Here’s what’s up in the world of TV for Monday, April 15. All times are Eastern.
TOP PICK
Defiance (Syfy, 9 p.m.): Aliens created by putting facial prosthetics on the actor? Check! Somewhat complicated mythology? Check! Vaguely post-apocalyptic setting? Check! Awkward attempts to mix in iconography from other genres? Oh, you better believe it’s a check. Yes, Syfy is bringing back the sy-fy… er… sci-fi, and Rowan Kaiser will be there to cover every weird-forehead-created-by-facial-prosthetic-makeup moment of it! Julie Benz stars, so you know that it will probably involve her dying somewhere in the middle of the show’s run. If you read, we will add!
REGULAR COVERAGE
Adventure Time (Cartoon Network, 7:30 p.m.): BMO gets lost, meaning everybody’s favorite sentient handheld video game system is in for a rough time as he tries to make his way back to everybody else. Oliver Sava once had to walk around 20 blocks back to his apartment, so he can relate to the lil’ guy.
How I Met Your Mother (CBS, 8 p.m.): Will Lily move to Rome to become the Captain’s art consultant? Well, we just checked and realized this show is going to be on for another season, so we feel safe in all signs pointing to no. Donna Bowman, however, is moving to Rome to become our Italian TV consultant.
Regular Show (Cartoon Network, 8 p.m.): Margaret needs a ride to the airport, in an episode that fairly sparkles with the daring, adventurous storytelling this series has become known for. Alasdair Wilkins would give her a ride himself, but one of the tires is flat on his unicycle, and that’s just bad luck.
The Following (Fox, 9 p.m.): Ryan, having tried doing things by the book for so long, decides it’s high time he started fighting with the FBI for no particular reason, in hopes that this might cause one of Joe’s followers to trust Ryan instead. David Sims has seen this show, and he knows it won’t work. Sorry, Ryan!
RuPaul’s Drag Race (Logo, 9 p.m.): “Sugar Ball” is the title of this week’s episode, and we’re taking that as an excuse to believe that this episode is all about somebody mashing a bunch of gumdrops together and then making somebody else eat them. Oliver Sava would nibble quietly at that giant ball of sucrose.
Top Of The Lake (Sundance, 9 p.m.): Brandon Nowalk sees this miniseries to its end, as the final two installments air tonight. Didn’t like it or didn’t watch it? Well, we take great pity on you, but you can always catch up with Brandon and Scott Tobias’ excellent reviews when you finally do watch it.
Bates Motel (A&E, 10 p.m.): After last week’s episode featured Vera Farmiga shouting, “I killed the crap out of him!” in front of a dump she had mistakenly hoped would be a 24-hour one, Todd VanDerWerff started wondering what he got himself into. Then again, he’s also covering Smash, so he’s an idiot.
TV CLUB CLASSIC
Peep Show (11 a.m.): We honestly don’t know how far Phil Dyess-Nugent has made it into this series at this point, but we think he might be starting season three this week? Granted, we could just go and look at the article to see what the season number is, but that would defeat the point of our laziness.
Batman: The Animated Series (1 p.m.): The twisted relationship between Harley Quinn and the Joker takes center stage in the episode “Mad Love,” which features the former trying to kill Batman to get the Joker all to herself. Oliver Sava is going to have a field day unpacking the homoerotic subtext in this one.
WHAT ELSE IS ON
Oh Sit! (The CW, 8 p.m.): For some reason, this “extreme musical chairs” reality show was renewed for a second season, and now, it’s taking the place of the generally agreeable Carrie Diaries on the schedule. Just think: In a few years, all of television will be “extreme” versions of children’s party games!
Burger Land (Travel, 10 p.m.): If you don’t know who American hero George Motz is, then you need to watch this show. Motz has somehow found a way to make a living by driving around the United States and eating hamburgers, having made a film, written a book, and now created a TV show about burgers.
Scam City (Science, 10 p.m.): So you made a show about con artists and scammers and pickpockets all over the world, and you didn’t get Ricky Jay to host it? That feels like a dereliction of duty somehow. Actually, we’d love to just watch Ricky Jay doing weird shit for an hour each week. Make it happen, TV!
Inside Comedy (Showtime, 11 p.m.): Showtime’s generally enjoyable comedy interview series wraps up season two, as Robert Schimmel hits the hot seat. If the show gets a third season, all we ask is that all of the interviews are with the cast of Grown-Ups 2, sure to be the funniest movie of the summer!
Winchester ‘73 (TCM, 8 p.m.): This highly enjoyable Western follows the path of one gun through the Old West, with Jimmy Stewart more than content to play second fiddle to a firearm. Good ol’ Jimmy! Who wouldn’t he play second fiddle to? Guns? Sure. Imaginary rabbits? Yep! Cartoon mice? Of course!
She’s All That (Style, 9 p.m.): If you haven’t seen the ‘90s greatest contribution to the “nerdy girl takes off her glasses and turns into a hot girl” genre, then watch and marvel at the acting prowess of one Usher Raymond, then wonder why Rachael Leigh Cook had to end up on one of the shitty TNT shows.
MLB Baseball: Reds at Phillies (ESPN, 7 p.m.): We know they were two of the better teams in baseball last year—okay, we can’t remember if the Phillies were, and we’re not looking it up—but we mostly remember these teams for ending up in that weird amalgamation of baseball footage on Elementary.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
The Borgias (Sunday): One of TV’s most underrated dramas begins its third season, and Les Chappell is there to outline all of the sexy, papal action. Actually, any time there’s sexy, papal action, Les is there to give the play-by-play. It’s kind of his thing, and if you were thinking about doing it too, well, butt out.