duboisblanc, the last doctor there. Other coverage will be
on the network morning shows; also, Brian Williams anchors the NBC
newscast from New Orleans and the Weather Channel has Jim Cantore and
Mike Bettes doing live interviews on the Gulf.

– “Pregnancy Pact” and “Bond of
Silence” (both 2010), 7 and 9 p.m., Lifetime. Here are two
real-life stories, bringing opposite results. “Pact” – in
which several small-town teens get pregnant – is flatly acted and
uninvolving. “Bond” – with teens covering up an accidental
murder – is beautifully directed by Peter Werner, with perfect
performances from Kim Raver, Charlie McDermott and more.

– Football, 8 p.m., CBS. Dallas
visits Houston, in a pre-season game that should do quite well in
Texas.

– “Meet the Fockers” (2004), 8-10
p.m., ABC. “Meet the Parents” was clever, but this sequel is
heavy-handed, wasting the immense talent of Dustin Hoffman, Barbra
Streisand and Robert De Niro.

– “Lawrence of Arabia” (1962), 8
p.m. to midnight, Turner Classic Movies. Here's a fresh chance to
savor an Oscar-winning classic. David Lean – the master of sweeping
epics that have a human core – directed Peter O'Toole as the
English adventurer leading an Arab revolution.

– “Music and Lyrics” (2007), 8
and 10 p.m., Oxygen. As a former “Family Ties” writer, Marc
Lawrence brings a fun, situation-comedy style to his movies. This
pleasant-enough film has an ideal cast, with Hugh Grant as a slumping
composer and Drew Barrymore as a novice lyricist.

– “Being Human,” 9 p.m. BBC
America. Last week's episode (rerunning at 8) told about the past of
Mitchell the vampire. This hour shifts to Annie the ghost; she gets a
job helping a celebrity psychic.

– “Castle,” 10 p.m., ABC. Here's
a rerun of the hour that brought a potential love interest for Kate
Beckett – and frustration for Castle. The newcomer is a robbery
detective played by Michael Trucco.

– “Law & Order: Criminal
Intent,” 10 p.m., NBC. When a magazine publisher is killed, there
are plenty of suspects. That includes friends, employees, current and
past lovers, even the Russian Mob.

– “Saturday Night Live,” 11:29
p.m., NBC. Taylor Swift does double duty, as host and music guest.

TONIGHT'S MUST-SEE: “Forgotten on the
Bayou” (2007), 8-10 p.m., Weather Channel.

Rockey Vaccarella provides a
fascinating focal point for this documentary.

He's a self-described “Sicilian
Cajun” whose neighborhood was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. Nine
months later, there was still a boat in the middle of one street, a
house in the middle of another.

Still, he vowed to stay positive: He
would haul his FEMA trailer to Washington, D.C., and dine in it with
President Bush. He would thank him for the help and remind him that
there's much more to do.

It's an impossible dream, he's told.
Whether or not he succeeds, you'll love the man and the mission.

TONIGHT'S MUST-SEE II: “The Gulf is
Back,” 8 p.m., CW.

This Mississippi concert was held as a
tribute to people recovering from the oil spill.

David Hasselhoff hosts. He'll have
stars from country (Lonestar, Ricky Skaggs, Terri Clark), pop (Brian
McKnight) and “American Idol” (Taylor Hicks, Bo Bice, Ace Young).

TONIGHT'S ALTERNATIVE: “The Pillars
of the Earth” finale, 10-11:50 p.m., Starz.

Last week, the cathedral collapsed and
its leader (Prior Philip) was demoted. Amid the rubble, Aliena
somehow gave birth to her baby. Alfred instantly recognized that he
wasn't the father and banished her. She wandered off in search of
Jack, somewhere in France.

Can all of this be resolved, when so
many villains – Walleran, King Stephen, Regan, William – loom?
That requires some extreme contrivances. Still, this is an epic
story, with enough twists, turns and heroics to hold our interest.

Other choices include:

– Katrina and oil-spill coverage, all
day. In the morning, CBS' Harry Smith anchors from New Orleans; ABC's
Rachel Roberts anchors from Pass Christian, Miss., near her home
town. Also in New Orlean: Brian Williams (NBC news), Rachel Maddow (9
p.m., MSNBC), Anderson Cooper (10 p.m., CNN).

