TV Best Bets

Wednesday, March 8: WGN America’s ‘Underground’ Season 2 Premiere

Underground Season 2 cast WGN America

All Times Eastern.

Wednesday, March 8

Underground
WGN America, 10pm
Season Premiere!
Aisha Hinds joins the cast as famed abolitionist and humanitarian Harriet Tubman as WGN America’s Underground Railroad series debuts its second season. The series’ co-executive producer John Legend will also appear as radical abolitionist and social reformer Frederick Douglass.

Survivor
CBS, 8pm
Season Premiere!
One of the most mentally challenging and physically demanding games is back for its 34th season. Set in the Mamanuca Islands in Fiji, this season’s premiere marks Survivor’s 500th episode and features 20 returning castaways known to have evolved the game in some way with their risky, game-changing moves. Among those returning are Tai Trang, Michaela Bradshaw, Caleb Reynolds, Ciera Eastin and Sandra Diaz-Twine, the only person to win the game twice.

Chopped Junior: Make Me a Judge
Food Network, 8pm
New Series!
Talented junior chefs from across the country compete for a place at the Chopped judges’ table, where they’ll give longtime Chopped judges Amanda Freitag, Alex Guarnaschelli, Marcus Samuelsson and Chris Santos a taste of their own medicine as the pro chefs then battle for bragging rights and $25,000 to the charity of their choice.

Speechless: “S-U-R—SURPRISE!”
ABC, 8:30pm
Dylan (Kyla Kenedy) tells Maya (Minnie Driver) she doesn’t want a birthday party, but Maya plans a surprise fete anyway and discovers the real reason why Dylan didn’t want to celebrate. JJ (Micah Fowler) scores an accidental day of independence at the mall when Ray (Mason Cook) is put in charge of watching him. Jimmy (John Ross Bowie) and Kenneth (Cedric Yarbrough) struggle to find common ground.

The Magicians: “Plan B”
Syfy, 9pm
Julia (Stella Maeve) and Kady (Jade Tailor) enlist Quentin (Jason Ralph), Margo (Summer Bishil), Eliot (Hale Appleman) and Penny (Arjun Gupta) for a magical heist.

black-ish: “ToysR’ntUs”
ABC, 9:30pm
Janine (Nicole Sullivan) gives Diane (Marsai Martin) a white Girlstory doll for her birthday, and when Bow (Tracee Ellis Ross) tries to exchange it for a black doll, she is shocked by the limited options. Dre (Anthony Anderson) blames it on the lack of representation of African Americans in the media, but as he confronts the systemic problem, he realizes that he has prejudices of his own. Meanwhile, Ruby (Jenifer Lewis) enlists Junior (Marcus Scribner) to be her spades partner.

Designated Survivor: “Warriors”
ABC, 10pm
New Episodes!
With the nation in shock following the shooting on the Capitol steps, Emily (Italia Ricci) struggles with the knowledge there may be a traitor in the White House. Meanwhile, Hannah (Maggie Q) grapples with her decision to reveal what she knows about the conspiracy behind the Capitol bombing.

Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders
CBS, 10pm
Season Premiere!
The Criminal Minds spinoff about the specialized International Division of the FBI tasked with solving crimes and coming to the rescue of Americans who find themselves in danger while abroad premieres Season 2 tonight. Gary Sinise, Alana De La Garza, Daniel Henney and Tyler James Williams star.

The Expanse: “The Seventh Man”
Syfy, 10pm
Preparations for the Earth/Mars peace conference tighten the tension on Errinwright (Shawn Doyle).

Thursday, March 9

Grey’s Anatomy: “Civil War”
ABC, 8pm
Richard (James Pickens Jr.), Jackson (Jesse Williams), April (Sarah Drew) and Catherine (Debbie Allen) tackle a grueling trauma case that is intensified by hospital politics. Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) gets caught in the middle when Nathan (Martin Henderson) and Alex (Justin Chambers) disagree about a patient. Amelia (Caterina Scorsone) finally confronts her feelings about Owen (Kevin McKidd).

Three Pointer Thursday
Comedy Central, beginning at 8pm
Comedy Central takes shots from beyond the arc tonight with basketball-themed episodes of Tosh.0 and South Park. Highlights include Web Redemption for the world’s greatest Nerf dunker in a Tosh.0 episode from 2013, and South Park’s “Crack Baby Athletic Association” episode from 2011.

NBA Basketball
TNT, beginning at 8pm Live
TNT’s Thursday NBA doubleheader features a compelling opening game with the San Antonio Spurs at the Oklahoma City Thunder. The second game is for diehards only, as the L.A. Lakers are at the Phoenix Suns in a battle of Western Conference bottom-feeders.

