BBC America, 12:00 a.m. ET
There’s a new Doctor Who special arriving on Christmas Day – and in the meantime, BBC America is filling its schedule, all this week, with a marathon “Doctor Who Takeover.” I mention it in progress because, though BBC America also did this last year, I find myself, and my TV, gravitating that way again. These old episodes from the modern era, working their way through the various Doctors, hold up very well to repeated viewings: As I write this, I’m watching an old episode from the David Tennant era of Doctor Who, in which one of the guest stars, playing a Roman merchant in Pompeii, is Peter Capaldi – who’s now playing the current incarnation of the Doctor.
CBS, 8:00 p.m. ET
CBS is repeating a treat, or trick, from last year, and once again going into its vaults to present a different pair of vintage I Love Lucy episodes – colorized for the occasion. I detest the idea of colorizing old classics merely to make them palatable for a new, monochrome-averse generation, but I also show one of the episodes presented tonight, the 1952 classic in which Lucille Ball’s Lucy prepares to pitch Vitameatavegamin in a live TV commercial, in my TV History college class each term. So I know what a great episode this is, and I’m glad CBS is showing it – even though I know it’s no less great in black and white. Her performance here, however it’s tinted, is one of TV’s all-time best comedy turns.
E!, 8:00 p.m. ET
Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg wrote this script about high-school seniors planning a blowout, booze-filled party back when they were teenagers, then had it produced by Judd Apatow in 2007, launching a whole new posse of young stars. Jonah Hill and Michael Cera play high school buddies named, notably, Seth and Evan, and co-stars include Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Bill Hader, Emma Stone (pictured with Hill)… and Seth Rogen. Greg Mottola directs, very deftly.
TCM, 8:00 p.m. ET
This was a special episode of The Frank Sinatra Show in 1957 – special not only because it was a holiday show teaming Sinatra with Bing Crosby to sing an hour of Christmas carols and other numbers, but because Sinatra had the foresight to film it in color, where the rest of his TV show output was recorded in black and white. So expect TCM to give this the full-color treatment, without having to resort to colorization – and also expect, at the end, Bing Crosby to sing “White Christmas.” Because he will.
NBC, 9:00 p.m. ET
In case you missed it last week: Here’s a same-month NBC repeat of its concert special, from Radio City Music Hall, featuring 2015’s mega-popular Adele.