Jane Austen’s Forgotten ‘Bennet Sister,’ David Attenborough’s Memories of ‘Life on Earth,’ Riotous Times on ‘Chicago Med,’ Spy Thrills in ‘Citadel’

The Other Bennet Sister

Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice is the gift that keeps on giving. With a deluxe Netflix remake on the horizon for later this year (featuring the likes of Emma Corrin, Jack Lowden, Olivia Colman, and Rufus Sewell), a delightful 10-part series looks at the timeless story from a new angle: that of Mary Bennet (a wonderful Ella Bruccoleri), the mousy sister who has long lived in the shadow of Elizabeth, Jane, and the rest of her colorful family. “What can you do if you’re the odd one out?” the bookish and forlorn Mary wonders as she tries to put herself forward in Regency society with disastrous results. Determined to focus on her intellectual “gravitas,” Mary’s trajectory changes forever when a family tragedy takes her from Longbourn to London, where she becomes a governess for her gregarious aunt and uncle (Indira Varma and Richard Coyle) and finds a path to become her true best self. The series launches with three episodes.

Life on Earth: Attenborough’s Greatest Adventure

The remarkable nature advocate and TV presenter Sir David Attenborough turns 100 on Friday, an occasion for him to reflect on the groundbreaking series that made him a TV star: Life on Earth, which began filming 50 years ago in more than 40 countries. Using then-innovative techniques including time-lapse and micro-photography, the series captured wildlife in a way viewers had never before seen. Upon its premiere in the U.K. in 1979 and on PBS in 1982, Life on Earth was an enormous hit, sparking a trend in nature programming and securing Attenborough’s position atop the pantheon of natural history filmmakers and storytellers. (Highlights from Life on Earth include his memorable encounter with the baby gorilla Pablo in the mountains of Rwanda, which inspired a recent Netflix documentary.)

Chicago Med

There are times when the Emergency Department at Gaffney Chicago Medical Center feels as chaotic as The Pitt, and this is one of those moments. A prison riot sends multiple casualties to the ED, swamping the overwhelmed staff. Elsewhere, administrator Sharon Goodwin (S. Epatha Merkerson) and Chief of Psychiatry Daniel Charles (Oliver Platt) face a reckoning at a hospital board meeting.

Citadel

It’s Round 2 of Citadel vs. Manticore as the international spy thriller returns for a new season, with all seven episodes available for a high-octane binge. Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra Jonas are the romantically linked Citadel operatives Mason Kane and Nadia Sinh, whose memories were wiped (though later restored) after Manticore ruthlessly took down Citadel in the first season. Still fighting their way back, the underdogs once again team with the cunning Bernard Olick (Stanley Tucci) to take on a new threat with the usual assortment of betrayals, twists, and over-the-top action sequences. Among the notable new faces: What We Do in the Shadows‘ Matt Berry, Merle Dandridge (The Last of Us), and Jack Reynor (The Perfect Couple).

Margo’s Got Money Troubles

Single mom and new OnlyFans sensation Margo (the terrific Elle Fanning) finds her worlds colliding in this fetching comedy when her Hungry Ghost sexy-alien persona is outed in public while she’s partying on New Year’s Eve. “Shame is not on the table,” insists her dad, ex-wrestler Jinx (Nick Offerman), who’s been choreographing her routines while helping shape her fictional narrative. (Margo is about to learn a basic lesson in social media: “Never Read the Comments.”) Once over the shock, Margo prepares to face the consequences of her double life, until it hits too close to home.

INSIDE WEDNESDAY TV:

• Survivor (8/7c, CBS): After the excitement stirred up by MrBeast‘s visit last week and the wild tribal council that followed, Season 50 promises yet another shocker at this week’s vote. Followed by the penultimate episode of America’s Culinary Cup (9:30/8:30c), where the final four chefs try to impress with the five flavor profiles before one is sent home, leaving only three for the finale.
• MasterChef: Global Gauntlet (8/7c, Fox): The last group of home cooks, representing the Americas, audition to make the final team of five.
• Chicago Fire (9/8c, NBC): Severide (Taylor Kinney) reopens a long-buried cold case. Followed by Chicago P.D. (10/9c), where Imani (Arienne Mandi) follows a new lead into her sister’s disappearance.
• The Nancy Guthrie Mystery (9/8c, The CW): NewsNation‘s Brian Entin hosts a news special providing the latest information and theories regarding the unsolved Feb. 1 abduction of Nancy Guthrie, the mother of Today anchor Savannah Guthrie.
• The Bad Foot Clinic (10/9c, TLC): Podiatrist Marion Yau ends her first season by preparing a marathon runner’s feet for the big race, then helping a drag queen get back into her high heels.

ON THE STREAM:

• The Testaments (streaming on Hulu): Wicked stepmother alert: Agnes (Chase Infiniti) is being groomed by stepmom Paula (a chilling Amy Seimetz) to be the perfect match for widowed Commander Westin (Reed Diamond), though the young “Plum” only has eyes for the much younger and newly promoted Garth (Brad Alexander), unaware that he’s a secret double-agent for the Mayday resistance.
• The Boys (streaming on Prime Video): Paul Reiser returns as “The Legend,” whose connection to retired superhero Bombsight (Mason Dye) could lead Soldier Boy (Jensen Ackles), Homelander (Antony Starr), and the vigilantes to the V1 everyone desperately desires.
• Countdown: Rousey vs. Carano (streaming on Netflix): Go behind the scenes of training as MMA stars Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano train for their May 16 cage fight.
• Worst Ex Ever (streaming on Netflix): The docuseries about relationships gone wrong returns for a second season, featuring testimonials, body-cam footage, and animated reenactments. It all sounds like fodder for the next wave of Lifetime movies.