White Collar begins its farewell season

By Caroline Siede | November 6, 2014 | 6:00am

TV Features TV

Here’s what’s up in the world of TV for Thursday, November 6. All times are Eastern.

Top pick

White Collar (USA, 9 p.m.): Since it premiered in 2009, this show about a roguish conman-turned-FBI-consultant has been a staple “fun-cedural” for USA. But after five seasons of solving crimes and wooing ladies, Matt Bomer’s Neal Caffrey is finally hanging up his fedora for good. USA gave the show a six-episode final season to help wean its audience off Bomer’s bright blue eyes. And the White Collar farewell tour begins tonight. In addition to rescuing Neal from the kidnappers who snatched him in the most recent finale, this season will also focus on an infamous group of thieves called The Pink Panthers. The show’s creators have dubbed this season a “tribute” to their show so hopefully they’ll be a whole episode dedicated just to Neal’s infamous head-ware.

Also noted

A To Z (NBC, 9:30 p.m.): NBC recently announced it won’t be ordering any more episodes of A To Z, although it will continue production on the initial 13-episode order. That means we may never know if Andrew and Zelda’s mysterious relationship ends in matrimony or misery. Still, executive producer Rashida Jones isn’t giving up hope that there’s a chance to #SaveAtoZ. And neither is Brandon Nowalk, who plans to “F Is For Fight, Fight, Fight” for the show until the bitter end.

Scandal (ABC, 9 p.m.): Last week Joshua Alston examined the pros and cons of Scandal’s Olivia Pope-centric narrative. He pointed out the only character who is really able to function independently of Ms. Pope is Mellie. Which means Joshua is extra excited that Mellie reportedly makes a power play this week.

Reign (The CW, 9 p.m.): Frozen found phenomenal success by centering its story on two princesses, so Reign steps up its game with an episode titled “Three Queens.” Mary and Catherine must hide in the woods to escape a peasant uprising. Genevieve Valentine hopes they convince the peasants to spare them with a rousing rendition of “Let It (And Us) Go.”

Regular Coverage

The Big Bang Theory (CBS, 8 p.m.)

Gracepoint (Fox, 9 p.m.)

Parenthood (NBC, 10 p.m.)

Elementary (CBS, 10 p.m.)

How To Get Away With Murder (ABC, 10 p.m.)

TV Club Classic

Futurama (10 a.m.): Zack Handlen has been covering Futurama on and off ever since the show’s sixth season premiere. But despite filing over 50 reviews, he hasn’t had his fill of Matt Groening’s sci-fi comedy. Instead, Zack is kicking off TV Club Classic coverage of Futurama’s early seasons. First up: “Space Pilot 3000” and “The Series Has Landed.” Follow along every Thursday to relive those innocent days when Fry was just a bumbling animated character and not an avatar for every Internet skeptic.

Elsewhere in TV Club

Noel Murray revisits Welcome Back, Kotter for our latest TV Club 10. In addition to recommending 10 vital episodes, Noel examines the highs and lows of a 1970s sitcom people generally remember laughing at not with.

Elsewhere, Joshua Alston has two season-spanning TV reviews. First up, he examines the freshman season of the Starz comedy, Survivor’s Remorse. After reluctantly dubbing this show about a successful basketball player “the black Entourage,” Joshua notes its “acidic, irreverent tone” and “shambling charm” show a lot of promise that could be fulfilled in its upcoming sophomore season.

Joshua also tackles the return of Lisa Kudrow’s beloved reality parody, The Comeback. The show’s been off the air for nine years, but its return feels as fresh as ever:

The Comeback is hilarious in bursts, but season two goes to such dark places, at times it doesn’t resemble mockumentary as much as found-footage horror. The show now requires a tolerance for tonal fluctuations violent enough to scare off some season-one devotees. Put simply, The Comeback is the same as it ever was, and more highly concentrated.

What else is on?

Bad Judge (NBC, 9 p.m.): Like A To Z, Bad Judge also received the not cancelled/not renewed notice from NBC. Kate Walsh fans should feel free to start a #SaveBadJudge campaign as well.

Covert Affairs (USA, 10 p.m.): USA’s other big Thursday night premiere is the return of Covert Affairs. After an explosive mid-season summer finale, Annie heads to Instanbul where she will presumably tackle affairs covertly.

Regular Show (Cartoon, 7:30 p.m.): We may have stopped regular coverage of Regular Show, but regular fans may enjoy tonight’s episode in which Rigby tries to get a job outside of the park.

The Vampire Diaries (CW, 8 p.m.): We’ve also dropped regular coverage of The Vampire Diaries, but that doesn’t mean we’ve forgotten about The CW’s attractive undead. Ian Somerhalder’s Damon is finally back from that 1990s prison world he’s been stuck in all season. After reuniting with Stefan last week, he now has to confront Elena who unfortunately had her memories of being in love with him wiped. Oh Vampire Diaries, please never change.

Jurassic Park III (AMC, 8 p.m.): There’s long been debate in the Jurassic Park fandom over which sequel sucks less— The Lost World: Jurassic Park or Jurassic Park III. Either way, revisit the third film and gather more evidence for your deeply entrenched opinion.

Meet John Doe (TCM, 8 p.m.): Frank Capra’s 1941 comedy stars Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck as two down-on-their-luck people who pull a fast one on the nation with a fake newspaper column.

College Football: Clemson at Wake Forest (ESPN, 7:30 p.m.): We couldn’t decide whether to make a “They’re Grrrrreat!” joke about the Clemson Tigers or a “Run, Forrest, run!” joke about Wake Forest. Instead, we’ll just note that injured Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson is healthy enough to return to the field, but it’s unclear if he’ll be used in tonight’s game.

Hey, what’s on the Internet?

Farewell Bomer fedora. We barely knew thee.

In case you missed it

Key & Peele: Those disappointed with the results of Tuesday’s election can comfort themselves with the return of Jordan Peel as President Obama and Keegan-Michael Key as his translator, Luther. Brandon Nowalk breaks down last night’s episode.