As we delve deeper into month two of the pandemic, television still has more than enough fresh content to keep the populace entertained.
And in the most intriguing COVID-19 benefit of the week, the entire cast of “Parks and Recreation” — including Chris Pratt, Amy Poehler, Nick Offerman and Rob Lowe — will reunite remotely and play their original characters as if they were living through this situation. It airs Thursday at 8:30 p.m. on NBC.
Showtime's "Billions," starring Paul Giamatti returns this week for its fifth season and Hallmark's "The Good Witch" for a sixth season.
Shows finishing up their seasons include Fox’s “Prodigal Son” on Monday; BET’s “Sistas” and “Boomerang” on Wednesday; Fox’s “Last Man Standing” and FX’s “Better Things” on Thursday; and HBO’s “Westworld” on Sunday.
Netflix has plenty debuting this week. There's an intriguing crime series "Murder to Mercy: The Cyntola Brown Story" and Ryan Murphy rewriting history in his new drama "Hollywood" which imagines a world where women, gay people and actors of color get in the door decades earlier than they actually did. And Jeffrey Wright stars in a movie about a son who ends up in the same prison as his dad ("All Day and a Night").
Amazon's big debut is "Upload," a Greg Daniels comedy about living in a digital afterworld.
This covers Monday, April 27 through Sunday May 3, 2020.
MONDAY
"9-1-1" 8 p.m. Fox – The 118 fights an apartment building blaze and attempts a daring rescue of a blind woman trapped inside.
"Prodigal Son" 9:01 p.m. Fox (first season finale) - Malcolm continues to unravel as the mystery of the girl in the box comes to a head.
"Baker and the Beauty" 10 p.m. ABC – Noa invites Daniel on a charity trip to Puerto Rico where things don't go as planned, while Vanessa stays close to the Garcias and helps Mateo land his next gig as a DJ.
"Songland" 10:01 p.m. NBC – Two-time Grammy Award-winning R&B singer/songwriter H.E.R. comes to "Songland " to hear unknown songwriters pitch their original material.
TUESDAY
"The Conners" 8 p.m. ABC – Dan and Louise take their relationship to the next level and come to appreciate the complexities of aging.
"Ellen's Game of Games" 9 p.m. NBC - Contestants will play "Aww Snap," "Oh Ship," "Runaway Bride" and special guest Usher joins Ellen DeGeneres to play "Knockin' Boots."
"Autism: The Sequel" 9 p.m. HBO I n 2006, HBO debuted the Emmy-winning film Autism: The Musical, which followed five children as they wrote and performed their own musical. Autism: The Sequel revisits the stars of this musical 12 years later as the original subjects, now in their early 20s, navigate what independence means to them as they manage both challenges and triumphs as adults living on the autism spectrum.
"Black-ish" 9:30 p.m. ABC - Dre underestimates Rhonda's ability to be a mom and struggles to support her decision to adopt a baby.
"For Life" 10 p.m. ABC – Aaron bolsters his case with newfound information from Marie but finds himself torn between two worlds when Cassius suspects Aaron is a snitch and seeks retribution
"FBI: Most Wanted" 10 p.m. CBS – When a case of cyber-stalking escalates to multiple murders, the team must track down a hacker who will stop at nothing to get revenge on those he believes have wronged him.
WEDNESDAY
"Mrs. America" 3:01 a.m. Hulu - Phyllis and Fred Schlafly debate superstar feminist couple Brenda and Marc Feigan-Fasteau on television.
"Murder to Mercy: The Cyntola Brown Story" 3:01 a.m. Netflix – The case of Cyntoia Brown, who was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2004 at the age of just 16 and the campaign to grant her clemency – up to her eventual release from prison last year, following almost a decade of legal challenges.
"Normal People" 3:01 a.m. Hulu - Based on Sally Rooney's New York Times best-selling novel, Normal People tracks the tender but complicated relationship of Marianne and Connell from the end of their school days in a small-town in west Ireland to their undergraduate years at Trinity College. At school, he's well-liked and popular, while she's lonely, proud and intimidating. But when Connell comes to pick up his mother from her cleaning job at Marianne's house, a strange and indelible connection grows between the two teenagers - one they are determined to conceal. A year later, they're both studying in Dublin and Marianne has found her feet in a new social world but Connell hangs at the side lines, shy and uncertain.
"The Masked Singer" 8 p.m. Fox – The final six.
"Survivor" 8 p.m. CBS – Can Tony survive after turning on his ally Sarah last week?
"Seal Team" 9 p.m. CBS- Bravo Team gets ambushed by enemy forces during a mission to extract a potential link to a new terrorist leader.
"Sistas" 9 p.m. BET (first season finale) – New revelations come to the surface and changes Andi's world; Karen is fighting for her life;
"S.W.A.T." 10 p.m. CBS – The SWAT team pursues a couple reminiscent of Bonnie and Clyde, when the duo goes on the run and on the hunt for a set of rare chest pieces worth millions.
"Boomerang" 10:30 p.m. BET (second season finale) - Tia extends help to strippers as her activism and relationship with Dream levels up.
