Posted on: Tuesday, August 20, 2002
Tube Notes
Tonight's Must-See
"Monk" (8 p.m.) and "Widows" (9 p.m.), both ABC. With two surprising moves, ABC has injected fresh life into summertime Tuesdays. "Widows" is a solid miniseries with an intelligent script from Lynda La Plante ("Prime Suspect"). "Monk," the likable USA Network series, precedes it, with reruns on ABC. Tony Shalhoub ("Wings") plays a detective, battered by personal phobias; Bitty Schram is his resilient assistant. Then catch "Widows" which wraps up next week. So far, we've met three women (Mercedes Ruehl, Brooke Shields, Rosie Perez) whose husbands were believed killed during a botched art theft. We've also met another (N'Bushe Wright) whose boyfriend was killed. Their plan is to rob that same gallery. First, Wright poses as a buyer, checking the security system. Plenty of complications and deceptions follow. It's a good hour that sets up next week's great finish. Of Note
"JAG," 7 p.m., CBS. This rerun has a man demanding a fresh study of the real-life events in 1944 that caused sailors to go on strike at the Port Chicago base in California. "American Idol: The Search for a Superstar," 8 p.m., Fox. Things are serious now, with only four young singers left. They compete tonight and then viewers have two hours to vote. On Wednesday we'll learn who has been ousted. "Frasier," 8 p.m., NBC. In this rerun Frasier has his 2,000th radio show with another famous Seattle guy — Bill Gates playing himself — as the guest. "P.O.V.: Senorita Extraviada," 10 p.m., PBS. In nine years, activists say, at least 270 young women have been raped and murdered in Juarez, the Mexican city just over the border from El Paso. Officials, this film says, reacted slowly and ineffectively. To some people that's a sign that this city devalues individuals. The result is viewed in this disturbing documentary.
— Mike Hughes,Gannett News Service
