Worth Watching: ‘Shadows’ Finale, ‘Hot Zone’ Climax, ‘Archer’ in Space
A selective critical checklist of notable Wednesday TV:
What We Do in the Shadows (10/9c, FX): The uproarious vampire comedy puts a stake in its first season with Guillermo (Harvey Guillen) inadvertently opening a hornet’s nest when he tests the DNA of his master, Nandor (Kayvan Novak), uncovering one of his 200,000 descendants living nearby. If that weren’t enough, Nadja (Natasia Demetriou) reawakens the reincarnation of her many-times-dead lover, Gregor (now in the body of Jake McDorman), who escapes from a mental ward to be reunited with his one and only. Naturally, comical mayhem ensues.
The Hot Zone (9/8c, National Geographic Channel): The docudrama’s final two hours are the most chilling, as the team goes to work inside the primate facility to euthanize the infected monkeys, elevating the tension to horror-movie level. When Nancy Jaax (Julianna Margulies) is temporarily blocked from joining her crew for personal reasons, her ire is almost as terrifying as the mystery virus. The series conclusion is followed by an hourlong special, Going Viral: Beyond the Hot Zone (11/10c), which updates current efforts of those fighting against Ebola on the front lines in Africa.
Archer: 1999 (10/9c, FXX): Apparently in space, everyone knows it when you fart. That’s the level of sophomoric humor on display as the rollicking animated comedy reinvents itself yet again in its 10th season as a deep-space sci-fi parody. Archer (voice of H. Jon Benjamin) and crew are now working aboard the Seamus, a commercial salvage vehicle that gets caught in an interstellar battle when answering a distress beacon.
The InBetween (10/9c, NBC): Pretty much defining the summer-season burn-off, this pale imitation of the much superior Medium stars bland Harriet Dyer as Cassie, a Seattle bartender who sees, what else, dead people. Her mystifying and sometimes horrifying visions come in handy in helping her adoptive detective dad (Paul Blackthorne) solve crimes. Poppa’s new partner (Justin Cornwell) isn’t as convinced. Yet. Yawn.
Inside Wednesday TV: The off-season of network reality competitions gets in full swing, with a 10th-season premiere of Fox’s MasterChef (8/7c), introducing 36 home cooks who are vying for a spot in the top 20… NBC’s American Ninja Warrior (8/7c) kicks off its 11th season with a qualifying round in Los Angeles featuring two new obstacles: Walk the Plank and Spring Forward. The two fastest finishers tackle the new Power Tower for a chance to advance straight to the National Finals in Las Vegas… NCIS may be over until fall, but Rocky Carroll returns to host the real-life counterpart: NCIS: The Cases They Can’t Forget (9/8c). The third season (formerly titled 48 Hours: NCIS) opens with two hourlong cases back to back, handled by the actual Naval Criminal Investigative Service… HGTV headliners Jonathan and Drew Scott are back with a new show, the Property Brothers (9/8c), in which they help families renovate homes they have no intention of leaving. In the opener, they help a couple reshape their Las Vegas domicile in advance of the birth of a third child.
