Here’s what’s up in the world of TV for Thursday, July 19. All times are Eastern.
TOP PICK
Project Runway (Lifetime, 9 p.m.): Oh, good. Another season of fashion mayhem, with the added bonus that we’ll increasingly lose sense of why we ever once loved this show, thanks to the way it’s become a dim shadow of itself. After wrapping up last season—which might have been the worst season of the show (or even perhaps reality TV) ever—John Teti wasn’t sure if he could muster up the strength to continue on. Yet he’ll take a break from his much more rewarding work piloting our sister site, The Gameological Society, to tear apart the gowns, with some able assists from our own Margaret Eby here and there. Fret not. We’ve got you covered.
REGULAR COVERAGE
Burn Notice (USA, 9 p.m.): Fiona doesn’t want to be extradited, but she also doesn’t want to become a CIA asset, and those are basically her two options at this point. This means she’s going to have to choose, unless she wants to take what’s behind door number three. It’s a disgruntled Scott Von Doviak!
Suits (USA, 10 p.m.): “Jessica takes the lead on a case that could have serious consequences for the firm,” says the summary, and while we like this show, doesn’t that sort of describe every case the characters have taken this season? Carrie Raisler’s review could have serious consequences for the site!
Wilfred (FX, 10 p.m.): “Unforeseen problems arise for Ryan and Wilfred after a tragic occurrence,” reads the summary, and we’re just begging FX to give us something—anything!—to go on here. That seems especially vague to us. Rowan Kaiser prefers that his metaphysical comedies be very specific.
Louie (FX, 10:30 p.m.): Nathan Rabin is back to reviewing this show, and he starts out with the first episode of a two-parter about Louie attempting to find a suitable girlfriend to slot into his already incredibly complicated life. It features guest turns from Maria Bamford and Parker Posey, too!
TV CLUB CLASSIC
Monty Python’s Flying Circus (11 a.m.): The second episode of this series—actually produced first, or so you told us in comments last week—is entitled “Sex And Violence.” The Muppets also entitled an episode that, so Zack Handlen believes all moderately successful sketch shows must call an episode that.
The Thick Of It (1 p.m.): One of this week’s two episodes is set at the “party conference,” which reviewer David Sims describes as similar to the United States’ Democratic or Republican National Conventions, only “annual and even duller.” Good Lord, living in the United Kingdom sounds boring!
TV Roundtable (3 p.m.): This week, our roundtable takes a visit back to the Old West, at the behest of Donna Bowman, who wants to revisit her adolescent crush on Lee Majors, whose work on The Big Valley gets all of our writers just a little hot and bothered, albeit for very, very different reasons. Go, cowboys!
WHAT ELSE IS ON
Duets (ABC, 8 p.m.): Nobody’s been following this singing competition, but tonight’s episode marks the finale, so if you were planning on ever checking this out, tonight is your last chance. Or, rather, it’s your last chance unless you decide to download the entire series illegally to watch it in 2017 for some reason.
Great Lake Warriors (History, 10 p.m.): Been looking for a series about guys who pilot tugboats on the Great Lakes, particularly in the dangerous winter months? Well, the History Channel now has the show for you, provided you’re looking for a program matching that ultra-specific description. It’s tuggin’ time!
Misfits (Logo, 10 p.m.): Just in case you found it too difficult to watch this great British series about teenage miscreants unexpectedly given superpowers while it was on Hulu (where it remains to this day), Logo is now airing it from the beginning. Follow along with Rowan Kaiser’s reviews every week!
Sullivan & Son (TBS, 10 p.m.): It’s been a summer of terrible, terrible cable sitcoms. Will this new TBS show from Rob Long—a former writer for Cheers—and Steve Byrne break that curse? Todd VanDerWerff is skeptical, but the involvement of Dan Lauria and Christine Ebersole gives us some hope.
Brokeback Mountain (Showtime, 7:45 p.m.): Continue our occasional stroll through the Best Picture nominees of 2005 with the classic romantic drama, in which two cowboys fall in love while on shepherd duty, then find how it comes to dominate their lives. It’s a great, sad film that won three Oscars.
Forbidden Planet (TCM, 8 p.m.): Or you could watch a science fiction adaptation of Shakespeare’s The Tempest with a totally awesome robot. Okay, the term “adaptation” should be used loosely, but we really do like that robot. Also, the film’s main character is named “Professor Morbius,” which is great.
British Open: First-round play (ESPN, 7 p.m.): Tiger Woods has been quietly returning to solid form, so expect the media attention for the first couple of days of this one to focus on him and whether he can win another major for the first time in years. Also, there are plenty of other awesome golfers, if you like.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Futurama (Wednesday): The latest episode of the sci-fi comedy is named “The Butterjunk Effect,” and Zack Handlen wants to know exactly what “butterjunk” is, because it sounds sort of creepy. Okay, he doesn’t actually wonder that, since he saw the show, but we wonder that because we haven’t just yet.