Tube Notes

By MIke Hughes
Gannett News Service

Tonight's Must-See

"Oblivious" premiere, 8:05 p.m. and 8:35 p.m., TNN. With all the reality shows swirling past us this summer, we might get jaded. Now comes a pleasant surprise: "Oblivious" has a simple yet terrific concept, done to near-perfection. The notion, taken from a British show, is to have people be on a quiz show without realizing it. As hidden cameras watch, Regan Burns pretends to be a gabby grocery-bagger or a clueless copy-shop guy. He works at an auto-parts store, a gas station, a video store, and a hair salon. He keeps asking irrelevant questions; the first five are worth $20 and the bonus is $100. That might get old, but "Oblivious" has variety. Burns adds clever comedy touches; he also asks one of his "contestants" to do the same thing to someone else — getting $100 for each correct answer. Responses range from casual to hilarious.

Of Note

"True West," 5 p.m., Showtime. Sam Shepard's play is a sensational vehicle for intense actors. Here's a new film of it.

"Fear Factor," 7 p.m., NBC. Here's the third chance to see the show's first celebrity episode with Kelly Preston, Donny Osmond, Coolio and more.

"The Wedding" conclusion (1998), 8 p.m., ABC. In Sunday's opener of this well-crafted miniseries, a young woman (Halle Berry) returned to her neighborhood, a beautiful Martha's Vineyard enclave for prosperous blacks. She brought her white fiance, leading to disputes in tonight's finale.

"Titus," 8 and 8:30 p.m., Fox. In the first episode, Titus wants to scare the guy who's been insulting Amy, his wife's teenage niece. The second reruns an episode with David Hyde Pierce as a self-help expert.

"Mystery: Murder Rooms: The White Knight Stratagem," 9:30 p.m., PBS. Here's the last of four excellent tales imagining that before writing his Sherlock Holmes books, Arthur Conan Doyle solved crimes with his mentor, Dr. Joseph Bell. This happens to be the best of the bunch.