Decades, 12:00 a.m. ET
Hey, hey, it’s still The Monkees. And what’s fun to watch, as this weekend marathon concludes of the two-season mid-’60s TV and musical phenomenon, is how quickly the four stars began to chafe at their corporate-imposed restrictions, and try to expand beyond the show’s initial teen-pleasing formula. They didn’t always succeed… but they kept trying.
AMC, 9:00 p.m. ET
MINISERIES CONCLUSION: Part 3. Part 1 of this three-part drama was all about the development of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire in England, and the quest of one particular family of quiz-show enthusiasts to land a spot as a contestant. Part 2 was about that contestant’s peculiar style of play, and to that point unprecedented achievement, at winning a million pounds. Tonight’s concluding Part 3 is all about the court case that followed, accusing the winners of cheating. But did they? The first two parts of this drama have been riveting, and wholly entertaining – and the best is yet to come. Michael Sheen, Michael Macfadyen star.
HBO, 9:00 p.m. ET
MINISERIES FINALE: Here’s another drama wrapping up tonight – but whereas Quiz has been light and fun, I Know This Much Is True has been unrelentingly grim. This miniseries, based on the book by Wally Lamb, has developed into an anguished family story that works in three time periods. In the one unfolding at the center of the drama, Mark Ruffalo plays twin brothers Dominick and Thomas – and in tonight’s episode, after Thomas has been institutionalized for four months after chopping off his own hand in a psychotic episode, he’s freed to go home, in the case of his often angry, always guilty brother. Flashbacks to the twins’ childhood, and early college years, have explained their often tortured dynamic. And in last week’s episode, Dominick began reading the freshly translated unpublished memoir of their grandfather, who emigrated from Italy and almost instantly began mistreating not only his own brother, but the women in his life. Tonight, all those forces crash on the same emotional beach – and while I’m sure I’ll be watching, I’m not expecting to be comfortable. Ruffalo’s performance, though, is among the year’s very best, and not to be missed.
Showtime, 9:00 p.m. ET
MIDSEASON FINALE: Tonight’s episode, which has many of the show’s powerful primary characters aiming their scheming sights at one another, is billed as the midseason finale. What that means, for certain, is that it’s the last we’ll see of Billions for a while. What’s much less certain, given the unpredictable future of the current pandemic, is when, or perhaps if, the show will be able to resume production and complete this latest season. Meanwhile, the show’s original antagonists, Axe and Rhodes, are back where they began: vowing to crush each other.
Showtime, 10:00 p.m. ET
This anthology series, in its current City of Angels season, has developed a drama built around a social movement and cultural uprising. On one side are the politicians and police; on the other, a minority group totally fed up at being abused and brutalized by the authorities, especially the street cops. Is there any way to watch this series without drawing some topical parallels? No. And not even the supernatural element, with Natalie Dormer playing a demon who instigates the tensions and rebellions and reactions, distracts from the core of the story being told here, and its uncanny echoes to ongoing headlines.
HBO, 11:20 p.m. ET
There may be a smarter show on television right now. And there may be a funnier. But I’m fairly certain there isn’t one that scores higher in both those categories at once. Keep it up, Mr. Oliver… Please.