– “If God is Willing and Da Creek
Don't Rise,” 7-11 p.m., HBO. Here's the first chance to catch Spike
Lee's massive documentary in one chunk. It starts and ends with the
Saints' Super Bowl victory, piles waves of tragedy between. Still,
Lee skillfully sprinkles in signs of humanity and hope.

– Football, 8 p.m. ET, CBS. Here's
another side of New Orleans. The Super Bowl champion Saints host the
San Diego Chargers in a pre-season game.

– “Bruce Almighty,” 8-10 p.m.,
Fox. God (perfectly played by Morgan Freeman) passes on his duties to
Bruce (Jim Carrey). The result is quite clever, with Jennifer Aniston
in support..

– “Who Do You Think You Are,” 8
p.m., NBC. Born in post-segregation Florida, Emmitt Smith had rarely
heard his family talk of the old days. In this compelling rerun, he
sees records in which his ancestors are listed among possessions; he
goes to the spot where they might have been sold.

.– “Eureka,” 9 p.m., Syfy. Carter
and others confront people from their pasts.

– “Death Comes to Town,” 10 and
10:30 p.m., Independent Film Channel. Slyly, Death had someone in
Shuckton kill the mayor. We don't know who, but clearly the widow is
taking things well. This Kids in the Hall comedy mini-series
continues for two more weeks; it's inconsistent, but has great
moments.

-- "Blood Dolphins" debut, 11 p.m., Animal Planet. The Oscar-winning documentary "The Cove" -- which Animal Planet will air at 9 p.m. Sunday -- offered a chilling look at the slaughter of dolphins. No this series will continue to pursue the subject. It starts strongly, with a return to the killing cove, in Japan.

TONIGHT'S MIGHT-SEE: “Futurama,” 10
p.m., Comedy Central.

Here's a new cartoon episode with some
key guest voices. That includes Matt Groening and David X. Cohen, who
created and developed the show 11 years ago; it also includes Sergio
Aragones and Katee Sackhoff, best-known for Mad magazine and
“Battlestar Galactica.”

The story centers on Lrr, the alien
warlord. When his attack on Earth fails, he faces a mid-life crisis.

The show itself is savoring its second
life. Canceled by Fox in 2003, it returned to make four four-part
movies last season and separate episodes now. Also tonight are reruns
at 9:30 (crew members exchange minds) and 10:30 (a microwave miscue
has the ship time-travel and crash in 1947 Roswell).

TONIGHT'S MIGHT-SEE II: “Community,”
8 and 9:30 p.m., NBC.

Here are two reruns focusing on the
macho side of Jeff (Joel McHale), the former lawyer who's forever
trying to impress Britta (Gillian Jacobs).

The first, which is merely OK, has him
coveting an easy grade by taking a billiards class. Alas, it's under
physical education, which means he has to wear odd shorts.

The second, which is excellent, has him
leaping into a campus paintball game. At times, he seems convincingly
like an action hero – leading to a pivotal moment with Britta.

TONIGHT'S ALTERNATIVE: Katrina and
oil-spill coverage, everywhere.

Three days before the fifth anniversary
of Hurricane Katrina, TV coverage grows.

Tonight, Brian Williams begins
anchoring the NBC news from New Orleans. At the same time, Bob
Woodruff begins “Katrina: Where Things Stand,” on the ABC
newscast.

On cable, Rachel Maddow (9 p.m., MSNBC)
and Anderson Cooper (10 p.m., CNN) also anchor from New Orleans.
Cooper has a special – “In Katrina's Wake: Building Up America”
– with Branford Marsalis, Harry Connick Jr., James Carville and
Mary Matalin.

Other choices include:

– “Burn Notice,” 6 a.m. to 10
p.m., USA Network. First, settle back for a 15-hour marathon of this
stylish show about an ex-spy in Miami; then catch the season finale
at 9. A defense lawyer's daughter has been kidnapped by one of his
clients. Michael tries to free her, while also worrying about John
Barrett (Robert Patrick), the mogul who is pursuing him with big-time
gunmen.

