Weekend Pick
Photo: Discovery Channel
If you missed the Discovery Channel's "Planet Earth" series (back-to-back repeats air at 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. EST on Sunday, Dec. 9), settle in with your family and prepare to be amazed. Even if you're not one to gasp at the delights of nature shows, the slow-motion footage of great white sharks rocketing out of the ocean waves to attack seals on the coast of South Africa will make your eyes bulge out of your head like a cartoon. Whether you're witnessing a rare nighttime lion attack on an elephant or the antics of truly bizarre creatures on the jungle floor, the artistry of the cinematography is breathtaking, the narration is appropriately grandiose, and a sense of awe pervades every aspect of this production until it's contagious. Tonight's first episode, "Shallow Seas," features those YouTube-friendly great white attacks, followed by the "Forests" episode. This excellent series has plenty of devoted fans already, but we couldn't miss another opportunity to urge new viewers to watch it. Trust us, you won't be disappointed.
Also…
On Friday, Lantry edges closer to coming clean on "Friday Night Lights" (9 p.m. EST on NBC), which means we can focus on all of the other, really good stories of the season. And the CBS special "Movies Rock! A Celebration of Music & Film" features performances by Mary J. Blige, Elton John and Jennifer Hudson, among others. On Saturday, fans of the crass and the crude will enjoy "Dave Attell: Captain Miserable" (10 p.m. EST on HBO) or, better yet, "Borat" (10 p.m. EST on Max). On Sunday, "The Amazing Race" heats up on CBS (8 p.m. EST), "1968 With Tom Brokaw" (9 p.m. EST on the History Channel) focuses on one of the most volatile years in American history, Spike TV hosts "The Video Game Awards" (9 p.m. EST), and Mitch Albom's simplistic page turner is converted into an Oprah Winfrey made-for-TV weeper starring Michael Imperioli, "For One More Day" (9 p.m. EST on ABC).
Last night
What did you think of HBO's "Sand and Sorrow" on Thursday? Go here to discuss.
On the talk shows -- Friday
Regis and KellyABC, 9 a.m. EST |
Holly Hunter, Blake Lewis, Omar Wasow, guest co-host Ted McGinley | |
The ViewABC, 11 a.m. EST |
John Cusack | |
Ellen DeGeneresSyndicated, check local listings |
Paula Deen | |
Oprah WinfreySyndicated, check local listings |
Suddenly skinny | |
Charlie RosePBS, check local listings |
Sam Elliott, Philip Pullman | |
Larry KingCNN, 9 p.m. EST |
Jack Hanna | |
David LettermanCBS, 11:30 p.m. EST |
John Travolta, Paula Abdul, Teddy Thompson (repeat) | |
Jay LenoNBC, 11:35 p.m. EST |
Jerry Seinfeld, Amber Brkich and Rob Mariano, Wayne Newton (repeat) | |
Tavis SmileyPBS, check local listings |
Javier Bardem, Nathan McCall | |
Jimmy KimmelABC, 12:05 a.m. EST |
TBA | |
Conan O'BrienNBC, 12:35 a.m. EST |
TBA | |
Craig FergusonCBS, 12:35 a.m. EST |
Steven Wright, Carrie Anne Inaba, Dinosaur Jr. (repeat) |
Contributors: Megan Doll, Heather Havrilesky, Eryn Loeb, Amy Reiter
- Looking for Thursday's listings?
- Bookmark http://salon.com/tv_daily/ to get the new TV Daily every day.
Shares