Seven Days of Television: March 2 to March 8
A select viewing guide to the next seven days of television
MONDAY MARCH 2 The Following (Fox, Citytv, 9 p.m.) Send the kids to bed early: Network television’s creepiest show is back. The first two campaigns of this well-received crime procedural tracked the efforts of world-weary FBI agent Ryan Hardy (Kevin Bacon) to put the evil but wickedly charismatic serial killer Joe Carroll behind bars. Justice finally prevailed, so the new season opens with Joe awaiting execution on death row and Ryan trying to reassemble the bits and pieces of his shattered personal life – but it turns out Joe’s legion of loyal murderous followers have other plans.
TUESDAY MARCH 3 Hell’s Kitchen (Fox, Citytv, 8 p.m.) Here’s your modern TV irony: Although Gordon Ramsay is a Michelin-rated chef who demands perfection from anyone with the temerity to step into his kitchen, he still cranks out these reality shows with the clipped efficiency of a fast-food outlet. The 14th season of his brutal cooking competition introduces 18 culinary neophytes vying for a head chef position at one of Ramsay’s restaurants. The opener splits the contestants into two teams – men vs. women – and tasks each one to present his or her signature dish. The losing team has to do the dishes, but the winning team receives the prize of a lifetime: A dinner party with William Shatner himself!
WEDNESDAY MARCH 4 CSI: Cyber (CBS, CTV, 10 p.m.) In acting terms, Patricia Arquette is on a roll and then some. Roughly one week after winning a Best Supporting Oscar for Boyhood, the capable actress takes the lead role in this fresh entry in the CSI franchise. Working off the case files of real-life FBI “cyber psychologist” Mary Aiken, the premise casts Arquette into the role of Avery Ryan, a no-nonsense FBI agent tracking bad guys in the murky uncharted realm of cyber-space. In the series opener, Avery and her team of techies investigate a case involving hacked baby monitors. Ex-Dawson’s Creek regular James Van Der Beek lends support as Arquette’s top-gun assistant.
THURSDAY MARCH 5 Love Under Cuban Skies (CBC, 9 p.m.) While Cuba still adhere to the basic tenets of Communism – more or less - sex tourism ranks among the island’s fastest-growing industries. First broadcast last spring, this sharp doc written and directed by Wendy Champagne follows several women who travel to Cuba looking for romance and adventure and are more than willing to pay for their good time. The film’s most revealing moments come in the interviews with the studs-for-hire – well-educated but unemployed men whose future job prospects are virtually non-existent.
FRIDAY MARCH 6 Moment of Truth (ABC, 9 p.m.) Have you ever been forced to deal with a genuine crisis? Emanating from the ABC News division, this new series employs survivor interviews and dramatizations to tell the stories of real people whose lives have flashed before their eyes due to natural disaster, animal attack or other unforeseen circumstances. The series opener profiles a family who somehow survived a horrific plane crash in the Alaskan wilderness, even though the accident claimed the lives of two passengers. Note: The show moves into its regular Saturday night timeslot tomorrow.
SATURDAY MARCH 7 Roman Holiday (TCM, 8 p.m. ET) Fast, funny and chock full of glorious fifties-era Rome scenery, this 1953 romantic comedy has lost none of its charm over the years. In her first starring role, a hopelessly gamine Audrey Hepburn earned a Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of the pampered Princess Anne, who wearies of royal protocol, escapes her retainers and sets out for a madcap adventure in Rome. The princess promptly meets the jaded American journalist Joe Bradley, who recognizes her, but plays dumb and offers a guided tour of the Eternal City. And before long, love is in the air.
SUNDAY MARCH 8 Who Do You Think You Are? (TLC, 10 p.m.) Get ready to climb that celebrity family tree all over again. Following its initial three-season run on NBC, this reality series in which famous people trace their family history (with the assistance of historians and lineage experts) has found new life on TLC. The sixth-season opener takes viewers to China for the first time in order for Big Brother host Julie Chen to learn details about the maternal grandfather she never met. As she soon discovers, the old boy went from running a modest business in a tiny village to become one of the most successful businessmen in Chinese history!