Here’s what’s up in the world of TV for Thursday, September 8. All times are Eastern.
Top picks
Star Trek marathon (SyFy, all day): Today marks the 50th anniversary of the Star Trek franchise, so SyFy decided to take a break from shark-themed disaster movies to celebrate a true sci-fi milestone. In addition to “on-air trivia, social & digital viewer engagement, and original content from the Star Trek: Mission New York convention,” SyFy is broadcasting three of the 13 Star Trek films. Admittedly, Generations, First Contact, and The Voyage Home make for slightly strange bedfellows; Generations throws off the “good Trek movies” theme and Voyage Home throws off the “TNG feature films” theme. But you could certainly do worse than two solid Star Trek movies and one so-so one. Or, hey, just crack open Netflix/Hulu/Amazon Prime/CBS All Access and watch one of the over 700 Trek episodes that are currently available. We even have a beginner’s guide to get you started.
Steven Universe (Cartoon Network, 7 p.m.): This week, Greg invites Amethyst to a rock show. And it’s not just any rock show; it’s a house party where people do… stuff! As a rule, Eric Thurm is a little ambivalent about the idea of doing stuff. But if this rock show leads to another Greg musical number, he’s all in.
RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars (Logo, 8 p.m.): After last week’s shocking departure, All Stars gets back on track this week. The queens embrace all things historical as they salute “the baddest bitches in herstory” in a lip-sync extravaganza. But which famous women will make the cut? Oliver Sava is crossing his fingers for some stellar Florence Nightingale drag.
Premieres and finales
Finding Prince Charming (Logo, 9 p.m.): Logo makes history with the first-ever gay dating show. Like on The Bachelor, multiple suitors live in the same house while pursuing one eligible heartthrob. But like on Bachelor In Paradise, there’s potential for multiple couples to hook up (although that’s not really an angle the show’s marketing is playing up). Whatever happens, Lance Bass is there to keep everything running smoothly as the show’s host.
Haylie’s America (Cooking, 10 p.m.): With Lance Bass remaking himself as a dating show host on one channel, Haylie Duff is remaking herself as a food host on another. On her new Cooking Channel series Haylie’s America, the elder Duff sister hits the road to visit “trendy new hot spots, old-school mainstays, and everything tasty in between.” In other words it’s Diners, Drive-Ins And Dives, but with less hair gel.
Better Things (FX, 10 p.m.): Louis C.K. and Pamela Adlon team up for a moody comedy that’s the female flipside of Louie. In the semi-autobiographical series, Adlon plays a divorced actress raising three daughters. In her interview with us, Adlon explains, “I didn’t want to be a sensational, exploitive type of a show, where she’s a single mom, and she’s fucking all the time, and she’s smoking pot and whatever. To me, it’s more interesting that the kids curse at each other.” Sounds fucking great.
Regular Coverage
Narcos (Netflix, 4 p.m.)
Streaming pick
Star Trek: The Original Series, “The Man Trap” (multiple streaming sites): Revisit the story that started it all with the very first Star Trek episode to air on TV. Though “Where No Man Has Gone Before” is the original series’ (second) pilot, “The Man Trap” was the episode that first introduced the world to Kirk and company on September 8, 1966. It’s not generally considered one of Star Trek’s best episodes, but every series has to start somewhere, right?