Here are some highlights of what to watch on TV this week:
MONDAY
8 and 10 PM on FAMILY
Pretty Little Liars
Now that they have the information that Alison (Sasha Pieterse) left them, Aria, Emily, Hanna
and Spencer (Lucy Hale, Shay Mitchell, Ashley Benson, Troian Bellisario) decide to put an end
to "A" once and for all. Now all they have to do is figure out how, and they may need some
help from an unlikely source in the season finale, "For Whom the Bell Tolls." (14)
10 and 11 PM on BRAVO
Bethenny Ever After
Bethenny and Jason take Bryn to Gina's Trinidadian church for a "blessing," but as the
ceremony proceeds, they realize this is turning out to be a more serious matter than just a
blessing in the new episode "It's My Baptism and I'll Cry if I Want To."
10 PM on A&E
Heavy
This new episode introduces Mark, who is 40 and weighs 516 pounds. He's about to become a
father, but he's worried that he won't be around to see his child grow up unless he does
something about his weight. As much as he wants to make a change, he's also worried about
being away from his pregnant wife to do it. Also featured is Patty, who has eased the pain of
multiple tragedies by eating. Now 59 years old and 312 pounds, she wants to break the cycle.
(PG)
10 PM on BET
Rip the Runway 2011
So maybe it doesn't have as much skin as the Victoria's Secret show, but like that holiday
treat, this is a fashion show for people who dislike fashion shows. And it does have underwear
models as hosts … Selita Ebanks of Secret fame and Calvin Klein poster gent-turned-actor
Mehcad Brooks. Amid the fashions … which include clothes for those of us in no danger of being
too rich or too thin … are musical performances by Keri Hilson, Wiz Khalifa and more.
10 and 11 PM on MTV
Skins
Whether you admire this teen soap … based on a British hit … for its frank portrayal of
sexuality and other edgy issues or consider it borderline kid porn, you've got to give MTV
credit for sticking with it. Despite protests from the Parents Television Council and the
avoidant behavior of skittish advertisers, the channel vowed to run the first season in full,
and it did. That season concludes tonight with "Eura; Everyone." (MA)
TUESDAY
8 PM on Channel 23
One Tree Hill
Quinn, Brooke and Haley (Shantel VanSanten, Sophia Bush, Bethany Joy Galeotti) try to use
their talents for a greater good. Julian (Austin Nichols) accepts a directing job and lends a
hand to a friend. Chase (Stephen Colletti) becomes a mentor to Chuck (guest star Michael May).
James Lafferty and Robert Buckley also star in "Holding Out for a Hero." (14)
9 PM on Channel 7
Best in Film: The Greatest Movies of Our Time
The Oscars may be over, but that doesn't mean we have to stop celebrating fabulous films. Tom
Bergeron and Cynthia McFadden host this new special, which presents the results of an online
poll in which members of the public voted in such categories as best action film, best chick
flick, greatest film character, best screen kiss and more. Harrison Ford, Sir Anthony Hopkins
and Olivia Newton-John are among the interviewees.
10 PM and Midnight on SYFY
Marcel's Quantum Kitchen
In case you needed further proof that Syfy isn't just sci-fi anymore, along comes this new
series, which follows "Top Chef" alumnus and Jason Priestley look-alike Marcel Vigneron and
his high-end catering business. In the premiere, "Walk on the Wild Side," he and his team put
together an event to raise awareness of a California animal sanctuary. Eye candy is definitely
on the menu … did we mention "Jason Priestley look-alike"?
WEDNESDAY
8 PM on Channel 23
America's Next Top Model
Tension escalates in this new episode when the models have to work in teams to put on a
cosmetics commercial, and one girl ends up reading another's diary. Stylist Rachel Zoe dresses
the contestants in faux fur for a photo shoot at the Los Angeles Zoo, then joins the judges
panel to decide who's going home.
8 PM on ESPN
NBA Basketball
Two East teams with their collective eyes trained squarely on the playoffs meet tonight at
Madison Square Garden, where Carmelo Anthony and the New York Knicks host Dwight Howard and
the Orlando Magic. The Bockers' new big three of Anthony, Amar'e Stoudemire and Chauncey
Billups shone against the Magic earlier this month in Orlando, scoring a combined 85 points in
New York's 116-110 loss. Immediately following is the San Antonio Spurs at the Denver Nuggets.
9 PM on TBS
Are We There Yet?