– “Big Brother,” 8 p.m., CBS.
It's eviction time. Last week, Matt pulled a late surprise and Kathy,
the deputy sheriff from Texarkana, was ousted. Six people (five of
them women) are gone; seven remain.

– “Rookie Blue,” 9 p.m., ABC.
Andy has plenty of personal troubles with Swarek, but now they have a
bigger problem: On a routine transport, their prisoner has escaped.
Back at the station, a John Doe has lost his memory and Detective
Jerry Barber has lost his notes.

– “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,”
9 p.m., CBS. A rerun has Catherine investigating a murder at her
daughter's school, Then she finds a link to the past.

– “The Mentalist,” 10 p.m., CBS.
In this rerun, the team must work with Bosco on a kidnapping case.

– “Royal Pains,” 10 p.m., USA. In
the season finale, Divya realizes how strong her feelings are for
Adam, as his health deteriorates. Also, a socialite needs medical
help, but disappears.

TONIGHT'S MUST-SEE: “Frontline,” 9
p.m., PBS (check local listings; in Lansing, Mich., for instance, this will be replaced by a "Great Performances" opera).

Bleeding from a gun shot, Henry Glover
needed quick aid. The hospital was too far away; his brother and a
passer-by took him to a compound police had set up after Hurricane
Katrina.

Then came fierce after-shocks. Glover's
body was later found in a burned-out car; five years later, five New
Orleans cops face federal indictments.

That's probed here by “Frontline,”
the New Orleans paper (Times-Picayune) and an investigative
journalism group (ProPublica). They trace a post-Katrina time when
false rumors flowed; the mayor and his police chief repeated them and
some people felt (incorrectly) that martial law had been declared.
The result was chilling.

TONIGHT'S MUST-SEE II: “The Middle,”
8 and 8:30 p.m., ABC.

Here's a fresh chance to see the pilot
film that launched this above-average comedy.

Patricia Heaton plays a car salesman
who has never sold a car, a mom who has trouble showing up at school
on the right day. It's a good start for a likable show. In tonight's
second rerun, financial troubles mean she tries a stunt at work and
her son can't get library books … so he reads her steamy novels.

Other choices include:

– “MasterChef,” 8-10 p.m., Fox.
Tonight's challenges are small-scale and large-scale: First, make a
single cupcake; then, cook for truckers.

– “Great Performances,” 8 p.m.,
PBS (check local listings). The Vienna Philharmonic performs in a
gorgeous, outdoor setting – the gardens of Schonbrunn Palace.

– “Big Brother,” 8 p.m., CBS.
Here's the “power of veto” competition, prior to the seventh
person being ousted Thursday.

– “America's Got Talent,” 9 p.m.,
NBC. Tonight, the show will have half of its final 10 acts. They'll
be named from the 12 semi-finalists who performed Tuesday.

– “Modern Family,” 9 p.m., ABC.
In this rerun, Jay is delighted to go to Hawaii. Then he learns that
all his kids, in-laws and grandkids are coming; things get chaotic at
the airport.

– “Ghost Hunters” return, 9 p.m.,
Syfy. The team members stay overnight in the beautiful old Otesaga
Hotel, in Cooperstown, NY, when there are no other guests to confuse
things. They emerge with sights and sounds that get ghost buffs very
excited – but might seem scant to viewers.

– “The Choir,” 10 p.m., BBC
America. Gareth Malone started this year at an all-boys school where
students said singing is for girls. He concludes it by conducting
100-plus voices at Royal Albert Hall. The result is worth catching; a
reunion episode will be next week.

– “She's Got the Look”
season-opener, 10 p.m., TV Land. This modeling contest (for ages 35
and up) has previously chosen winners who were 40 and 45. In this
fairly interesting hour, 10 contestants – including a lawyer, a
bus mechanic and a 54-year-old grandmother of six – pose on the
beach.

– “Anderson Cooper, 360,” 10
p.m., CNN. Cooper was one of the first national reporters to reach
New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, raging at slow government
response. He'll sets up anchor duties here for the next three days;
other networks arrive soon, leading into Sunday's fifth anniversary
of Katrina.