By RODNEY HO/ rho@ajc.com, originally filed Saturday, July 11, 2015
An odd array of unscripted programming, specials and less heralded dramas return this week.
Guy Fieri's Food Network staple "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" takes to the airwaves Friday for its astounding 23rd season although the show is only nine years old. (In other words, the show literally airs more than two seasons a year.) Over that time, it has aired 283 original episodes, including specials.
And Discovery's "Mythbusters," which debuted in 2003 and has aired 259 episodes, returns for its 18th season Saturday. Compared to Fieri, this show is not nearly as prolific, averaging 1.5 seasons per year.
On Saturday night, Hallmark brings back "Cedar Cove" Saturday for a third season while AMC carts out "Hell on Wheels" for its final season.
The big awards show is the ESPYS on ABC for the first time on Wednesday, hosted by Joel McHale, the day after the baseball All Star Game on Fox.
Justin Bieber pretends to sing on "Lip Sync Battle" on Spike Thursday. Other celebrities you'll see include Leah Remini in her TLC reality show, Mark Wahlberg on his A&E reality show, Nick Lachey on his A&E reality show (all Thursday) and Kate Hudson on Bear Grylls' wilderness show on NBC Monday.
On the comedy side, Jim Gaffigan debuts his own sitcom on TV Land Wednesday and FX's "Married" returns for a second season Thursday after the debut of Denis Leary's spoof of rock bands "Sex, Drugs & Rock-n-Roll" straight from the "Spinal Tap" vein.
And on the serious side, Spike jumps into scripted drama Sunday with "Tut" starring Ben Kinsley.
This covers Sunday, July 12, through Saturday, July 18, 2015.
MONDAY
"Your Pretty Face is Going To Hell" 12:15 a.m. Adult Swim (second season debut) — After a lengthy hiatus, this show about life in hell shot in Atlanta is back.
"American Ninja Warrior " 8 p.m. NBC — The top 30 competitors from the Venice Qualifier tackle the Venice Finals course.
"The Bachelorette " 8 p.m. ABC — Kaitlyn completes her overnight dates and makes the difficult decision to send one bachelor home.
"So You Think You Can Dance " 8 p.m. Fox — The Top 20 dancers perform.
"Swamp People " 8 p.m. History (sixth season finale) — On the final day of the season, two families challenge each other, hoping to ensure their mutual success.
" Devious Maids " 9 p.m. Lifetime — Marisol struggles with Jesse being both her boyfriend and her employee.
" Major Crimes" 9 p.m. TNT — A pile of bones is discovered, and the squad discovers the victim had a troubled past.
"Whose Line Is It Anyway " 9 p.m. the CW — Kathy Lee Gifford guests.
"Cuban Chrome " 10 p.m. Discovery (new series) — Automobile enthusiasts discuss classic cars from Cuba.
"Unreal " 10 p.m. Lifetime — Tragedy hits the set and affects the contestants and everyone behind the scenes.
"Murder in the First " 10 p.m. TNT — Jamie digs into Dustin's past.
"Running Wild With Bear Grylls " 10:01 p.m. NBC (second season debut) — Kate Hudson and Bear hike the Dolomites, a challenging mountain range in Italy.
TUESDAY
"MLB All Star Game" 7 p.m. NBC — Shelby Miller is the only Brave to make the cut.
"America's Got Talent" 8 p.m. NBC — The judges finally begin the cutting process.
" Chrisley Knows Best " 9 p.m. USA — Julie starts a food blog, but her excitement is tempered by the reaction to it.
" Rizzoli & Isles " 9 p.m. TNT — A crime tech is murdered, shocking the team.
" Little People, Big World " 9 p.m. TLC (12th season debut) — Scientists search for the largest female great white shark that has ever been tagged.
" Zoo " 9 p.m. CBS — Jackson flies to Japan with Abraham to recover the rest of his father's research involving animals.
"Proof " 10 p.m. TNT — A Jane Doe awakens from a coma but has memories belonging to other deceased coma patients.
"Royal Pains " 10 p.m. USA — Hank helps Boris prep a secret patient for surgery.
"Scream " 10 p.m. MTV — Emma discovers that her mom is keeping additional secrets.
"Tyrant " 10 p.m. FX — Molly and Sammy go to Abbudin to address the dispute over his inheritance.
"Hollywood Game Night" 10:01 p.m. NBC — Debra Messing, Katharine McPhee, Will Arnett, Meredith Vieira, Melissa Fumero and J.B. Smoove.
WEDNESDAY
"Big Brother" 8 p.m. CBS — Da'vonne Rogers, an ousted player, claims other players are choosing not to vote against Villa Rica's Audrey Middleton because she is transgender.
"2015 Espy Awards " 8 p.m. ABC — ESPN is placing this awards show on ABC for the first time.
"Masterchef " 8 p.m. Fox — A rice dish is created in 60 minutes in a mystery box challenge.
"Flipping Out " 9 p.m. Bravo — Jeff hopes to have a family with Gage.
"Suits " 9 p.m. USA — Harvey steps outside his comfort zone to help a client who has a special tie to the firm.
"Duck Dynasty " 9 p.m. A&E — Jase and the guys put their newly discovered talent for ridding properties of pests to their advantage.
"Leah Remini: It's All Relative " 9 p.m. TLC (second season debut) — Leah and her family go to group therapy to move on with their lives after leaving the Church of Scientology.
"Hollywood Divas " 9 p.m. TV One (second season debut) — Miss Lisa Wu from "Real Housewives"? She's here now.
