May 17 – May 23
Black Panthers, a big ‘Big Bang’ marathon & a bunch of bloomin’ British flowers
Watch “Big Bang Theory” episodes curated by one of the cast members!
All times Eastern.
FRIDAY, May 17
Thelma the Unicorn
A pony who dreams of becoming a glamorous music star in magically transformed into a unicorn, where she finds that fame comes at a cost. From the directors of Napoleon Dynamite, with a cast voiced by Jon Heder, Zach Galifianakis, Will Forte and Brittany Howard (Netflix).
The Big Cigar
André Holland stars as Huey P. Newton in this new limited series (below) about the Black Panther leader’s escape from the FBI to Cuba with the assistance of a famed movie producer and a crazily elaborate plan that goes wrong in every possible way. And it’s all true…mostly! (Apple TV+)
SATURDAY, May 18
Big Bang Theory Marathon
Watch a slate of favorite episodes of the hit sitcom, selected by Kunal Nayyar, who plays Raj (8 p.m., TBS).
SUNDAY, May 19
The RHS Chelsea Flower Show
All you lovers of buds, stems and blossoms—check out the most prestigious flower show in the world with this 13-episode series featuring England’s top show gardens, horticultural experts and celebrity interviews (Britbox).
Ciao House
Chefs Alex Guarnaschelli and Gabe Bertaccini welcome a dozen up-and-coming culinary stars to southern Italy to prove their mastery of Mediterranean cuisine, divided into teams living in a 16th century villa (8 p.m., Food Network).
MONDAY, May 20
The Tuba Thieves
What does it mean to listen? This acclaimed documentary uses the theft of tubas from Los Angeles schools (which really happened) to explore a larger issue of “hearing” (10 p.m., PBS).
Race to Survive: New Zealand
Contestant navigate 150 challenging miles of New Zealand’s harshest terrain by endurance racing, survival skills and sheer intuition…and the hopes of winning half a million dollars (11 p.m., USA).
TUESDAY, May 21
Lolla: The Story of Lollapalooza
What started three decades ago as a farewell tour for the band Jane’s Addiction rose from the underground to become one of the largest festivals in the world. Find out how and why in this rockin’ documentary (Paramount+).
The Riot Report
Documentary explores 1967’s turbulent summer of racial unrest, and the commission created by then-President Lyndon Johnson to address it—and how a shockingly unvarnished report became a pivotal moment in history (9 p.m., PBS).
WEDNESDAY, May 22
Decoding the Universe
Documentary reveals how the decades have brought new discoveries about the cosmos—planets beyond our solar system, supermassive black holes, dark matter and thousands of previously unknown galaxies—and how the information is reshaping our views of what’s “out there”…and if it might all end as it began, with a “Big Bang” (9 p.m., PBS).
Trying
Season four of the critically acclaimed comedy series finds Nikki and Jason (Esther Smith and Rafe Spall) putting their parenting skills to the test when their teenage daughter (Scarlett Rayner) expresses her longing for a connection with her birth mother (Apple TV+).
THURSDAY, May 23
Evil
In its final season of the supernatural drama series, the trio of investigators encounter possessed pigs, demonic infestation, and evil relic, an embryonic antichrist and other nastiness—including the disbandment of their team (Paramount+).
Don’t Forget the Lyrics
So you think you remember how a song goes. Put your musical memory to the test with tonight’s kickoff for a new season of the generation-spanning competition hosted by Niecy Nash, above (9 p.m., Fox).
The 1% Club
Actor/comedian Patton Oswald hosts this new game show (below), based on a super-successful U.K. series, testing the intelligence of studio contestants playing for the night’s cash prize, as well as viewers watching at home (Prime Video).
BRING IT HOME
One of the most acclaimed films of 2013 sparkles anew in the new 4K restoration of American Hustle (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment), a rollicking con saga about a pair of scam artists (Amy Adams and Christian Bale), an ambitious FBI agent (Bradley Cooper), a sting operation involving a politician (Jeremy Renner) and a microwave-loving housewife (Jennifer Lawrence). Until, that is, it all comes crashing down on everyone. With deleted scenes and a making-of doc.
READ ALL ABOUT
The “voice” of many Doobie Brothers megahits, Michael McDonald, is profiled in What a Fool Believes (Dey Street), written with his good buddy and musical friend, actor Paul Reiser. It’s a compelling pull-back of the curtain to the skilled keyboardist, soulful singer and lifelong music man behind such songs as “It Keeps You Runnin’,” “You Belong to Me,” “Takin’ It to the Streets” and (of course) “What a Fool Believes.”
How has America changed since the events of 9-11? In Look at the USA: A Diary of War and Home (Thames & Hudson), photographer Peter van Agtmael chronicles the war in Iraq, its aftershocks that reached deep into the life “back home,” and the ways society changed politically and socially as it drifted toward nationalism and the election of Donald Trump.
How do you turn classic tales into a comic book? In the new third edition of Classics Illustrated: A Cultural History (McFarland), author William Bryan Jones shows how one pen led to another in the comic-book series that, from 1941 to 1969, made “illustrated editions” of Robin Hood, Sherlock Holmes, Rip Van Winkle, Jesus and Moses and thousands of others. With reproductions of covers as well as inside “panels,” it’s an encyclopedia of pulpy entertainment!