Scandal: “They All Bow Down”
ABC, 9pm
Olivia (Kerry Washington) takes action when Jake (Scott Foley) and Vanessa’s (Joelle Carter) messy relationship poses a threat to the campaign. Meanwhile, a game-changing revelation about the conspiracy surrounding Francisco Vargas’ (Ricardo Chavira) assassination is revealed.

Mom: “Martinis and a Sponge Bath”
CBS, 9pm
When Christy (Anna Faris) and Adam (William Fichtner) get into a car accident, Bonnie (Allison Janney) is hurt to discover she is neither of their emergency contacts. Guest star Wendie Malick returns in the new episode “Martinis and a Sponge Bath.”

Kicking & Screaming
FOX, 9pm
New Series!
New Girl’s Hannah Simone hosts this extreme reality competition where 10 expert survivalists are paired with pampered partners. After these unlikely duos are dropped into a tropical jungle in Fiji, they must overcome dangerous animals, raging rivers, hunger and extreme weather.

Chicago Med: “Prisoner’s Dilemma”
NBC, 9pm
Dr. Reese (Sarah DiPillo) is contacted for help by a troubled teen in a psychiatric facility, and Dr. Manning (Torrey DeVitto) tries to help parents make a decision about their comatose daughter’s surprise pregnancy.

The Catch
ABC, 10pm
Season Premiere!
As Season 2 begins, con man Benjamin Jones (Peter Krause) has gone from committing the ultimate betrayal to performing the ultimate sacrifice after he turned himself in to the FBI to save Alice (Mireille Enos) from wrongful imprisonment. Now in jail, Ben is forced to reckon with his criminal past, while the team at Anderson Vaughan Investigations must come to terms with the new revelations.

Training Day: “Faultlines”
CBS, 10pm
The unexpected death of star Bill Paxton on Feb. 25 leaves a cloud hanging over this series for the remainder of its run, which began only last month. With the future of Training Day in question, viewers can still appreciate Paxton’s work as CBS continues to air new episodes. In “Faultlines,” an investigation into weapons trafficking becomes personal for Tommy (Drew Van Acker) when an old friend becomes connected to the case.

The Blacklist: Redemption: “Independence, U.S.A.”
NBC, 10pm
After a plane crashes in the Ural Mountains, Tom (Ryan Eggold) and Nez (Tawny Cypress) go undercover in Russia to infiltrate a mysterious, top-secret military facility. Meanwhile, Scottie (Famke Janssen) enlists Mr. Solomon (Edi Gathegi) to find answers about her husband.

Friday, March 10

Hand of God
Amazon
Season Premiere!
Ron Perlman returns for Season 2 as Judge Pernell Harris, a.k.a. “Judge Maximum.” Still haunted by his son PJ, he’s now facing trial for the murder of a cop. If that wasn’t enough, Pernell’s visions have returned, further threatening his relationship with his wife. This season, Pernell must fight on two fronts to restore his sanity and his freedom. But mysterious forces in San Vicente would rather see Pernell go down than let the city’s dirty laundry come to light. Dana Delany and Garret Dillahunt costar.

Love
Netflix
Season Premiere!
Season 2 of the Judd Apatow-produced comedy finds Mickey (Gillian Jacobs) and Gus (Paul Rust) facing commitment and all that comes with it as they attempt to bring order to their chaotic lives.

MacGyver: “Flashlight”
CBS, 8pm
Guest Star Alert!
The new episode “Flashlight” features guest stars Daniel Dae Kim and Grace Park in a crossover with Hawaii Five-0. When Mac (Lucas Till) and the team travel to Hawaii to aid in earthquake relief efforts, they team up with Chin (Kim) and Kono (Park) from the Five-0 task force to rescue a group of government scientists trapped in a building.

The Vampire Diaries: “Forever Yours”
The CW, 8pm
This one-hour retrospective features interviews with past and present cast members and guest stars, a conversation with the executive producers Julie Plec and Kevin Williamson, behind-the-scenes footage from the final season and special moments from the past eight years.

Tangled: Before Ever After
Disney Channel, 8pm
Original Film!
In the all-new animated film, Mandy Moore and Zachary Levi reprise their roles as Rapunzel and Eugene (formerly known as Flynn Rider). Rapunzel grapples with her new responsibilities as a princess, and while she loves Eugene, she is in no rush to get married. When she and her lady-in-waiting Cassandra (voiced by Broadway’s Eden Espinosa) embark on an adventure, mystical rocks cause Rapunzel’s long blond hair to grow back. Her hair is impossible to break and difficult to hide, and she must learn to embrace it and all that it represents.

