Tube Notes

By Mike Hughes
Gannett News Service

Tonight's Must-See

"Will & Grace," 7:30 p.m., NBC. How strange has TV become lately? Well, Thursday, once was a "must-see" night. Tonight, this is the only new, scripted show on any of the three biggest networks. One story has Will teaching Karen how to drive. They end up in traffic court. The other has Jack and Grace catching a movie matinee. He soon sees an unwelcome surprise.

Of Note

Basketball, all day, CBS.The NCAA tournament begins. For the first two weeks, "Survivor" is moved to Wednesdays and the overworked "CSI" and "Without a Trace" take a recess. Games vary in each region, but the plan has two doubleheaders today and Friday; one starts about 7 a.m.; the other at 2 p.m.

"Friends," 7 p.m., NBC. Tonight, we see which episode was chosen as the fourth-best ever, in an Internet poll.

"Tru Calling," 7 p.m., Fox. Tru — who goes back in time to save lives — goes undercover at a beauty pageant. Meanwhile, a reporter wonders why she seems to always be at crime scenes.

"The Fabulous Life of Donald Trump," 8 p.m., VH1. Fans can switch here after "Apprentice," for a Trump double feature.

"The Apprentice" (NBC), "American Idol: Uncut, Uncensored & Untalented" (Fox) both at 8 p.m. These two reality shows collide and consist primarily of old clips. "Apprentice" pauses to have Donald Trump look back at the first 10 episodes and talk about his decisions. "Idol" is a rerun of an hour stuffed with bad auditions.

"ER," 9 p.m., NBC. This rerun has Romano giving a hard time to Pratt and Abby, while there are bigger worries. Abby wonders what Carter is doing in Africa; Lewis wonders whether the guy she married has died in a helicopter crash.