"Wahlburgers " 9:30 p.m. A&E (third season debut) — Paul's family visits Mark's home in Los Angeles.
"I am Jazz " 10 p.m. TLC (new series) — Following the life of a transgender teen in Florida, Jazz.
"The Jim Gaffigan Show " 10 p.m. TV Land (new series) — Jim Gaffigan struggles to balance fatherhood, comedy and food.
"Mr. Robot " 10 p.m. USA — Elliot's inner-demons threaten an fsociety operation.
"Extant " 10 p.m. CBS — Molly learns the truth about what happened to her son.
"Impastor " 10:30 p.m. TV Land (new series) — Buddy Dobbs steals a man's identity and poses as a gay pastor in a small town.
"Lachey's Bar " 10:30 p.m. A&E (new series) — Nick Lachey returns to Cincinnati.
THURSDAY
"The Astronaut Wive's Club" 8 p.m. ABC — Trudy fights for the cause of women in space; at the same time, John Glenn considers running for public office.
"Food Fighters" 8 p.m. NBC— A 14-year-old boy competes against culinary experts.
"Aquarius" 9 p.m. NBC — Cold-blooded murder results when Charmain has a ride-along with two officers.
"Big Brother" 9 p.m. CBS — Third person is voted out.
"Complications" 9 p.m. USA — Det. Holden of the Gang Task Force questions John about his suspicious activity; and Gretchen travels to the gang.
"Mistresses " 9 p.m. ABC — Calista seeks revenge on Luca for his manipulative ways.
"Under the Dome " 10 p.m. CBS — Big Jim and Julia discover new information about the Dome's capabilities.
"Graceland " 10 p.m. USA — Briggs helps Ari Adamian remember the events of a night he can't recollect.
"Lip Sync Battle " 10 p.m. Spike — Justin Bieber and Deion Sanders go head-to-head.
"Rookie Blue " 10 p.m. ABC — Juliet has reason to worry about Nick.
"Hannibal " 10 p.m. NBC — Will and Hannibal are captured by police in Italy.
"Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll " 10 p.m. FX (new series) — An Afghan Whigs reunion inspires Johnny to see if he can get the band back together.
"Rectify " 10 p.m. Sundance — Daniel tries to adapt to new circumstances.
"Married " 10 p.m. FX (second season debut) — Russ and Lina have an unexpected Thanksgiving.
FRIDAY
"Tig" 3:01 a.m. Netflix — A documentary exploring comic Tig Notaro's battle with cancer.
"Defiance" 8 p.m. Syfy — Nolan encounters difficulty recruiting a militia to fight the oncoming Votanis Collective army.
"The Messengers" 9 p.m. the CW — The Messengers' powers are tested as they attempt to rescue someone from government lockup.
"Love Thy Neighbor" 9:30 p.m. OWN — Hattie asks Danny, who just received a promotion at work, to help pay for Linda's wedding.
"Diners, Drive Ins & Dives" 10 p.m. Food (23rd season debut) — Proof that Guy Fieri's appeal is neverending.
"Treasure Quest" 10 p.m. Discovery (new series) — A team of experts search for an elusive treasure they believe is hidden on Snake Island in Brazil.
WEEKEND
"The Bride He Bought Online" 8 p.m. Saturday Lifetime — An unstable computer programmer seeks revenge when he learns he has been duped by three teen girls who created a fictitious mail-order bride that he bought.
"Cedar Cove " 8 p.m. Saturday Hallmark (third season debut) — Olivia continues to feel uneasy after learning about Jack's relapse.
"Hell on Wheels" 9 p.m. Saturday AMC (fifth and final season debut) — Cullen in California with the Central Pacific Railroad, builds east through the mountains.
" Mythbusters" 9 p.m. Saturday Discovery (18th season debut) — A boat is blown up with explosives. Later, the guys recreate a machine gun from the series Breaking Bad.
"Power" 9 p.m. Saturday Starz — After the revelation that Ghost and Jamie are the same man, Angela seeks proof.
"Celebrity Family Feud" 8 p.m. Sunday ABC — Rob Gronkowski (on his third reality show in three weeks on three different networks) vs. Holly Robinson Peete
"Sunday Best" 8 p.m. Sunday BET (eighth season debut) — It's an all-star season.
"Welcome to Sweden" 8 p.m. NBC (second season debut) — Bruce plans to propose to Emma, despite not getting a blessing from her parents. Neve Campbell guests.
"Humans" 9 p.m. AMC — Joe gets too close to Anita, and Karen is not what she seems.
"The Last Ship" 9 p.m. TNT — Chandler tracks the Immunes to Northern Florida in a bid to avenge the destruction of the labs.
"Ray Donovan" 9 p.m. Sunday Showtime — Paige Finney calls Ray to protect a quarterback; Lena considers quitting.
"True Detective" 9 p.m. HBO — HBO only released the title "Other Lives."
"Tut" 9 p.m. Sunday Spike (new series) — Tutankhamun's reign finds young Tut trying to wrest control of his kingdom while eliminating those who conspire against him.
"Food Network Star" 9 p.m. Food Network — The finalists work in pairs for a challenge that finds them operating their own food trucks.
"Falling Skies" 10 p.m. Sunday TNT — A mission to gather vehicles and fuel goes wrong
"Ballers" 10 p.m. Sunday HBO — Ricky tries to find common ground with Alonzo.
"Masters of Sex" 10 p.m. Sunday Showtime — Masters takes on a high-profile patient; Virginia and Libby come to terms.
"The Strain" 10 p.m. Sunday FX — Eph and Nora attempt to create a biological weapon that will kill the strigoi.
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