Watch or Washed: What's on TV This Week?

None

Verdict: Watch

When: Tuesday, December, 2, at 8 p.m. EST

Where: ABC

Why: More time spent with Woody and Buzz can’t be a bad thing… can it? When news broke earlier this month about a fourth Toy Story film in the works, bloggers and critics did something they’d never done before: They talked shit about Toy Story. Specifically, they talked sideways about the money-grubbing nature of another sequel, considering that the excellent Toy Story 3 is a fine conclusion as is and feels perfectly finite.

Oddly enough, there’s zero uproar surrounding Toy Story That Time Forgot, the new half-hour ABC special arriving just in time for the holidays. The lack of agitation probably has to do with the fun-sounding premise. Tom Hanks and Tim Allen are back as Woody and Buzz Lightyear, respectively, and this time they’re fighting against an army of evil toys. “The coolest set of action figures ever turn out to be dangerously delusional,” reads the official plot synopsis; those malevolent toys, a line of dinosaurs, are known as the Battlesaurs. And they look like this.

Is it too soon to make Jurassic World comparisons here? If only to re-watch the trailer for the umpteenth time? Actually, we’ll just go ahead and give that trailer another look. —Matt Barone

Verdict: Hate-watch

When: Thursday at 8 p.m. EST

Where: NBC

Why: Because hate-watching feels so good. If the Sound of Music Live! was any indication, this retelling of the J.M. Barrie classic (starring Girls' Allison Williams as Peter Pan and the almighty Christopher Walken as Captain Hook) will be a social media phenomenon, a ratings juggernaut, and a virtually unbearable source of secondhand embarrassment that you'll endure anyway for reasons you can't understand. Just embrace it. —Tara Aquino 

Verdict: Watch

When: Friday at 11 p.m. EST

Where: HBO

Why: I'll be the first to admit that a show about the Foo Fighters doesn't sound like something that would normally interest me. Aside from a brief middle school love affair with The Colour and the Shape, Dave Grohl's post-Nirvana output has seemed like the epitome of dad rock: inoffensive, if not particularly interesting. So it was a surprise that the buzz around Sonic Highways has been so positive, and an even bigger shock that it truly is done so well.

The premise is that the Grohl and co. are traveling the U.S. to record in a different studio each week and, in so doing, catching up on the rock 'n' roll history of America's great cities. But what could have been a self-aggrandizing ad for the Foo Fighters' latest album (also called Sonic Highways) instead comes off as a group of charming dudes actually interested in digging into the local history.

Early highlights come from long-form interviews with legendary producer (and unapologetic curmudgeon) Steve Albini in the Chicago episode, and fantastic access to the D.C. hardcore and go-go scenes. If you want to know more about Trouble Funk, Minor Threat, or Bad Brains, Sonic Highways is a great place to start. Or if you're already a super-fan, it's still fun to hear Fugazi frontman and DIY legend Ian MacKaye​ wax poetic about seeing Ted Nugent​, which is possibly the most enjoyably bizarre music journalism moment I've seen all year. —Nathan Reese

Verdict: Watch

When: Sunday at 10 p.m. EST

Where: HBO

Why: The Comeback's aging-sitcom-star-seeking-a-reinvention conceit isn't exactly novel. We've seen the cast of Seinfeld struggle with similar travails on Curb Your Enthusiasm, Adam Scott's Party Down character cursed by an old commercial tagline, and child actors galore poke fun at their old reputations. (It's almost a cottage industry inside Hollywood at this point.) But The Comeback's other meta-narrative is even more interesting: This is a show that had one fantastic season back in 2005 never to return (it seemed). The Comeback has come back.

Now, a decade after getting canned (or not renewed—essentially the same thing), Lisa Kudrow's passion project returns with the same cringe-inducing comedy that made the first run a cult classic. This time, though, it's in a post-Extras, post-Doll & Em​, post-Curb world, where dry, biting satire and celebrity self-awareness is not only tolerated, but expected. The plot is similar to the previous run (the déjà vu just adds to the fun), where Kudrow's character must once again contend with her past success while refusing to acknowledge certain, ahem, parallels between a new role and her own life.

The Comeback was funny in 2005, but with Friends on Netflix and more distance from her '90s heyday its even better now. Not to mention, it's a great excuse to revisit season 1 on HBO Go. —Nathan Reese

Verdict: Washed

When: Friday, December 5, at 9 p.m. EST

Where: CBS

Why: Over/under on Ariana Grande singing Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas”? The odds seem more Go Fish than Blackjack. Still, the prospect of hearing Ms. Big Sean belt out Queen Mariah’s holiday classic isn’t enough to justify spending your precious Friday night indoors watching A Very Grammy Christmas. A possible DVR recording, sure, but not 60 minutes devoted to your couch and this concert special featuring the aforementioned Ariana Grande, Maroon 5, Tim McGraw, and Pharrell Williams performing their hits, Christmas standards, and sharing personal Yuletide anecdotes.

Had CBS and the Grammy family kept it to just Pharrell and Ariana Grande, a recommendation would be instantaneous. But let’s be real here—who besides Nelly wants to hear Tim McGraw yap about opening presents in Louisiana? And unless Adam Levine and his identity-free Maroon 5 bandmates bring J. Cole on stage to spit his “Animals” verse, and then let him bogart their set, your weekend turn-up deserves better than “Moves Like Jagger” followed by “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus.” (Because that’s totally the kind of Christmas song Adam Levine would pick to sing.) —Matt Barone

Tune in or tune out—that's the question. 

November 24

State of Affairs: Watch

Gotham: Washed

Black-ish: Watch

Homeland​: Washed

Carmilla​: Watch

November 17

American Horror Story: Washed

Shark Tank: Watch

The Newsroom: Watch

The Missing: Watch

Reign: Watch

November 10

The Walking Dead: Watch

Sons of Anarchy: Washed?

Homeland: Washed

Supernatural: Watch

Peaky Blinders: Watch