Grimm: “Blood Magic”
NBC, 8pm
After a series of brutal and deadly attacks, Nick (David Giuntoli) and Hank (Russell Hornsby) find an unlikely lead in a local nursing home. Meanwhile, Eve (Bitsie Tulloch) goes to Adalind (Claire Coffee) to get answers that only a Hexenbiest can provide.

Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb
TBS, 8pm
The 2014 hit film starring Ben Stiller, Robin Williams, Owen Wilson, Steve Coogan and Ricky Gervais makes its premiere tonight on TBS. The exhibits at New York’s Natural History Museum come to life at night, and when they start behaving strangely, Larry (Stiller), newly promoted director of nighttime operations, must find out why. The Tablet, which magically brings the creatures to life, has started to decay and the only method of restoring it is available at the British Museum. In order to save his museum “family,” Larry and the museum exhibits travel from New York to London to discover the Tablet’s secret.

The Vampire Diaries: “I Was Feeling Epic”
The CW, 9pm
Series Finale!
Nina Dobrev returns as Elena to help Ian Somerhalder and Paul Wesley end the romantic vampire drama after eight seasons. With the fate of Mystic Falls at stake, Stefan (Wesley) and Damon (Somerhalder) must fight their greatest enemy for one last battle.

Great Performances at the Met: “Elektra”
PBS, 9pm
Richard Strauss’ tragedy is presented in the late Patrice Chéreau’s production, conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen with Nina Stemme as the vengeful princess. Waltraud Meier, Adrianne Pieczonka, Eric Owens and Burkhard Ulrich are also featured.

Saturday, March 11

Iron Man 2
FX, 5:30pm
In this 2010 Iron Man sequel, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) contends with pressure from the government that wants to possess his weapon, the knowledge that he is slowly dying and a new foe as powerful as he is. Don Cheadle and Mickey Rourke also star. FX airs Iron Man 3 immediately following.

Ransom: “The Artist”
CBS, 8pm
In the new episode “The Artist,” Eric (Luke Roberts) and his team begin negotiating the return of valuable paintings stolen from an art gallery, but the situation gets complicated when the thief then kidnaps a gallery staffer.

NBA Basketball: Golden State at San Antonio
ABC, 8:30pm Live
A matchup between Western Conference powers is in store tonight as Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors visit LaMarcus Aldridge and the San Antonio Spurs.

Planet Earth II: “Deserts”
BBC America, 9pm
Desert animals have the most incredible survival stories on Earth. Among the stories featured in “Deserts” are a pride of desert lions hunting a giraffe several times their size, a flock of male sand grouse flying nearly 125 miles daily to find the nearest waterhole, and a tiny bat taking on a deadly scorpion just to get a meal.

Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
Disney XD, 9pm
Season Premiere!
In the one-hour season premiere, featuring back-to-back episodes, the Guardians and the Avengers join forces for an epic adventure. While trying to dispose of Thanos’ asteroid in “Stayin’ Alive,” the Guardians discover it has been taken to a secure facility that belongs to the Avengers. Then, in “Evolution Rock, “ The Guardians and the Avengers team up to find out what powerful secrets lie inside Thanos’ asteroid.

Jerrod Carmichael: 8
HBO, 10pm
It may be standup comedy, but the second HBO special from Jerrod Carmichael — creator and star of NBC’s The Carmichael Show — is light on the easy laughs. And that’s exactly his intention. “We’re going for a really introspective, vulnerable, emotional tone. If anything, it’s more of a response to comedy specials than a comedy special. The silly, goofy, crazy court jester approach is not what I do,” the comedian says.

Silver Linings Playbook
TNT, 10:30pm
This Best Picture Oscar nominee is a must-see. Jennifer Lawrence took home a Best Actress Oscar for her role as a widow struggling to put her life back in order when she meets a former teacher (Bradley Cooper) with some serious anger management issues. Robert De Niro, Chris Tucker and Jacki Weaver round out this exceptional cast.

Samurai Jack
Adult Swim, 11pm
Season Premiere!
The cult series returns for a fifth and final season after not being on the air since 2004, featuring the return of voiceover artist Phil LaMarr, the original voice of Jack.

Saturday Night Live: “Scarlett Johansson/Lorde”
NBC, 11:30pm Live
Scarlett Johansson joins the “five-timers” club as the Ghost in the Shell star hosts tonight. Musical guest Lorde makes her first solo appearance on the show.