MONDAY
AUGUST 18
2014

BIANCULLI’S BEST BETS

 

Acorn TV, Check local listings

This is the second of three final episodes of the long-running Poirot series, starring David Suchet as Agatha Christie’s stuffy, fussy Belgian detective. And like the first and third, it’s available, for now, only on the Acorn.TV website, whereas the other mysteries in the show’s 13-season run always have been shown in the U.S. on PBS. Tonight’s story has Hercule starting off by failing to both catch a killer and protect someone from harm, and falling into a deep depression as a result. But in a story that takes him on vacation to a breathtaking mountain retreat, he finds his spirit revived not by the scenery, but by another mystery. For my full review, visit NPR’s Fresh Air with Terry Gross.
 
  
 
 

BBC America, 8:00 a.m. ET

Building up to this weekend’s launch of Peter Capaldi as the new Doctor, BBC America goes all in, all week, with Doctor Who-related marathons and specials. Beginning today at 8 a.m. ET, for example, BBC America repeats the first 10 specials in the Doctor Who – The Doctors Revisited nonfiction series, giving behind-the-scenes histories of the various men cast as The Doctor. At 1 p.m. ET, it’s Doctor Who: The Christmas Invasion holiday drama, followed at 2 p.m. ET by six episodes of Season 2 of the modern Doctor Who. And prime time carries additional goodies, including, at 9 p.m. ET, Doctor Who: The Ultimate Time Lord, a new special hosted by Peter Davison (the Fifth Doctor).

 
  
 
 

ESPN, 8:00 p.m. ET

PRESEASON PREMIERE: This is a preseason game, so it doesn’t count in the standings once the season begins. But that doesn’t mean this opening game, pitting the Cleveland Browns vs. the Washington Redskins, is devoid of drama. Over on the Browns side, starting quarterback Brian Hoyer is battling not only the opposing defense, but his own teammate: this year’s top draft pick, Johnny Manziel, has been assigned to lead the offense on alternating possessions. So if he shines while Hoyer fizzles, the new kid could emerge with the starting job by the time the season starts. And over on the Redskins side, there’s a new NFL coach, Jay Gruden, trying to guide talented quarterback Robert Griffin III to a much better season that last year. Oh, and in the broadcast booth for ESPN? It’s the former Super Bowl-winning coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Jon Gruden, Jay’s older brother.

 
  
 
 

HBO, 9:00 p.m. ET

This new documentary recounts and recircles the infamous story of Pamela Smart, the young teacher who had an affair with one of her high-school students and was convicted of conspiring with him and his friends to kill her husband. Smart continues to profess her innocence, this documentary spends a good deal of time excoriating the media, but the pertinent information in this narrative is doled out slowly and somewhat confusingly. One thing that leaps out, though: Despite all the headlines and news stories to the contrary, Pamela Smart was not a teacher – just someone who worked with, and advised on, educational media. For a full review, see Eric Gould’s Cold Light Reader.
 
  
 
 

TNT, 9:00 p.m. ET

SEASON PREMIERE: Larry Hagman as J.R. Ewing is long gone now, but this series continues to tell its South Fork stories. And while the younger cast members are given most of the juicy stuff to do, it’s still the old guard, especially Linda Gray as Sue Ellen and Patrick Duffy as Bobby, who keep the engine chugging.

 
  
 
 
 
 
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David Bianculli

Founder / Editor

David Bianculli has been a TV critic since 1975, including a 14-year stint at the New York Daily News, and sees no reason to stop now. Currently, he's TV critic for NPR's Fresh Air with Terry Gross, and is an occasional substitute host for that show. He's also an author and teaches TV and film history at New Jersey's Rowan University. His 2009 Dangerously Funny: The Uncensored Story of 'The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour', has been purchased for film rights. His latest, The Platinum Age of Television: From I Love Lucy to the Walking Dead, How TV Became Terrific, is an effusive guidebook that plots the path from the 1950s’ Golden Age to today’s era of quality TV.