Here’s what’s up in the world of TV for Sunday, November 10. All times are Eastern.
TOP PICK
Killing Kennedy (National Geographic, 8 p.m.): In his book (co-written by Martin Dugard) Killing Kennedy, political commentator and constantly venting spleen Bill O’Reilly applies his signature no-nuance approach to the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy. No grassy knoll, no grand conspiracy—just two men whose opposite trajectories through history can be shaped into twin narratives (with a liberal dose of shouting). Zack Handlen has the review of the book’s telefilm adaptation, the script to which is surprisingly devoid of the word “pinhead.”
REGULAR COVERAGE
Once Upon A Time (ABC, 8 p.m.): An Ariel-Belle teamup is in the offing, which means Disney is in for a massive merchandising windfall. Gwen Ihnat, meanwhile, would like to see the princess re-imagined as partners on a detective squad, Cagney & Lacey style.
The Simpsons (Fox, 8 p.m.): Homer checks items off of a to-do list he wrote when he was 10. Dennis Perkins would follow suit, but “Become a fire truck” is more difficult than it first seemed.
Bob’s Burgers (Fox, 8:30 p.m.): The Belchers go Animal House when Bob takes up a second job cooking for a fraternity. That’s all fine and dandy, so long as those punks at Belcher House don’t pull any stunts while Dean Pilot Viruet gives a campus tour to the president of the United States.
Revenge (ABC, 9 p.m.): Thrill to the excitement of the Graysons rehabbing their public image by hiring a PR firm! If that PR firm wouldn’t mind knocking out some press releases on behalf of Carrie Raisler (suggested headline “America agrees: Raisler rising to the top!”), that’d be nice, too.
The Walking Dead (AMC, 9 p.m.): Rick and crew clash with “multiple enemies,” a vaguely defined scenario Zack Handlen envisions as involving a rogues’ gallery from across the pop-culture spectrum. The Joker! Professor Moriarty! Dracula! Flattop! Snake Eyes! 88 Teeth! Neon Noodle!
Family Guy (Fox, 9 p.m.): Meg stages a fight with the new thug in town, a setup Eric Thurm assumes will be treated all the sensitivity and sympathy Family Guy usually applies to the Griffin daughter. (Which is to say “Hope you like jokes about Meg being a subhuman punching bag!”)
Boardwalk Empire (HBO, 9 p.m.): Look, we don’t want to give away plot points that history has already spoiled, but the fallout from the Chicago portion of last week’s episode ain’t so pretty. All Genevieve Valentine is saying is maybe prominent gangsters who’ve recently orchestrated major assassinations should be more cautious when they go shopping with the wife.
Homeland (Showtime, 9 p.m.): “Gerontion” shares its title with a T.S. Eliot poem told from the perspective of an older man surveying the ruins of post-World War I Europe. This could apply to Saul, but it could also apply to Todd VanDerWerff and his sorting through the shambles of seasons two and three.
The Good Wife (CBS, 9:30 p.m.): Hey everybody! Nathan Lane’s back on The Good Wife! This calls for a celebration—one marked by David Sims belting “Hakuna Matata.”
American Dad (Fox, 9:30 p.m.): “Crotchwalkers” splits its attention between a heist-gone-wrong and the formation of a balalaika trio. And it is for these reasons, in addition to episode titles like “Crotchwalkers,” that Kevin McFarland gives thanks for American Dad.
Eastbound & Down (HBO, 10 p.m.): Look, Eastbound doesn’t have much time left, so you can forgive the show for allowing Christmas to arrive early. Scott Von Doviak offers up one final wishlist to his personal Santa Claus, Kenny Powers.
Masters Of Sex (Showtime, 10 p.m.): In other plot points spoiled by history: Masters and Johnson cross the threshold between the researching and the researched. There’s no turning back now—though dedicated Wikipedia trawler Sonia Saraiya could’ve told you that before the show even started.
Hello Ladies (HBO, 10:30 p.m.): Stuart attempts to alter a wedding’s seating chart to his romantic advantage—a decision that’s sure to raise the hackles of anyone who’s ever put such a seating chart together. Molly Eichel just sees this is a brilliant ploy to get twice the wedding favors.
TV CLUB CLASSIC
The Simpsons (Classic) (3 p.m.): Introducing: Marge Simpsons, Springfield P.D. Starring Marge Simpson as Officer Marge and Clancy Wiggum as “The Chief.” (Marge Simpson, Springfiled P.D. is a Quinn Martin production, in association with Erik Adams International.)
WHAT ELSE IS ON?
2013 MTV EMA (MTV, 7 p.m.): Performers lined up for the latest edition of the European Music Awards include Miley Cyrus and Robin Thicke, so expect some sort of rehash of the duo’s monocle-shattering VMA teamup—one that should receive a more measured, less panicky reception, seeing as Europeans have a historically heightened tolerance for twerking.
The Britannia Awards 2013 (BBC America, 9 p.m.): Some sources mistakenly labeled this hands-across-the-water ceremony as the 2019 edition of the Britannia Awards, honors What’s On Tonight predicts will be handed to Harry Styles (snatching the Stanley Kubrick Award for Excellence in Film following an unexpected and groundbreaking adaptation of Hamlet) and Hologram Benny Hill (making him the first artificial intelligence to claim the Charlie Chaplin Award for Excellence in Comedy).
Thicker Than Water (Bravo, 9 p.m.): Sonia Saraiya calls this new docuseries “the reverse Here Comes Honey Boo Boo—which has more to do with the socioeconomic status of its subjects and less to do with a parallel universe Mama June who keeps herself from saying things like “vagjiggle jaggle.”
Shake It Up (Disney, 9 p.m.): While Miley comes in like a wrecking ball from Amsterdam, Disney prepares to release another batch of kiddie stars into the wild thanks to the conclusion of this dance-centric comedy.
A Very Merry Mix-Up (Hallmark, 8 p.m.): Is it a Christmas movie debuting in early November, or a condensed version of Arrested Development’s fourth season? Only the Hallmark Channel knows for sure!
The Spongebob Squarepants Movie (Nickelodeon, 9 p.m.): This seems like a late hour to broadcast a movie with such obvious all-ages appeal, but just remember this: The right time for “Goofy Goober Rock” is “all the time.”
Sunday Night Football: Cowboys at Saints (NBC, 8:20 p.m.): Undefeated in four home games this season, New Orleans welcomes Dallas to the Superdome—presumably while rapping their fingers together and simpering from behind their facemasks.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Dracula: The show that boldly imagines a world where Count Dracula and Van Helsing are allies also boldly imagines an episode titled “Goblin Merchant Men” that features no goblins managing the buying and selling of goods. Les Chappell, who minored in goblin business in college, is severely disappointed.