Pennyworth returns, if you want more Young Hot Alfred in your life
Here’s what’s happening in the world of television for Sunday, December 13. All times are Eastern.
Top pick
Pennyworth (Epix, 10 p.m., second-season premiere): The first season of Epix’s Pennyworth was surprisingly fun, telling a cartoonish (yet weirdly graphic) spy story that just happened to be about a younger incarnation of Bruce Wayne’s butler, Alfred. Unfortunately, that connection to Batman was the show’s weakest link, drowning it in questions about how and why this had anything to do with the Dark Knight. For season two, that problem is less of an issue—if only because Pennyworth has become so much more of a cartoon that questions about its reality are easier to ignore. In the year since season one, England’s two secret societies have expanded their feud into a full-blown civil war, with the fascist Raven Union somehow amassing an army, distributing a line of black Nazi uniforms, and constructing big ominous towers in a shockingly short amount of time. What does any of that have to do with Batman? Well, Thomas Wayne and Martha Kane still have a flirty thing going on, and Alfred is raising money to move to America (where Gotham City is!), but beyond that… it’s unclear. [Sam Barsanti]
Can you binge it? Assuming you’ve got Epix, you absolutely can.
Regular coverage
Shameless (Showtime, 9 p.m.)
Wild cards
Desus & Mero, “President Barack Obama” (Showtime, 11:05 p.m.): Desus Nice and the Kid Mero welcome a high-profile Netflix employee to their television program.
A Recipe For Seduction (Lifetime, 12 p.m., premiere): Synergy.
The Simpsons, “A Springfield Summer Christmas For Christmas” (Fox, 8 p.m.): Ellie Kemper and Richard Kind join the voice cast for an episode in which Skinner falls in love thanks to what sounds like a Hallmark movie being filmed in Springfield.
The Walking Dead Holiday Special (AMC+, 3:01 a.m.): We won’t be covering this special, which looks to be more Talking Dead than Walking Dead, but if you want some talking about walking with a seasonal flair, AMC+ has you covered.