1) “The Equalizer” debut, about 10:30 p.m. ET Sunday, CBS. This is, very simply, the best post-Super-Bowl show since “The Wonder Years” arrived, 33 years ago. It’s beautifully written, sharply filmed and perfectly played. The original notion had a guy – Edward Woodward in the series, Denzel Washington in two movies – help people who couldn’t turn to officials. Now Queen Latifah (shown here) plays a former CIA agent who has skills, compassion, a teen daughter and high-tech help. It’s a deeply involving debut.
2) Super Bowl, 6:30 p.m. ET Sunday, CBS. And yes, there’s the game, pitting opposite quarterbacks. The Tampa Bay Bucs have Tom Brady, 43, in his 10th Super Bowl; the other nine (winning six of them) were all with the Patriots. The Kansas City Chiefs have Patrick Mahomes, 25 … who was 5 when Brady played his first pro game; he won his only Super Bowl, last year. The game is in Tampa Bay, the first time in the 55-year history that a team is on its home field; the halftime show has The Weeknd.
3) Super build-up. The sports channels will be abuzz all week. Then, at 8 p.m. Saturday, BET has its annual “Super Bowl of Gospel,” with gospel stars (Erica Campbell, Kierra Sheard, more) and the NFL Players Choir. And there’s CBS: “Super Bowl Greatest Commercials” at 8 p.m. Wednesday … “NFL Honors” from 9-11 p.m. Saturday and the pre-game marathon, starting at 11:30 a.m. ET Sunday. At 6 p.m., coverage moves to the stadium, with Tony Romo (who also has a special at 10 a.m.) and Jim Nantz.
4) “Roots,” Sundance. Black History Month begins with a classic. In 1977, “Roots” set ratings records, then won nine Emmys and a Peabody. You can see it in two chunks, from 3-10 p.m. today and Tuesday; the first half reruns Tuesday morning, so you can catch a 14-hour sweep, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Also helping launch the month: “A Raisin In the Sun” (1961), 10 p.m. ET Wednesday, Turner Classic Movies; on Thursday, Showtime has “Do the Right Thing” (1989) at 9 p.m. and HBO has “Harriet” (2019) at 10.
5) “Plan 9 From Outer Space” (1959), 8 p.m. ET today,, Turner Classic Movies. In 1980, the “Golden Turkey Awards” book declared this the worst movie of all time. Ever since, people have delighted in it. There are semi-related scenes (shot for a different movie) with Bela Lugosi; after his death, the same character was played by a chiropractor who’s a foot taller. The spacecraft (clearly a toy) is a disc, but is vertical on the ground. Dialog rambles, furniture is cheap, one scene seems to be in both day and night.
6) “The Salisbury Poisonings,” 10 p.m. today, AMC. This four-part, true story began last week with a jolt: On a park bench in Salisbury, England, a man and his daughter collapsed. He was Russian, a counter-spy working for the British; they were felled by a poison developed in Russia. This compelling film isn’t about the spy plot; instead, it shows a town reacting to a crisis. We see Tracy, new to her job as health officer … Nick, a cop who’s suddenly stricken … and Dawn, who will be key in later hours.
7) “Chicago Med,” 8 p.m. Wednesday, NBC. April Sexton (Yaya DaCosta) found new passion for her nursing work, when she was in the COVID ward. Then Dr. Ethan Choi, the new Emergency Department chief, ordered her back to his unit. To complicate things, she’s his former fiancee. To complicate them even further, her brother is back, working in the emergency department; when the two men argue about a case, she’s in the middle. Meanwhile, Dr. Halstead’s drug trial is looking better.
8) “Star Trek: Discovery” first-season finale, 10 p.m. Thursday, CBS. Here’s what the previous 14 episodes led to – an attempt to end the fierce war with the Klingons. Burnham is in a landing party with Ash (who has memories as a Klingon) and Georgiou (whose intentions are iffy). The result has high stakes, great visuals and excessive violence against a helpless prisoner. It also has stiff dialog; you get that when your heroine was raised by Vulcans. The second and third seasons are on CBS All Access.
9) “In Concert at the Hollywood Bowl,” 9 and 10 p.m. Friday, PBS. On Inauguration Day, we saw the power of Katy Perry singing “Fireworks,” backed by fireworks. Here’s that same combination (with smaller ‘works) from 2018 … followed by John Williams conducting his “Star Wars” music, before a sea of light sabers. It’s a big finish, after a slow start. The first hour is classical and doesn’t get to the crowd-pleasers (Copland and Beethoven) until the end. Also, each hour has a bland conversation early.
10) Also: Super Sunday includes plenty of alternatives. The Disney Channel has teen musicals – bright, bouncy and fun. The first two “High School Musical” films are 12:05 and 1:55 p.m.; “Descendants” films are 3:50, 5:55 and 8. Animal Planet reruns its “Puppy Bowl” all day; Hallmark confines “Kitten Bowl” to 2-4 p.m. PBS has its well-crafted shows – “Miss Scarlet” at 8 p.m., “All Creatures” at 9 and the mid-section of “The Long Song” at 10, with the end of slavery bringing promise and confusion.