BRILLIANT MINDS -- "The First Responder" Episode 110 -- Pictured: (l-r) Zachary Quinto as Dr. Oliver Wolf, Alex MacNicoll as Dr. Van Markus -- (Photo by: Rafy/NBC)

Best-bets for Dec. 2: Strong dramas and silly vampires

1) “Brilliant Minds,” 10 p.m., NBC. The subject here is pain – an unbearable excess of it or an unexplained absence of it. There are flaws; a “revelation” from one patient is something the doctors should have known from her medical history. But the story is told with intelligence and emotion, particularly from Zachary Quinto (shown here with Alex MacNicol), as Dr. Wolfe. Add the doctors’ personal dramas and you have a strong hour. Read more…

1) “Brilliant Minds,” 10 p.m., NBC. The subject here is pain – an unbearable excess of it or an unexplained absence of it. There are flaws; a “revelation” from one patient is something the doctors should have known from her medical history. But the story is told with intelligence and emotion, particularly from Zachary Quinto (shown here with Alex MacNicol), as Dr. Wolfe. Add the doctors’ personal dramas and you have a strong hour.

2) “What We Do in the Shadows,” 10 p.m., FX. Two weeks from the series finale, this seems to throw all budget concerns aside. The half-hour swarms with vampires of all sorts – even dancing ones. The result has lots of action, an excess of violence and moments of sharp humor.

3) “Dalgleish” season opener, www.acorn.tv. One of the great mystery-novel detectives, Adam Dalgliesh is a poet and a widower, with an impassive face and a deep soul. Twelve of his stories have been filmed … and are being done again, now starring Bertie Carvel. This one (set at a religion school) is the first of three strong ones on consecutive Mondays.

4) “Superman & Lois” series-finale, 8 p.m., CW. It’s the end of the line for CW’s time as the home of DC Comics characters. Some of the shows were quite good, this one is merely OK, but all were brushed aside by the new owners, who are going for lower-cost alternatives.

5) “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” (2000), 8:20 p.m., Freeform. This is the version starring a frenetic Jim Carrey; Freeform will run it 11 more times this month. For a subtler pleasure, Freeform has a “Miracle on 34th Street” remake (1994) at 12:35 p.m.; Mara Wilson, then 7, is a delight.

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