Pamela Adlon’s career may have been initially aided by a certain colleague who turned out to be shitty, but she’s managed to not let said comedian’s grotesque flaw drag her down, and buzz is that her show is even better in its third season for having shaken his influence. And while it sucks that we feel compelled to mention that, it does give us the happy opportunity to use the obvious pun. Speaking of drag, this Thursday brings a new slew of proud queens, in addition to a lot of the TV night’s favorites, including cops in Brooklyn and wannabes in Manhattan.

BRAD’S PICK:
Better Things [FX, 10p]
A critical darling since its debut, find out why when the third season debuts tonight. Sam and Max go on a trip. The episode is called Chicago, so we can guess where to.

FIONA’S PICK:
RuPaul’s Drag Race [VH1, 9p]
Tonight’s the night! It’s the first episode of season eleven and a whole new crop of queens are here to compete for the crown.

JASON’S PICK:
The Other Two [Comedy, 10:30p]
Chase’s new video shocks, Brooke looks at her past, while Cary continues to strive for the future on one of TV’s best first-season comedies.

ALSO ON TAP TONIGHT:

• There are those who would place country music at the peak of civilization. We, on the other hand blame them for President Trump, the Dallas Cowboys, and, now, the revival of one of the most despicable shows in television history, as Wife Swap returns on CMT. If you want to further beat this dead horse (then write a song about it), this guy‘s commentary on its overuse of a certain beat is dead on. God Bless the USA indeed.
• Speaking of PoS shows we’re mentioning here for some reason, John Oliver did a good job of calling out Tyler Henry and his fellow “psychics” out on Sunday, yet his program, Hollywood Medium with Tyler Henry persists on some channel and is on tonight.
• Fresh off its renewal for a seventh season, the Lazarus of cop shows remains one of the best-written programs on television, and tonight on NBC’s Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Jake and Amy work a trying case together and Holt has his doubts about a villain’s demise.
• On Comedy Central’s Broad City, Abbi & Ilana take the latter’s elderly 16th cousin to drag brunch because, of course they do, but we’re more concerned with what they mean by “16th cousin.” Did she previously know of a baker’s dozen plus two other cousins, or is this person related because the pair’s great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandparents were siblings — because, if so, that’s some hella noice ancestry.com work from a character who can barely keep a job.
• Meanwhile, in Gotham (on Fox), it’s all murders, tunnel exploring, and escape thwarting. You know, all in a day’s work for future Batman.