The Emmy Awards, ‘Wheel’ Turns 40, ‘M*A*S*H’ Turns 50, ‘Days’ Moves to Streaming

Emmys

Saturday Night Live’s Kenan Thompson hosts the annual celebration of TV—broadcast (barely), cable and streaming—from a club-like setting at L.A. Live and the Microsoft Theater. HBO’s Succession is the most nominated drama, Ted Lasso from Apple TV+ the most nominated comedy, and The White Lotus leads the pack in limited-series nods. There could be spoilers (Squid Game in drama, Hacks or ABC’s Abbott Elementary in comedy, Dopesick in limited series), so it’s anyone’s guess who will win. (Here’s my analysis of the drama categories, comedy categories and limited series categories.) John Legend premieres a new song, “Pieces,” during the In Memoriam segment.

Wheel of Fortune

Some things never change—Pat Sajak and Vanna White are still the hosts of the enduring game show—but to launch the 40th season, they’ve updated the puzzleboard to a single LED screen where the letters are revealed when Vanna activates the screen by breaking the plane in front of the letter. Most stations will pair Wheel with the 39th season of Jeopardy!, where Ken Jennings is scheduled to host through the rest of the calendar year while Mayim Bialik works on her Fox sitcom Call Me Kat and hosts the upcoming prime-time version of Celebrity Jeopardy! on ABC.

Pictionary

Following an earlier test run, a new version of the sketchy game show based on the board game returns to the daytime syndicated marketplace, with The Talk’s Jerry O’Connell as host. Celebrity captains lead two teams of three to guess words and phrases as players frantically draw clues. In the first week, team captains are Jaleel White and Melissa Peterman, with Peterman also dueling Carson Kressley.

M*A*S*H: The Best by Farr

To mark the landmark wartime comedy’s 50th anniversary, Jamie Farr (aka the cross-dressing Corporal Klinger) hosts an hourlong block of back-to-back favorite episodes nightly through Friday. He’ll also share memories and anecdotes from the 11 seasons of filming.

Days of our Lives

In a sign of the ever-changing times, the daytime-drama staple migrates from NBC to its streaming platform, ruffling many a longtime viewer’s composure. In an attempt to ease the pain, Peacock is offering a discounted $1.99 a month fee for new subscribers for the next year. But for many who haven’t made the leap to streaming, this is the latest nail in the coffin for the endangered species of the daytime soap. (Only one remains on ABC, two on CBS.)

Inside Monday TV:

• Monday Night Football with Peyton and Eli (8 pm/ET, ESPN2 and ESPN+): While the Broncos-Seahawks matchup airs on the main channel and on ABC, the Manning brothers return for an “alternate presentation,” offering their own takes on the game, with special guests joining in on the fun.
• 90 Day: The Single Life (8/7c, TLC): Who could have guessed some of the international relationships showcased in this franchise wouldn’t work out? A third season of the second-chance spinoff follows six singles from past seasons as they dive back into the dating pool.
• Halloween Baking Championship (9/8c, Food Network, streaming on discovery+): Seems a bit early (unless you’ve been to a store recently), but the frighteningly creative competition begins with host John Henson welcoming 12 bakers to his haunted hotel, where the eliminated get sent to the ominous 13th floor. The first challenge involves creating faces out of pie (as opposed to pies in faces), then impressing judges Carla Hall, Stephanie Boswell and Zac Young with blood-spatter cakes. Yum?
• Love It or List It (9/8c, HGTV): Designer Hilary Farr and real-estate pro David Visentin launch a new season with a 90-minute premiere, in which Hilary is her own client, fixing up a North Carolina cottage while David tries to lure her away to a property that already boasts everything she’s looking for.
• War of the Worlds (9/8c, Epix): The international sci-fi thriller returns for a third season with the battle between humans and aliens continuing to rage. After the premiere, the series moves to its regular time period Sunday at 9/8c.
• Hazing (10/9c, PBS): Filmmaker Byron Hurt, a former fraternity brother who survived the trauma of hazing, takes a hard look at the sometimes-deadly practice on college campuses in an Independent Lens documentary.