It's sort of like being in medical school and imagining you have all the diseases you're
studying. In this new episode, Suzanne (Essence Atkins) meets a renowned relationship expert
and starts to think that she and Nick (Terry Crews) might not be compatible. Leon
("Resurrection Blvd.," "Oz") guest stars in "The Compatibility Test Episode."
10 PM and Midnight on SYFY
Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files
This isn't the one with the plumbers … it's the one with the ex-FBI guy. This latest entry in
the supernatural detective genre, which returns for a second season tonight, focuses on Ben
Hansen, a former FBI agent, and his team of investigators as they seek the truth behind
strange phenomena. In this episode, they look into the case that inspired the current movie
"Battle: Los Angeles."
10 and 11 PM on FX
Justified
Raylan (Timothy Olyphant) tries to keep Winona (Natalie Zea) from landing behind bars for her
latest blunder, but it won't be easy, as he has to navigate through a federal courthouse
that's been locked down because of death threats. Nick Searcy also stars in the new episode
"Save My Love." (MA)
THURSDAY
8 PM on Channel 2
Community
What we've got here is a failure to communicate. That's from "Cool Hand Luke," which is not
one of the movies that figures into this new episode. Since Abed (Danny Pudi) is a big film
fan, Jeff (Joel McHale) plans a surprise birthday party for him with a "Pulp Fiction" theme.
Abed has his own plans for the evening … a restaurant outing with Jeff that more closely
resembles "My Dinner With Andre." Yvette Nicole Brown also stars in "Critical Film Studies."
(PG)
9 PM on Channel 29
Bones
Leave it to Brennan (Emily Deschanel) to take a "reality" show for actual reality. In this
episode, she and Brennan (David Boreanaz) investigate the death of a young man whose remains
were found at the Jersey shore. Brennan does some research by watching a television show set
there. She thinks it's a serious documentary; it isn't, but it does give her some insights
that help her solve the case in "The Maggots in the Meathead." (14)
10 and 11 PM on FX
Archer
In case you thought that breast cancer story line from last week was just a one-shot ...
there's more. Archer (voice of H. Jon Benjamin) learns that the drugs he's been taking for his
cancer are counterfeit and goes after the bad guys behind the scam, IV pole in tow. Jessica
Walter and Aisha Tyler also provide voices in the new episode "Placebo Effect." (MA)
10 PM on MTV
Jersey Shore
The season ends here. Whether you greet that news with a frowny face or a sigh of relief will
depend on whether you find Snooki, the Sitch and company amusing or annoying. If you're in the
former camp, rest assured the show will be back for a fourth season that sends the guidos and
guidettes on the road again … to Italy. (14)
11 PM on MTV
The Hard Times of RJ Berger
In case you missed Season 1, this sitcom, returning tonight, is about a geeky teen whose
social position changes drastically when a wardrobe malfunction reveals he's … ahem … gifted,
and not in an academic way. If you're thinking "one-joke pony," however, think again. This
show's got its poignant side … including the season-ending cliffhanger in which an injured
Lily (Kara Taitz) flatlined after sex with RJ (Paul Iacono). (14)
FRIDAY
8 and 10:18 PM on TNT
Movie: Pretty Woman
Julia Roberts, who had charmed filmgoers the year before as the brave, doomed Shelby in "Steel
Magnolias," became a certifiable superstar with this 1990 comedy-drama. She earned her second
Oscar nomination for her portrayal of a hooker with a heart of gold whose strictly business
relationship with a corporate takeover artist (Richard Gere) becomes something more.
8 PM on Channel 7
Shark Tank
Comedian and game show host Jeff Foxworthy ("Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?") and tech
tycoon Mark Cuban jump into the tank as the high-stakes series returns for its second season.
Based on the British series "Dragons' Den," it brings entrepreneurs before a panel of
investors … the "Sharks" … to ask for financial support for their ideas. In the season
premiere, one Shark offers the biggest investment in the show's history … $4 million.
9 PM on HBO
The Ricky Gervais Show
Does this mean the end of that song about the farmer's wife and the carving knife? Stephen
seeks Karl's opinion on a scientific breakthrough that gives blind mice their sight. Karl's
got other things to talk about, though, including the time his father scored 30 crates of
breath mints and his visit to an unconventional medical professional, in the new episode "Leg
Rubber." (MA)
10 PM on CINEMAX
Movie: Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
Anyone familiar with the first film won't find much that's very surprising in this
comedy-fantasy sequel, but the result is entertaining enough. Hilary Swank has played Amelia
Earhart more recently, but Amy Adams had a crack at it earlier, since the aviatrix is among
the historic figures encountered by ex-security guard Larry (Ben Stiller) as he's summoned to
assist some exhibits being relocated from his former workplace to the Smithsonian Institution.
