Tube Notes

By Mike Hughes
Gannett News Service

Tonight's Must-See

"Hard Ground," 6 p.m., Hallmark Channel. If you missed the premiere of this solid cowboy tale, here's a second chance. Burt Reynolds plays a tough convict, freed by a lawman (Bruce Dern) who shares past bonds with him. Now they're on a hunt with two young people (Seth Peterson and Amy Jo Johnson). This is one of those strong-and-silent westerns where words are spare but even the silences carry strong emotion.

Of Note

"Friends," 7 p.m., NBC. Rachel is bitter when her workplace rival (Dermot Mulroney) is invited to her birthday party and things get more complicated when he brings a gift. Also in this rerun, Phoebe is raising baby rats that were born in her cupboard. Meanwhile, Joey isn't supposed to romance Emma's beautiful new nanny.

"Road Trip" (2000), 7 p.m., ABC. A college student (Breckin Meyer) in New York wants to mail a romantic videotape to his girlfriend in Texas. Instead, friends send the one in which he's romancing another coed. Now comes a frantic trip to intercept the tape.

"Fear" (1996), 7 p.m., WB. Reese Witherspoon plays a sweet kid who falls for a psychotic hunk (Mark Wahlberg). With Witherspoon hitting stardom, people are re-visiting past films like this one. You'd be better off starting with "Pleasantville" and "Election."

"Keen Eddie," 7 p.m., Fox. This interesting show, about an American cop in London, moves to Thursdays. Tonight, Eddie fears that his black boss thinks he's a racist.

"Will & Grace," 8 p.m., NBC. Minnie Driver guests in this rerun. She plays the scheming Englishwoman who has moved in with Karen's ex-husband. Karen fumes — especially when her friend Jack is impressed by the newcomer.

"CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," 8 p.m., CBS. In this rerun, someone has been killed while watching an old gangster movie.