Mike Hughes on TV

1) “A Capitol Fourth,” 8 p.m., PBS stations. The 4th of July party starts a day early. Most networks (including PBS) will have big, 250th-birthday events Saturday. That nudges this concert to tonight on most (but not all) PBS stations, many rerunning it at 9:30. There’s music (including Trace Adkins) from the Capitol lawn and fireworks (shown here at the Capitol in a previous year) at Mount Vernon. Read more…

1) “The Americas: A Wild 250th,” 9 p.m., NBC. Lately, NBC has been rerunning the gorgeous “Americas” documentary series here. But now it pauses for a new hour: Two days before the 250th birthday, it focuses on creatures — bald eagles (the scene shown here is not from the film), bison, sea lions, etc. — that may symbolize the U.S. That follows a new “Surviving Earth” at 8. Read more…

1) “Top Gun: Maverick” (2022), 8-11 p.m., CBS. As July 4 nears, networks give us big-budget crowd-pleasers that put Americans in fighter planes. On Thursday, ABC has “Independence Day,” which has lots of flaws and little to do with the holiday. But today, CBS gives us Tom Cruise (shown here) in a film that’s solidly written, slickly made and kind of exciting. Read more…

1) “R.J. Decker,” 8 p.m., ABC. If you haven’t seen this show (which has been renewed), here’s a chance to catch it from the start. Fresh from prison, a former photographer (Scott Speedman, shown here) becomes a private detective in Florida. That’s followed by the season’s first two episodes of “Will Trent.” Read more…

1) “Disney Celebrates America,” 8-10 p.m., ABC. This starts a six-day project that culminates in a 4th-of-July party, Saturday in Nashville. Today’s special (repeating Friday) views “The Pursuit of Happiness.” It ranges from the Disney parks to Jon Batiste (shown here at a previous event) in New Orleans and historical glimpses of baseball, Marilyn Monroe and the moon landing. Read more…

1) “BET Awards,” 8 p.m., BET, MTV, TV Land, Nickelodeon and more; repeats at 11:04 on BET. There are lots of music awards (plus a few for acting, sports and fashion) and lots of performances. That includes Cardi B (shown here), Queen Latifah, Common, MC Lyte, Jill Scott, Doechi and The War and Treaty. Druski, a mono-named comedian, hosts. Read more…