‘Lethal Weapon’ and ‘Star’ end seasons
Tonight marks the first season finales of “Lethal Weapon” (7 p.m., WHBQ-TV Channel 13) and “Star” (8 p.m., WHBQ-TV Channel 13). “Lethal Weapon” has broken a recent spell for series adapted from movie franchises. “Rush Hour,” “Limitless” and “Training Day” performed poorly for CBS. “Frequency” failed on the CW. “Lethal Weapon” wins no points for originality, but the breezy banter between Murtaugh (Damon Wayans) and Riggs (Clayne Crawford) is often fun to watch.
The backstage diva melodrama “Star” may be the worst new network series of the season. But it has a sloppy audacity to its terribleness that makes it catnip for some viewers. A few days back, I cited the 1995 megabomb “Showgirls” as a cult choice and I thought to myself, “They just don’t make them this deliciously bad anymore.” Then I thought of “Star.”
» “Hap and Leonard: Mucho Mojo” (9 p.m., Sundance) returns for a second season. This over-the-top Southern Gothic absurdist comic-drama is based on a series of novels by Joe R. Lansdale. Set in the late 1980s, it concerns the schemes and fevered dreams of its two unemployable and improbably lovable characters.
Leonard (Michael Kenneth Williams, “Boardwalk Empire”) is an angry, gay, black Vietnam vet with a certain allergy for idealistic politics. Hap (James Purefoy, “The Following”) is a childhood friend, a straight, white ex-con. They bicker like a foul-mouthed married couple when not settling scores with their fists.
In some ways, this preposterous interracial buddy comedy is a bit like “Lethal Weapon” on the other side of the law. Not believable for a second, “Hap and Leonard” has fun characters, bracing dialogue and an assured sense of place. What more do you want?
» “Greenleaf” (9 p.m., OWN) also enters its second season. This melodrama follows Grace “Gigi” Greenleaf (Merle Dandridge) as she returns to the megachurch run by her father, Bishop James Greenleaf (Keith David), and her mother, Lady Mae Greenleaf (Lynn Whitfield), and uncovers shameful secrets in the religious empire and in her own family.
At first I thought of “Greenleaf” as a “Nashville” take on the black Southern church. But in many ways, it’s closer to “The Godfather,” with Grace as Michael Corleone, somebody who returns for a visit, wanting nothing to do with the family business. It’s fun to see how those lofty plans unravel.
“Greenleaf” is rare for television, a series steeped in biblical fluency, with characters eager to talk and argue about faith. At the same time, it depicts organized religion as not terribly different than organized crime.
Producer Oprah Winfrey also returns as Mavis McCready, Grace’s aunt who runs a bar on Beale Street and is a keeper of dark family lore.
The first seasons of both “Greenleaf” and “Hap and Leonard” are streaming on Netflix.
Other highlights
» “The Voice” (7 p.m., WMC-TV Channel 5) recaps blind auditions.
» Urned but not saved on “Modern Family” (8 p.m., WATN-TV Channel 24).
» Out on a limb on “Major Crimes” (8 p.m., TNT).
» The first games of the 2017 NCAA Basketball Tournament (5:30 p.m. and 8 p.m., TruTV).
» Pieces of the conspiracy puzzle come together on “Designated Survivor” (9 p.m., WATN-TV Channel 24).
» Kalief seeks a trial on “TIME: The Kalief Browder Story” (9 p.m., Spike).
» Back to the beginning on “Legion” (9 p.m., FX).
» Rosalee has a new pursuer on “Underground” (9 p.m., WGN).
Kevin McDonough can be reached at kevin.tvguy@gmail.com.