Isn't it unnerving how the TV schedules remain quiet and peaceful for weeks on end and then erupt with a flurry of frenetic activity? A lot of network planning and focus groups must be involved.
For example, April 5 -- Easter Sunday -- is going to be a crazy mad scramble of quality new and returning series. The programmers must figure there will be lots of folks sitting around the TV that night, but that doesn't lessen the confusion of deciding what to watch and what to record.
What new shows will be on that night? The supernatural drama Salem returns to WGN; NBC launches two new programs -- the biblical drama A.D. and the action thriller American Odyssey; Mad Men begins its swan song on AMC, and a highly anticipated new British drama, Wolf Hall, debuts on AETN and PBS.
Whew. More on these shows as the time nears.
• College basketball. Here's a program reminder. The 2015 NCAA Basketball Tournament continues on CBS tonight with two games. That's swell if you're a fan, but lousy if you're missing your regular programs (see below).
In the meanwhile, check the schedule often because it's confusing. By the time it's all over, CBS Sports and Turner Sports will have aired 67 games from the tournament across four television networks -- TBS, CBS, TNT and truTV.
TBS will televise the NCAA Final Four on April 4, beginning at 5 p.m., and CBS will broadcast the national championship game on April 6 from Indianapolis. Coverage will tip off with a pregame show at 7:30.
• CBS renewals. Just so you can relax, last week CBS has issued early renewals for comedies Mom, Mike & Molly and 2 Broke Girls. The Big Bang Theory had already been renewed through the 2016-2017 season.
CBS previously handed out early renewals to rookie dramas Scorpion, Madam Secretary and NCIS: New Orleans. The final schedule won't be announced until May.
• Glee finale. For those who have stuck with Glee for all six seasons, the two-hour series finale airs at 7 p.m. Friday on Fox.
On an episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show last week, several Glee cast members said the finale would have a final homage to the late Cory Monteith, who played Finn Hudson. Monteith died of an overdose of heroin and alcohol in 2013.
"There's a moment in the last episode that we have," Chord Overstreet (Sam Evans) said. "And obviously when we wrapped we all took a moment together."
"He was there, though," Chris Colfer (Kurt Hummel) added. "We could feel him. He was there. It was really cathartic."
I confess that although I used to never miss an episode, my interest waned after Monteith died and the kids got older. The series evolved and I didn't follow. I will, however, be watching Friday just to see how it all ends.
Fans of Lea Michele (full name Lea Michele Sarfati), who plays Rachel Berry, won't have to wait long to see her again. The 28-year-old New York native has a lead role in Ryan Murphy's Scream Queens. The horror-comedy anthology has begun production and will debut in the fall on Fox.
• New on Netflix. The 13 episodes of the psychological suspense thriller Bloodline will be available Friday on Netflix. The series, from the team behind Damages, is about a close-knit family of four siblings whose dark secrets are revealed when their black-sheep brother (Ben Mendelsohn) returns home to the Florida Keys.
The cast includes Kyle Chandler, Sissy Spacek, Linda Cardellini, Chloe Sevigny, Mia Kirshner and Sam Shepard.
• Empire finale. Before you panic and start sending me the "What happened to Empire?!" emails, Wednesday night's double episode, "Die But Once; Who I Am," was the Season 1 finale.
There were only 12 episodes this first season, but they were enough to make the Fox musical drama a ratings champ. Viewership has increased each week since the melodrama debuted Jan. 7 and now tops 20 million or so once you factor in recorded viewings and video on demand.
Empire, starring Terrence Howard and Taraji P. Henson as ruthless music mogul Lucious Lyon and his manipulative ex-wife, Cookie, was renewed for a second season in January after only two episodes.
• Homeland news. There's a major time leap ahead for Showtime's Homeland. About two and a half years will have passed when Season 5 of the spy drama debuts in November. The big teaser is that Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) will no longer be a CIA operative. Also, the series will be set in Europe instead of the Middle East.
Wait! Is that all we get? Is Carrie taking her meds? What about her baby girl? Is she still around or has she been farmed out to Carrie's sister full time? What about Saul?
Guess we'll just have to wait to find out.
The TV Column appears Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Email: mstorey@arkansasonline.com
Weekend on 03/19/2015