1) “Law & Order” season-opener, 8 p.m., NBC. Maura Tierney was at the heart of NBC’s must-see Thursdays, playing Abby for on “ER” for a decade. She dropped out of “Parenthood” in 2009 because of breast cancer, but her comeback includes “The Affair,” “American Rust” and this summer’s “Twisters.” Now, at 59, she’s the new homicide chief (shown here).
2) “Law & Order: SVU” season-opener, 9 p.m., NBC. These are the perennials – “L&O” starting its 24th year, “SVU” starting its 26th. Mariska Hargitay has been with “SVU” from the start, getting eight Emmy nominations and a win. Now she has two new cops working for her, probing a brutal attack on law students.
3) “Found,” season-opener, 10 p.m., NBC. The first season was built around a despicable notion: The “hero” kept her former captor in a basement prison, using him to solve other missing-person cases. He escaped in the season-finale; now she scrambles to find him, while admitting what she’s done. It’s an improvement, but remains repulsive.
4) “Doctor Odyssey,” 9 p.m., ABC. Last week’s debut started well, with a gorgeous ocean-liner set and a gifted director (Paris Barclay). Then it fell apart, with its title character seeming stiff and, at one point, cruel. Still, this is from a skilled producer (Ryan Murphy), so we’ll stick with it.
5) ALSO: Murphy’s “9-1-1” continues its three-week opener, with bees bedeviling Los Angeles … and attacking a plane. That’s at 8 p.m. on ABC, with “Grey’s Anatomy” at 10. Meanwhile, CBS is skipping its comedies for two Thursdays. Tonight, it has a two-hour “Big Brother” and then a good “Elsbeth” rerun, centering on a protective bartender.
— Mike Hughes, TV America