1) “Surviving Earth” season-finale, 8 p.m., NBC. This show has been an epic enigma. The good news: It brilliantly uses computer graphics to create long-ago creatures from times when the planet was changing. The bad: It has some oddly specific stories for those creatures — sort of like the real ones in “The Americas: (shown here), but fictional. Now things conclude with floods and a new ice age. Read more…
1) “MasterChef,” 8 p.m., Fox. Jessica Bosworth and Jesse Rosenwald (shown here) met as Boston bartenders, almost a decade ago. Last year (when the show shifted to duos), they won the $250,000 prize … and promptly got engaged. Now, in a castle, there’s a royal-style wedding dinner prepared by the 12 home chefs. Read more…
For sci-fi and fantasy fans, there’s no late-summer snooze.
Announcements keep emerging from Comic-Con in San Diego, some of them about shows that will arrive before September.
Earlier this week (see separate story), fans heard about current shows — “House of the Dragon.” “The Walking Dead: Dead City” and “Stuart Fails to Save the Universe” — plus “Lanterns,” which starts Aug. 16. They also heard of a November blitz that will bring entire seasons of “Blade Runner 2099” and “Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.”
Then came a new round of news about “Futurama” (shown here) and others. Chronologically, that includes: Read more…
1) “NCIS: Origins” and “NCIS: Sydney,” 9-11 p.m., CBS. Last week, both were bumped when CBS decided to rerun its 50th “Survivor” season. “Survivor” continues on Wednesdays and a few Tuesdays, but this week the “NCIS” reruns return “Origins” (shown here) finds the future of the unit in jeopardy; on “Sydney,” a hospital ward is taken hostage. Read more…
1) “The 1% Club” and “The Quiz With Balls,” 8 and 9 p.m., Fox. Starting now, Fox will be a no-rerun zone on Mondays through Wednesdays. First, host Joel McHale (shown here in a previous episode) is surrounded by 100 female contestants. Then “Quiz” has a rematch of sorts, with two families that were on “Extracted.” Read more…
Sometime in November, fantasy fans may find their brains reaching overload.
Entire seasons of two shows will air on Amazon Prime during a crowded, 15-day stretch. They are:
— The third season of “Lord Of the Rings: The Rings of Power.” Four episodes will arrive Nov. 11, two Nov. 18 and the final two Nov. 25.
— The first season of “Blade Runner 2099,” from producer Ridley Scott. All eight episodes will arrive Nov. 25 … which is both Thanksgiving eve and the day “Rings of Power” wraps its season. Read more…
As summer TV winds down, Turner Classic Movies adds some starpower.
That’s its annual “Summer Under the Stars.” Each day in August focuses on the films — usually the best ones — from one actor.
Some of these stars still have strong followings. This opens with Doris Day (shown here) and Humphrey Bogart. One stretch (Aug. 14-16) has Jack Lemmon, Natalie Wood and Cary Grant; two days later, it’s Robert Redford. John Wayne and Katharine Hepburn are back-to-back on Aug. 22-23, James Stewart and Bette Davis on Aug. 26-27. Scattered around are Steve McQueen (Aug. 8), Groucho Marx (Aug. 12) and Marlon Brando (Aug. 20).
And others? Well, when was the last time you had a spirited discussion about Marie Windsor, Dana Andrews, Bonita Granville or Basil Rathbone? Read more…
1) “The Simpsons,” 8 p.m., Fox. Now that the soccer fuss has ended, Fox gets back to its regular line-up. That includes Sunday reruns of its two funniest shows. In this one, Bart’s lab work (shown here) links him with tech billionaires who are intent on living forever. At 8:30, “Animal Control” has Frank on a late-night mission to retrieve his new dog. Read more…
1) “Grantchester” series finale, 9 p.m. Sunday, PBS. For 11 seasons and three vicars, this has given us warm people and smart crime stories. The finale fumbles the latter; the search for the man who shot Geordie is so-so, at best. It also overdoses the drama at times, amid a crisis in faith for Alphy (right, with Geordie). But its final, moving minutes remind us that this has been a terrific series. Read more…
1) “Saturday Night Live,” 11:29 p.m., NBC. This reruns the season-finale, with two of the show’s favorites. Hosting is Will Ferrell, who was a regular (shown here) for seven years, left to become a movie star, and has returned five times as host. Paul McCartney is the music guest. Read more…
Best-bets for July 30: surviving Earth and the kitchen 
Best-bets for July 29: These chefs are still winners 
Best-bets for July 28: Dramas return, “Shazam” begins 
