Around the remote: TV picks for week of Jan. 17
Don’t miss
“Mercy Street”: Behold a PBS rarity – an American story, made in America. This enticing costume drama, set in Alexandria, Virginia, in the spring of 1862, follows the lives of two volunteer nurses on opposite sides of the Civil War: Mary Phinney (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), a staunch New England abolitionist, and Emma Green (Hannah James), a naive young Confederate belle. They collide at Mansion House, a luxury hotel that has been transformed into an army hospital. The story is based on real events. Sunday, 9 p.m., KSPS; 10 p.m., KCDT.
Other bets
SUNDAY: T.J. Miller (“Silicon Valley”) hosts the 21st annual Critics’ Choice Awards because TV and movie stars can never get enough personal validation. 8 p.m., A&E.
SUNDAY: Rashida Jones returns to prime time in “Angie Tribeca.” Created by Nancy and Steve Carell, it’s a goofy cop show spoof that kicks off with an offbeat 25-hour marathon. 9 p.m., TBS.
SUNDAY: How’s this for a heavyweight acting matchup: In the new drama series “Billions,” Paul Giamatti plays a U.S. attorney who becomes obsessed with taking down an ambitious hedge fund king played by Damian Lewis. 10 p.m., Showtime.
MONDAY: So you never got around to reading “War and Peace”? Now, try watching it. Leo Tolstoy’s ultra-massive novel comes to TV in an eight-hour miniseries. Dig in. 9 p.m. A&E, History and Lifetime.
TUESDAY: “Marvel’s Agent Carter” launches its sophomore season in 1947 with our title character (Hayley Atwell) reassigned from New York to Hollywood. There, she investigates a bizarre homicide case. 9 p.m., ABC.
WEDNESDAY: The riveting “American Crime” continues as a news story pops up online describing what happened at the captains’ party and naming Kevin (Trevor Jackson) as a participant in the alleged assault on Taylor (Connor Jessup). 10 p.m., ABC.
THURSDAY: TV’s infatuation with superheroes continues with “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow.” It’s a fun and rollicking new series about time traveler Rip Hunter (Arthur Darvill), who recruits a ragtag team of heroes and villains in an effort to save the planet. 8 p.m., The CW.
THURSDAY: “Baskets” is an offbeat new sitcom that stars Chip Baskets (Zach Galifianakis) as a man whose dream of becoming a French clown is scuttled. So he returns home to California, where he works as a rodeo clown and confronts his past. 10 p.m., FX.
FRIDAY: On “Blue Bloods,” a well-regarded, newly retired NYPD lieutenant is accused of shooting a group of potential muggers on the subway and then disappears. That leaves Frank (Tom Selleck) to deal with the fallout. 10 p.m., CBS.
SATURDAY: “Beowulf” brings the classic epic poem to life in a new drama series. Kieran Bew (“Da Vinci’s Demons”) plays the disillusioned title character who returns to his home, Herot, to make peace with his past. 10 p.m., Esquire.