Summer is almost here and the email has poured in (OK, four emails) from readers confused about when their favorite shows will return.
Here's a handy list on some of the new and returning series that'll get us through the hot, muggy weeks ahead until the Rio Olympics kick in on Aug. 5 on NBC and keep us inside until Aug. 21.
• Beauty & the Beast, 8 p.m. today on The CW. It's the fourth and final season for Vincent (Jay Ryan) and Catherine (Kristin Kreuk) as they return from their honeymoon for more adventures.
• Feed the Beast, 9 p.m. Sunday on AMC. David Schwimmer and Jim Sturgess portray two best friends who gamble everything to open a restaurant in the Bronx. Is this the next great AMC drama? See my review in Sunday's The TV Column.
• UnREAL, 9 p.m. Monday on Lifetime. This is Season 2 of the behind-the-scenes drama about putting on a dating reality show not unlike The Bachelor. It stars Shiri Applebyand Constance Zimmer and is labeled "provocative" because it holds a mirror to America's unhealthy appetite for such programs and the effects they have on contestants.
Appleby plays a producer who is known for her skills in manipulating contestants to get the dramatic and outrageous footage audiences seem to crave.
• Devious Maids, 8 p.m. Monday on Lifetime. They're maids to the rich and famous and they are devious. Eva Longoria guest stars in the Season 4 premiere as "murder and mayhem collide once again in the mansions of Beverly Hills' wealthiest and most powerful families." There will be 10 episodes.
• Aquarius, 8 p.m. June 16 on NBC. Season 2 opens with a two-hour commercial-free premiere. Hmm. Couldn't sell any advertising for this David Duchovny period drama? This is the series with the detective hot on the trail of Charles Manson.
• Orange Is the New Black. Are you ready to binge? Season 4 of everybody's favorite series set behind bars is ready to stream June 17 on Netflix. The twist: The prison is now for-profit, so an entirely new gaggle of guards has arrived. They aren't nearly as lenient.
• Pretty Little Liars, 7 p.m. June 21 on Freeform. Yep, they're still little (probably a size 2) and they're still lying. Expect juicy love triangles and murder in Season 7. Don't forget -- the Freeform channel is the former ABC Family.
• Big Brother 18, 7 p.m. June 22 on CBS. Full disclosure -- this show is my annual summer guilty pleasure. I'm not proud to admit it, but I'm hooked on watching vicariously as the housemates make fools of themselves.
"My, but you look lovely tonight, Julie."
The first episode will be a two-hour premiere Wednesday. The Thursday episodes begin at 8 p.m. June 23. Additional episodes air at 7 p.m. Sundays. The Wednesday episodes will cut back to one hour at 7 p.m. starting June 29.
• American Gothic, 9 p.m. June 22 on CBS. Not to be confused with the 1995 CBS series, this new drama deals with a wealthy Boston family with a mysterious connection to a string of murders. There are secrets and lies and paranoia.
• Ray Donovan, 5 p.m. June 26 on Showtime. Liev Schreiber returns for Season 4 as Los Angeles' best fixer. Yeah, he can fix just about anything for the rich and/or famous, but he still can't fix his own dysfunctional family.
• Zoo, 8 p.m. June 30 on CBS. Season 2 will open with a two-hour premiere of the thriller based on the novel by James Patterson. Yeah, the animals are still after us. Watch your back.
• Sex&Drugs&Rock&Roll, 9 p.m. June 30 on FX. The second season will bring 10 episodes of the dramedy starring Denis Leary and John Corbett. But keep your eye on young Elizabeth Gillies who plays Gigi. Just do it, you'll understand why.
• Marco Polo. No, this isn't the pool game. It's Season 2 of the Netflix series following the adventures of Marco Polo (Lorenzo Richelmy) and Kublai Khan (Benedict Wong). All 10 episodes of the new season streams July 1.
• Mr. Robot, 9 p.m. July 13 on USA. This series, which scored high critical marks its first time out, returns for a second season starring Rami Malek and Christian Slater in a drama about a young hacker working for good. That is, until he learns the truth.
• Bachelor in Paradise, 7 p.m. Aug. 2 on ABC. Indulge if you must. It's Season 3 of the real-life reality version of UnREAL (see above). Just remember, it's an hour of your week that you'll never, ever get back.
The TV Column appears Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Email:
mstorey@arkansasonline.com
Weekend on 06/02/2016