Cohen recalls pop in the year of ‘Mmmbop’
Have things changed terribly much over the past 20 years? “Andy Cohen’s Then and Now” (10 p.m., Bravo, TV-14) glances back at the popular culture of the past with a particular emphasis on movies, music, television, gossip and fashion.
“Then” kicks off with “1997: The Year Fame Turned Dangerous.” This title clearly refers to the sudden, violent deaths of Princess Diana and designer Gianni Versace. But it really doesn’t pass the sniff test.
Other years were rather deadly for famous people too: 1980 (John Lennon), 1981 (the attempted assassinations of a pope and a president), 1989 (the murder of TV star Rebecca Schaeffer by a fan) and 1995 (the murder of Selena by her obsessive fan-club president) come to mind.
Cohen assembles a panel of celebrity “experts” for every episode; 1997 will be dissected by Kristin Chenoweth, Rosie Perez and RuPaul.
Possible topics for their chat, not available for review, include phenomena like the premiere of “Titanic” (3:30 and 8 p.m., Spike), the publication of the first “Harry Potter” novel, the rise of the pop band Hanson and the introduction of “Pokemon” to the United States.
That year also saw the election of British Prime Minister Tony Blair, a political moment associated with the “Cool Britannia” pop music of Oasis and Blur and the world domination of The Spice Girls.
The television debuts of “Teletubbies,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “Ally McBeal” and “South Park” also happened in 1997.
Meditations on some of these stories have already been turned into series and movies, most notably the 2006 drama “The Queen,” set at the time of Diana’s death, starring Helen Mirren as Queen Elizabeth and Michael Sheen as Blair.
Versace’s murder will be explored in an upcoming installment of FX’s “American Crime Story,” the series that did such an excellent job studying the O.J. Simpson trial.
CARNIVOROUS PLANTS
It may sound like something out of a horror movie, but some species have evolved with a singular focus: the murder of another species’ members. The new limited-series documentary “Plants Behaving Badly” (10 p.m., PBS, TV-PG) kicks off with “Murder and Mayhem,” a glance at the pitcher plant, designed to entrap and devour a single ant species.
‘FARGO’ GOES TO HOLLYWOOD
Gloria (and the series itself) takes a peculiar field trip to Hollywood to examine her stepfather’s past as a science-fiction novelist on the third episode of “Fargo” (10 p.m., FX, TV-MA).
SUBJUGATED WOMEN
The fourth episode of the harrowing and compelling “The Handmaid’s Tale” (TV-MA) begins streaming on Hulu.
TONIGHT’S HIGHLIGHTS
› Preston wants the truth on “Shots Fired” (8 p.m., Fox, TV-14).
› The TV movie “The Day After” inspires nightmares on “The Goldbergs” (8 p.m., ABC, TV-PG), just as it did last season on FX’s “The Americans.”
› A baker’s dozen of spy cameras captures the secret lives of dolphins on “Nature” (8 p.m., PBS, TV-PG).
› Cookie wonders what she saw in Angelo on “Empire” (9 p.m., Fox, TV-14).
› Patriarchy and parking lots on “Modern Family” (9 p.m., ABC, TV-PG).
› Jacob and Basie discuss money on “Greenleaf ” (10 p.m., OWN, TV-14).
› Elizabeth is consumed by fear on “Underground” (10 p.m., WGN, TV-MA).
› Strategies abound on “Survivor” (8 p.m., CBS).
› Zapata behind bars on “Blindspot” (8 p.m., NBC, TV-14).
› Stuck in a bunker with Felicity on “Arrow” (8 p.m., CW, TV-14).
› Prom complications on “Speechless” (8:30 p.m., ABC, TV-PG).
› The mother of all abductions on “Criminal Minds” (9 p.m., CBS, TV-14).
› Clearing a congressman’s name leads to interesting leads on “Law & Order: SVU” (9 p.m., NBC, TV-14).
› Octavia fights for her people on “The 100” (9 p.m., CW, TV-14).
› College disorientation on “black-ish” (9:30 p.m., ABC, TV-PG).
› Parallel crimes link New York and Taipei on “Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders” (10 p.m., CBS, TV-14).
Contact Kevin McDonough at kevin.tvguy@gmail.com.