Yellowstone prequel 1883 starts its long journey westward as the final season of Claws premieres
Plus, Dexter: New Blood, Insecure, Yellowjackets, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and some Grinch-y holiday recommendations
Here’s what’s happening in the world of television for Sunday, December 19. All times are Eastern.
Top picks
1883 (Paramount+, series premiere): Taylor Sheridan continues his takeover of Paramount+ with this Yellowstone prequel, which explores the beginnings of the Dutton family. The drama stars Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Sam Elliott, LaMonica Garrett, and Isabel May. Look for Terry Terrones’ review of the first three episodes on the site later this morning.
Claws (TNT, 9 p.m., season-four premiere): Eliot Laurence’s colorful crime drama about the many wild predicaments of the Nail Artisans clan returns tonight for its fourth and final season. As Shannon Miller writes in her review of season four, “We’ve encountered quite a few characters since we first stepped into Claws’ Nail Artisans of Manatee County over four years ago. Each figure has uniquely contributed to the chaos that underscores this neon-piped drama that has been classified by some of the show’s creatives as a “Florida noir.” Read the rest of the review here.
Regular coverage
Dexter: New Blood (Showtime, 9:00 p.m.)
Insecure (HBO, 10:00 p.m)
Yellowjackets (Showtime, 10 p.m.)
Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO, 10:30 p.m.)
Season’s streamings
Christmas Takes Flight (CBS, 8 p.m.): Just when you think you’ve seen every type of Christmas movie, you find one that truly surprises you. But sometimes, the surprise is in the suspension of belief. For example, in Christmas Takes Flight, Jenny (Katie Lowes, Scandal) is a pilot in her family’s regional airline, while Matt (Evan Williams, Awkward.) is the CEO that purchases it. Then apparently Matt decides to cut company costs by cancelling the airline’s annual holiday charitable benefit for underserved children. This man seems beyond hope; even the Grinch isn’t that terrible! Maybe this Christmas movie will finally end with corporate interests winning over all. But it’s more likely that Matt will fall in love with Jenny and discover the true meaning of Christmas.
Incidentally, if you do want to watch a cinematic rendition of Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch That Stole Christmas, you have a few options:
How The Grinch Stole Christmas (live-action, starring Jim Carrey) and The Grinch (animated, starring Benedict Cumberbatch) are available to purchase on Amazon Prime, or can be seen via DirecTV. Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch Musical (live-action, starring Matthew Morrison) is streaming on Peacock, as is the perfect How The Grinch Stole Christmas (animated and narrated by Boris Karloff).