Here’s what’s up in the world of TV for Friday, June 8, and Saturday, June 9. All times are Eastern.
TOP PICK
Comedy Bang! Bang!/Bunk (IFC, 10/10:30 p.m., Friday): The official IFC descriptions of both refer to the former as a “takeoff on talk shows” and the latter as a “takeoff on game shows,” but astute readers will recognize both as emerging from the underground comedy scene—well, if a podcast with hundreds of thousands of listeners can be referred to as “underground.” Another fascinating connection: Tonight’s episode of the former involves talking dogs, while tonight’s episode of the latter involves the comedians shaming puppies. Erik Adams will review the former, while Todd VanDerWerff will review the latter. Be sure to ante up for the four-drink minimum.
REGULAR COVERAGE
Young Justice (Cartoon Network, 10:30 a.m., Saturday): “Artemis returns to the team for an important satellite launch,” reads the episode description, and Oliver Sava somehow doubts this is just going to be the characters launching the new Turner communications satellite so they can stay on the air.
The Legend Of Korra (Nickelodeon, 11 a.m., Saturday): Korra analyzes the mysterious visions she’s been having, presumably by hanging out with a psychotherapist and/or looking at the comments section of any website reviewing this series, where everything is dissected. Emily Guendelsberger dreams of socks.
TV CLUB CLASSIC
Babylon 5 (11 a.m., Friday): Rowan Kaiser said he would give you a guide for how to watch this series, and give you a guide he shall! This week’s article opens with a series of possible reactions to the series’ first episode proper, then tells you which episode to watch next, depending on your reaction. Handy!
Firefly (1 p.m., Friday): No such luck for the first episode proper of this series, which was hastily thrown together in an attempt to get the Fox network to pick up the series, so it could then summarily mistreat the show. Donna Bowman and Noel Murray very much enjoy the big heist adventures anyway.
Chappelle’s Show (3 p.m., Friday): Remember the Jamie Kennedy Experiment, a short-lived show on the WB? Probably not, but if you do, you might appreciate “Zapped!,” one of this week’s best sketches. Ryan McGee is still upset those bastards canceled his beloved weekly time with good old Jamie Kennedy.
Animaniacs (11 a.m., Saturday): Lots of you piled on for last week’s review, so we’re glad to know you’re as excited about this show as Genevieve Koski is. You should invite your kids to read along! We’re sure if you asked nicely, the commenters beneath the articles would keep it completely clean.
The X-Files/Millennium (1 p.m., Saturday): Zack Handlen checks in on the episode “Drive,” which might as well serve as the secret origin story for Breaking Bad, given how it stars Bryan Cranston and was written by Vince Gilligan. He also comes away disappointed from another Millennium episode.
Pulling (3 p.m., Saturday): Are you “unfettered by formal skills or education”? Then you just might be ready for the second episode of this series, which also features some thoughts on long-term relationships breaking up. Margaret Eby will have all the math for you, as well as job interview tips.
WHAT ELSE IS ON
The Woman With 15 Personalities (Discovery Fitness & Health, 8 p.m., Friday): The latest from this channel that seems to have “Make everything sound like it should be on the cover of a tabloid” as its titling strategy examines a woman with multiple-personality disorder. And also if that’s even a thing.
Lives On Fire (OWN, 9 p.m., Friday): Meanwhile, Oprah Winfrey’s network debuts a new reality series following around female firefighters both on the job and off. They live in Riverside County, Calif., so they live in a renowned hellhole, but at least they’ll have plenty of wildfires to fight, making for exciting TV.
Phineas & Ferb (Disney, 9 p.m., Friday): Celebrate the show’s recent Youth Programming nomination at the Television Critics Association awards by watching this brand-new episode, in which our heroes play jet-pack volleyball with Jeremy and create their own UFO. Y’know. The kind of stuff kids can relate to.
Stephen Hawking’s Grand Design (Discovery, 8 p.m., Saturday): For three hours tonight, the man who just might be the smartest on Earth is going to explain all about the existential quandaries of the universe, the things that have bugged humans for millennia. Naturally, this is airing on a Saturday.
Redneck Island (CMT, 10 p.m., Saturday): But why watch Stephen Hawking’s philosophical musings when you could watch a redneck version of Survivor?! God knows that none of these people are going to make you uncomfortable with various eternal questions. Sit back, relax, and know you’re in good hands.
The Runaway (Ovation, 10 p.m., Saturday): Ovation continues its importation of assorted acclaimed miniseries from overseas with this story of the daughter of a prostitute who falls in love with the wrong boy, then sees everything around her fall apart. It was made by the British, so it’s probably all right.
Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory (ABC Family, 9 p.m., Friday): Unnecessarily scare your kids with this family classic, in which a young boy gains entrance to the titular factory, then is put through a series of trials and tests by a renowned madman who doesn’t give up his intense psychological torture easily.
The Innocents (TCM, 9:30 p.m., Friday): This atmospheric and creepy Jack Clayton-directed ghost story is one of our favorite horror films ever made. An adaptation of Henry James’ The Turn Of The Screw, the whole thing has a veneer of classiness, but it very, very quickly comes rattling apart in terrifying form.
The Hangover Part II (HBO, 9 p.m., Saturday): Like Home Alone 2: Lost In New York before it, The Hangover Part II wants to give you absolutely everything the first film did, only in an entirely different setting. Did you like The Hangover? Well, then, here’s more of it, and set in Thailand. You’re welcome.
MLB Baseball: Cubs at Twins (WGN, 8 p.m., Friday): You know it will make for amazing baseball when the Twins, the team with the third-worst record in baseball, face off with the Cubs, the team with the second-worst. Both of these teams are thanking God the abysmal San Diego Padres exist.
Stanley Cup Finals: Game 5: Kings at Devils (NBC, 8 p.m., Saturday): The Kings blew their chance at a sweep by losing game four Wednesday night, so here’s another chance for them to put the Devils away, or the Devils could slowly creep back into contention with a win. The important question: Do you care?
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
TRON: Uprising (Thursday): Are you a TRON super-fan? Do you wish we would cover this new animated series on Disney XD regularly? Kevin McFarland, our resident TRON fan, wishes this would happen, so maybe you could go and watch this and offer your thoughts to make all his dreams come true.