Star Trek: Discovery says goodbye for now, and Vice Principals says goodbye forever

Here’s what’s happening in the world of television for Sunday, November 12. All times are Eastern.

Top picks

Star Trek: Discovery (CBS All Access, 8:30 p.m.): The first jaunt of the much-heralded return of Star Trek to the small screen wraps up tonight. The synopsis from the CBS All Access site about episode nine, “Into The Forest I Go,” is appropriately vague: “While in unfamiliar territory, the U.S.S. Discovery crew is forced to get creative in their next efforts to survive opposing and unprecedented forces and return home.” The next round of Star Trek: Discovery will return on Sunday, January 7. Zack Handlen, who has seen most of his reviews for this first season hover near the B range, will be around for this final 2017 mission tonight.

Vice Principals (HBO, 10:40 p.m.): After two fun- and tension-filled seasons, everyone’s favorite dysfunctional high school admins will call it a day. Since the episode is titled “The Union Of The Wizard & The Warrior,” we can only hope that means that Gamby (Danny McBride) and Russell (Walton Goggins) will finally settle all their many differences. Since Kyle Fowle gave last week’s penultimate episode an A, calling it “the pinnacle of the show’s madcap creative vision,” we suspect he will be sorry to see the series go.

Regular coverage

Lady Dynamite (Netflix)
The Simpsons (Fox, 8 p.m.)
Outlander (Starz, 8 p.m.)
Ghosted (Fox, 8:30 p.m.)
Shameless (Showtime, 9 p.m.)
The Last Man On Earth (Fox, 9:30 p.m.)
Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO, 10 p.m.)

Wild card

Alias Grace (Netflix): Speaking of grades, A’s are fairly rare around here, and it’s unusual for one to show up without a minus trailing behind it. But Gwen Ihnat’s pre-air review of this Netflix miniseries hit the top of the scale, as it looks like the year’s second adaptation of a Margaret Atwood novel may best even the Emmy-winning The Handmaid’s Tale. And every one of Kayla Kumari Upadhyaya’s episodic reviews of the historic Canadian murder mystery also landed in the elusive A range. Just something to consider if you’re looking for a worthwhile binge-watch this weekend.