Top draws on broadcast and cable and in sports
By Louisa Ada Seltzer Nov 6, 2009
FRIDAY
Best bet on broadcast: CW, “Smallville,” 8 p.m. Everybody’s looking for somebody: Jor-El looks for Clark at the Kent farm, Zod tries to find Jor-El, and Clark searches for his father.
Best bet on cable: Nickelodeon, “SpongeBob SquarePants,” 8 p.m. Special hour-long episode includes the voices of Ricky Gervais, Robin Williams, Pink, Will Ferrell and LeBron James.
Top sporting event: ESPN, “NBA Basketball,” 8 p.m. Speaking of James, he and his current team, the Cavs, take on his rumored future team, the Knicks, in New York.
SATURDAY
Best bet on broadcast: Fox, “The Wanda Sykes Show,” 11 p.m. Series premiere. The comedian's new show features both comedy sketches and panel discussion.
Best bet on cable: Lifetime Movie Network, “To Late to Say Goodbye,” 8 p.m. A Rob Lowe/Lauren Holly original movie, described thusly by New York Post TV critic Linda Stasi: “After too long a stretch, TV is getting back to my favorite scripted dramas -- true crime, in all its twisted gory.”
Top sporting event: CBS, “College Football,” 3:30 p.m. SEC game between No. 9 LSU and No. 3 Alabama could end up having national title implications.
SUNDAY
Best bet on broadcast: Fox, “Family Guy Presents: Seth & Alex’s Almost Live Comedy Show,” 8:30 p.m. Now brought to you by Warner Bros. rather than Microsoft.
Best bet on cable: AMC, “Mad Men,” 10 p.m. Season finale. The episode, written by creator Matthew Weiner, is called “Shut the Door. Have a Seat.” That could mean so many things…
Top sporting event: NBC, “Sunday Night Football,” 8:15 p.m. “SNF” returns from a World Series-induced week off for a big NFC East game between the Eagles and Cowboys.
A look at this week’s top TV draws
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6
Time
Network
Program
Description
8 p.m.
CBS
“Ghost Whisperer” (D)
Jim thinks a co-worker might be involved in a student’s disappearance.
8 p.m.
NBC
“Law & Order” (D)
The detectives find cases full of drugs and money at a murder scene.
9 p.m.
ABC
“Ugly Betty” (D)
Daniel makes Natalie his assistant, and it doesn’t sit well with Betty.
9 p.m.
CBS
“Medium” (D)
Allison rents an SUV that has a strange satellite radio.
9 p.m.
Syfy
“Stargate Universe” (D)
A high-risk plan could yield high rewards.
10 p.m.
USA
“White Collar” (D)
A mob man turns to the FBI to find a stolen Bible.
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7
Time
Network
Program
Description
3:30 p.m.
CBS
“College Football” (S)
Huge SEC game between Alabama and LSU.
3:30 p.m.
ABC
“College Football” (S)
Big Ten game between Ohio State and Penn State.
8 p.m.
Fox
“Cops” (R)
Cops in Vegas try to chase down a suspected bank robber.
8 p.m.
Lifetime Movie Network
“Too Late to Say Goodbye” (M)
Rob Lowe and Lauren Holly star in a movie version of the Ann Rule book.
9 p.m.
CBS
“Strikeforce” (S)
MMA returns to CBS with a match between Brett Rogers and Fedor Emelianenko.
11:30 p.m.
NBC
“Saturday Night Live” (C)
Taylor Swift hosts and performs.
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 8
Time
Network
Program
Description
3:15 p.m.
ABC
“NASCAR Racing” (S)
A Sprint Cup race from Fort Worth, Texas.
8:15 p.m.
NBC
“NFL Football” (S)
NFC East rivalry game between Dallas and Philadelphia.
8:30 p.m.
Fox
“Family Guy Presents: Seth & Alex’s Almost Live Comedy Show” (C)
The special formerly sponsored by Microsoft.
9 p.m.
ABC
“Desperate Housewives” (D)
Angie invites Bree and Orson to dinner, but they’re hesitant.
9 p.m.
HBO
“Curb Your Enthusiasm” (C)
Cheryl competes for a role on the “Seinfeld” reunion.
9:30 p.m.
Fox
“The Cleveland Show” (C)
Cleveland Jr. takes a purity pledge.
10 p.m.
AMC
“Mad Men” (D)
Pete sits down with some very important clients.
A = awards show or special, C = comedy, D = drama, DD = daytime drama, G = game show, K = kids, M = movie, N = news/documentary, R = reality, S = sports, T = talk/variety show.
Louisa Ada Seltzer is a staff writer for Media Life.