SATURDAY
8 and 11 PM on AMC
Movie: The Manchurian Candidate
Denzel Washington stars in director Jonathan Demme's ("The Silence of the Lambs") 2004
updating of the 1962 suspense classic. He plays Ben Marco, a Gulf War veteran who starts to
question whether a fellow soldier's act of heroism really took place. That soldier (Liev
Schreiber) is up for vice president of the United States, and Marco suspects he and his
buddies were brainwashed to believe the incident happened. Meryl Streep also stars.
8 PM on CINEMAX
Movie: Saturday Night Fever
Tony Manero (John Travolta) spends his days working in a paint store, but he lives for his
nights in a Brooklyn disco where he's the king of the dance floor. He ends up getting big life
lessons from his sophisticate-wannabe partner (Karen Lynn Gorney) in a contest, and also from
his reckless buddies, in director John Badham's iconic 1977 drama that made its Bee
Gees-driven soundtrack one of the top-selling albums in history.
9 PM on SYFY
Movie: Scream of the Banshee
A college professor finds a mysterious box in a tunnel underneath campus and opens it. Bad,
bad idea. What comes out is a bloodthirsty spirit's terrifying scream that brings death to all
who hear it. Lauren Holly ("NCIS"), Lance Henriksen and Monica Acosta star in this new
chiller, the 200th entry in Syfy's Saturday night original movie franchise. (14)
10:15 PM on TNT
Movie: The Brave One
Jodie Foster goes the "Death Wish" route in director Neil Jordan's ("The Crying Game") intense
drama about a woman who turns vigilante after an act of violence. The actress plays a New York
talk show host mugged in an assault that leaves her fiance (Naveen Andrews, "Lost") dead.
After emerging from a coma, she buys a firearm and becomes a media sensation by secretly
luring criminals and settling scores. Terrence Howard co-stars.
SUNDAY
12:30 PM on Channel 7
IndyCar Racing
IndyCar starts the engines on its 2011 season with road-course racing in the form of the Grand
Prix of St. Petersburg. The 1.8-mile, 14-turn course in the Florida Gulf Coast city uses a
section of runway at Albert Whitted Airport as well as downtown streets. Drivers expected to
compete include defending race champ Will Power, Scott Dixon, Helio Castroneves, Tony Kanaan,
Dan Wheldon, Danica Patrick and 2010 IndyCar champion Dario Franchitti.
2:30 PM on Channel 29
NASCAR Racing
Sprint Cup drivers have fun in the California sun today at Fontana's Auto Club Speedway in the
Auto Club 400. Jimmie Johnson, Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth, Greg
Biffle, Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon and other drivers compete on the 2-mile D-shaped oval. Last
year, Johnson held off Harvick during a 20-lap green-flag finish to win his fifth career race
at Fontana.
9 and 9:30 PM and Midnight on SHOWTIME
Californication
Is this art imitating life or life imitating art? No wonder the poor guy is confused. As he
awaits his sentencing, Hank (David Duchovny) has trouble distinguishing the movie version of
his life story from the real thing, especially when the actor playing him in the film hits on
his ex, and he finds himself attracted to the woman playing Karen. Natascha McElhone also
stars in the season finale, "... And Justice for All." (MA)
9 PM on HBO
Mildred Pierce
Joan Crawford would be proud … or possibly green with envy. Kate Winslet delivers a
gut-wrenching performance as the title character in this new miniseries adaptation of James M.
Cain's Depression-era tale of an ambitious woman whose devotion to her spoiled daughter (Evan
Rachel Wood) proves to be her undoing. Guy Pearce and Brian F. O'Byrne also star. (MA)
10 PM on COMEDY
Lisa Lampanelli: Tough Love
She's tough, for sure; can we get back to you on the "love" part? In this new special taped in
Joliet, Ill., the insult comic known as the "Queen of Mean" dishes on her life as a newlywed
and her off-the-wall moneymaking scheme as well as taking her usual potshots at celebrities in
a segment called the "Roast of Worthless Americans." Tiger Woods, Lindsay Lohan and the casts
of certain New Jersey-based reality shows are among her targets. (MA)
10 PM and Midnight on TLC
William & Kate: Inside the Royal Wedding
Prince William and Kate Middleton's nuptials are a little more than a month away, and TLC is
getting ready. So is everyone in this new hourlong special, which goes behind the scenes of
the wedding preparations to offer the skinny on Kate's dress, the menu, the bridal party, and
the pre-and post-wedding events. (PG)