THURSDAY
"Last Man Standing" 8 pm. Fox (eighth season finale) – Eve returns home for a weekend visit and Vanessa tries to recreate a childhood tradition for the girls... without Mike.
"Who Wants to be a Millionaire" 8 p.m. ABC – Anthony Anderson continues his streak playing for The Anderson Family Foundation.
"Young Sheldon" 8 p.m. CBS – Sheldon discovers that Mary's been keeping a secret about his future.
"Parks & Recreation reunion" 8:30 p.m. NBC - The cast will play their old selves to benefit COVID-19 relief efforts.
"Council of Dads" 9 p.m. NBC – Robin grapples with how a "Council of Dads" could really function in their day-to-day life.
"Station 19" 9 p.m. ABC – Andy returns to work while she and Jack fight to save people trapped in a collapsing bowling alley.
"We're Here" 9 p.m. HBO (new series) – Bob, Eureka and Shangela head west to Twin Falls, Idaho, a predominately Mormon community in Magic Valley.
"Better Things" 10 p.m. FX (fourth season finale) – Sam and her girls live in the City of Angels
"Tommy" 10 p.m. CBS – Tommy launches an informal investigation into a possible LAPD and city government-related conspiracy just as she prepares to fight for her job in front of an ethics committee,
"How To Get Away With Murder" 10:01 p.m. ABC – Annalise learns unexpected and shocking details about Sam's past. Meanwhile, Connor and Michaela feel the pressure when the FBI learns there is new evidence in the case
FRIDAY
"Hollywood" 3:01 a.m. Netflix (new series) — A group of aspiring actors and filmmakers in post-World War II Hollywood try to make it big — no matter the cost. From Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan. Biggest name on the cast is Darren Criss of "Glee" fame.
"Into the Night" 3:01 a.m. Netflix (new series) — When the sun suddenly starts killing everything in its path, passengers on an overnight flight from Brussels attempt to survive by any means necessary.
"The Half of It" 3:01 a.m. Netflix — A shy, introverted student helps the school jock woo a girl whom, secretly, they both want.
"All Day and a Night" 3:01 a.m. Netflix — A young man embarks on a journey of self-discovery after landing in the same prison as his father.
"Trying" 3:01 a.m. Apple TV+ (new series) — A new comedy series about growing up, settling down and finding someone to love.
"Upload" 3:01 a.m. Amazon Prime (new series) —A sci-fi sitcom that takes place in the near future, where people who are near death can be "uploaded" into a virtual afterlife of their choice
"Prop Culture" 3:01 a.m. Disney+ — The show revisits classic Disney titles and looks at how props helped to shape and create some of their most magical moments in those movies.
"The Blacklist" 8 p.m. NBC —Ressler is forced to confront past trauma and family secrets when his brother takes him back home for a risky job.
"MacGyver" 8 p.m. CBS — The Phoenix team is forever altered when MacGyver's Aunt Gwen gets into his head about family and connection and convinces Mac and Riley to join Codex.
"Shark Tank" 8 p.m. ABC — An entrepreneur from Tennessee, uses her Southern charm and cooking skills to pitch the Sharks on expanding her fried food empire.
"Magnum P.I." 9 p.m. CBS — As their wedding day approaches, Magnum and Higgins help a modern-day Robin Hood who, thinking she was helping a school obtain needed supplies, unknowingly stole illicit drugs.
"Blue Bloods" 9 p.m. CBS — Sean gets a match from an unknown relative from a DNA network, now he does some detective work to figure out who this mystery person might be
WEEKEND
"Atlanta's Missing and Murdered Children" 7:45 p.m. Sunday HBO (season finale) — More evidnece indicates that maybe Wayne Williams didn't commit all the murders.
"American Idol" 8 p.m. Sunday ABC — Another "remote" show.
"Psycho Escort" 8 p.m. Sunday Lifetime — After her husband's death, Diane has been a single mother to son Jake. She's not ready to date but also doesn't want to attend another work event alone; so her sister, Lori, suggests a rent-a-date service where Diane can hire someone to pose as her boyfriend. Diane.
"Outlander" 8 p.m. Sunday Starz — At the time I'm writing this, all I have his the show title "Journeycake."
"Billions" 9 p.m. Sunday Showtime (fifth season debut) —Bobby Axelrod reaches a major milestone. Chuck struggles to get his bearings and he and Wendy navigate a new normal.
"The Good Witch" 9 p.m. Sunday Hallmark (sixth season debut) — Cassie and Sam prepare to celebrate their first wedding anniversary.
"Westworld" 9 p.m. Sunday HBO (third season finale) — It's time to face the music.
"Zoe's Extraordinary List" 9 p.m. Sunday NBC (first season finale) — Zoey is grappling with her father's pending death.
"The Rookie" 10 p.m. Sunday ABC —Their rookie year is coming to an end and officers Nolan, Chen, and West are about to be squeezed harder than ever before as their training officers evaluate whether they are truly ready for the job.
"Good Girls" 10 p.m. Sunday NBC (third season finale) —Beth and Dean offer to buy Four Star Pool & Spa from Gayle and Dean is determined to make this a legitimate business.
"Insecure" 10:15 p.m. Sunday HBO — The girls get together to help Tiffany with her new baby girl.
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