The Walking Dead aims to get your hopes up all over again, before cruelly dashing their brains out
Here’s what’s up in the world of TV for Sunday, October 16, 2011. All times are Eastern.
TOP PICK
The Walking Dead (AMC, 9 p.m.): Sure, sure. We know. The pilot was good, but you hated the later episodes. The characters were thin, and the zombie stuff felt too much like every zombie movie cliché there was. You’re better than this show, and you don’t care who knows it. But we also know that this is still the only show on TV that features zombies (except for CSI: Miami—hey-o!), and we also know you’re going to watch it and bitch all the while. Also, the first two episodes of season two? They’re pretty good! Well, we think so. Who knows what Zack Handlen will think?
REGULAR COVERAGE
The Amazing Race (CBS, 8 p.m.): The teams travel to Thailand, and in keeping with this season’s weirdly esoteric clues, they’ll be forced to decipher the actual identity of the Somerton Man and learn how to recite the entirety of King Lear in Thai before being allowed to proceed. Scott Von Doviak will have all the details.
The X Factor (Fox, 8 p.m.): The weather kept us from having to see Wednesday’s episode (which was pushed to Thursday), but the Detroit Tigers’ inability to force a game seven has led to Thursday’s episode being pushed to tonight, which means Simon Cowell will join the Texas Rangers in celebration. (Phil Nugent, filling in for Emily Yoshida, will not.)
Boardwalk Empire (HBO, 9 p.m.): This complicated, nation-spanning, Emmy Award-winning serialized drama series that seemingly nobody likes was just picked up for a third season, which means everybody can watch for another year and continue to complain about how it’s not awesome enough for whatever ridiculous standard they hold it to. Except for Noel Murray, who will just nod with satisfaction.
Dexter (Showtime, 9 p.m.): This season on Dexter, there will be lots and lots of unsubtle talk about religion and morality and other stuff because, hey, this thing is going to run for years and years. At least Michael C. Hall’s still fun. When are they going to retool the show so it’s just him wandering the country and killin’ folk? Joshua Alston can feel your keen sense of disappointment from here.
The Good Wife (CBS, 9 p.m.): This episode is entitled “Feeding The Rat,” which probably isn’t a euphemism for sex but is definitely what we’re going to start calling sex. So we thank the Good Wife writers, who now have that on their hands in addition to this season’s increasingly strained cases of the week. David Sims will let all of us know just how to, ahem, feed the rat.
Homeland (Showtime, 10 p.m.): Is there a more entertaining new character this TV season than Carrie’s good surveillance buddy Virgil? Every time Homeland threatens to get too contemplative or political, he drops by to crack wise and turn his surveillance game into the weirdest Bravo reality show you’ve ever seen. Todd VanDerWerff will surveil the surveillers.
Hung (HBO, 10 p.m.): In a season that centers on Ray’s fears that he’s getting too old for this shit, it makes sense that he’d eventually run into one of his former students while out plying his trade. And by “plying his trade,” we mean, “having sex for money,” because this is still a show that is primarily about penises. (And Will Harris would like to let you know there’s nothing wrong with that.)