Excellent ‘Broadchurch’ enters final season
“Broadchurch” (10 p.m., BBC America) will end after three seasons. You’ve got to admire a storyteller who knows when to wrap things up.
One of the better-acted and -written crime dramas of recent years, “Broadchurch” is set in a gorgeous, seemingly tight-knit coastal town, still reeling from the murder and abduction of a young boy some five years back. That crime was covered in season one, and the subsequent trial was the backdrop of the second season.
This final eight-episode arc follows the investigation of the rape of a middle-aged woman at a party. The list of suspects includes males from all strata of Broadchurch society.
Olivia Colman (“The Night Manager”) and David Tennant (“Doctor Who”) return as detectives Miller and Hardy. And in a series this well-written and dedicated to complicated characters, you know they carry a great deal of baggage. For the benefit of those new to “Broadchurch,” the less said the better. Season three holds up on its own, but an understanding of the backstory adds to the enjoyment.
Watching “Broadchurch” is almost always a shocking reminder of the differences between American crime dramas and those from around the world. In Hollywood productions, everyone down to the dental hygienist is ludicrously beautiful. We live in a world where “Rizzoli & Isles” cast Angie Harmon as the “tomboy.” In contrast, folks on “Broadchurch” look like actual human beings.
HIPSTER HANGUPS
The idea that characters like those on “Broadchurch” might be comfortable in their own skin offers perspective on other cable series returning tonight. Now entering its fourth season, “Younger” (10 p.m., TV Land, TV-14) is based on the rather preposterous notion that 40ish divorced mom Liza (Sutton Foster) can pass herself off as a 20-something hipster.
The idea that she could do so meshes with the wish-fulfillment comedy style of series creator Darren Star (“Sex and the City”). The notion that a middle-aged person “returning” to her 20s might be in need of psychiatric help seems too complicated to jibe with the materialism and narcissism on display here.
LENO’S RIDES
Another Hollywood assumption, or delusion, is that rich stars who talk about their cars are “blue collar” guys. And if they talk about owning dozens, if not hundreds, of cars housed in multimillion-dollar garages, that makes them even more so. “Jay Leno’s Garage” (9 p.m., CNBC, TV-PG) enters its third season.
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
› Imported from the U.K., the competition series “Landscape Artist of the Year” (7 a.m., Ovation) debuts.
› “Big Brother” (8 p.m., CBS, TV-PG) enters its 19th season.
› Ageless talent on “Little Big Shots: Forever Young” (8 p.m., NBC, TV-PG).
› Host, chef and author Eddie Huang enters a second season of “Huang’s World” (9 p.m., Viceland) in Washington, D.C.
› Steeler mania explained on “This Is Us” (10 p.m., NBC, repeat, TV-14).
› Bright lights, strange city on “Blood Drive” (10 p.m., Syfy, TV-MA).
› A murky blend of futuristic dystopia and aboriginal mythology, “Cleverman” (10 p.m., Sundance, TV-14) enters its second season.
› Schooled in fish on “MasterChef” (8 p.m., Fox, TV-14).
› A plaque attack on “The Goldbergs” (8 p.m., ABC, repeat, TV-PG).
› Human Target arrives on “Arrow” (8 p.m., CW, TV-14).
› A special bond on “Speechless” (8:30 p.m., ABC, repeat, TV-14).
› Topical bickering on “The Carmichael Show” (9 p.m., NBC, TV-14).
› Celebrity guests on “The F Word With Gordon Ramsay” (9 p.m., Fox, TV-14).
› Dueling speeches on “Modern Family” (9 p.m., ABC, repeat, TV-PG).
› Back to the future on “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow” (9 p.m., CW, TV-14).
› Oliver’s snobbery on “American
Housewife” (9:30 p.m., ABC, repeat, TV-PG).
› Violent home invasions on “Criminal Minds” (10 p.m., CBS, repeat, TV-14).
› Celebrities play “To Tell the Truth” (10 p.m., ABC, TV-PG).
Contact Kevin McDonough at kevin.tvguy@gmail.com.