Even though he’s been off the project for months, it’s practically impossible to talk about tonight’s most exciting new series without connecting it to its famous creator who has fallen from iconic ally to abusive director who has exhibited signs of hard-to-ignore racism and sexism in the hidden parts of his career. The trailer does look thrilling so we suppose it’s up to the viewer how they separate show from its creator. For what its worth, the showrunner is now Phillipa Gosling. There’s also a powerful CNN doc of good triumphing over racist evil in the story of a grieving mom who takes down the KKK in the 1980s.

BRAD’S PICK:
The Nevers [HBO, 9p]
Joss Whedon hasn’t had the best time of it lately. He’s facing allegations of abusive treatment on the set of Justice League and fandom breathed a sigh of relief when Zach Snyder’s cut of the film finally made Whedon’s version a bad collective memory. But maybe The Nevers will help redeem him. A group of Victorian women find themselves imbued with strange abilities and have to.. you guessed it.. change the world. Part epic fantasy, part steampunk fever dream this show def seems worth catching. Now if only Whedon could clean up his act.

JASON’S PICK:
The People vs. the Klan [CNN, 9p]
This tale is well timed, given we’re in the middle of a trial where American racism is distinctly at the heart. CNN digs deep into the story of an Alabama woman who fought back when her son was lynched and not only got justice in the form of both his mudererers caught and convicted (one life sentence, one death), but did not stop there and tried the Klan itself–and the outcome could not be more fitting.

BUT, WAIT, THERE’S MORE:

• We’re always here for a Tina & Mr. Frond episode of Bob’s Burgers–in this case, Tina has to choose between her beloved position as hall monitor and a new fad she admires. In the rest of the dominating animation on Fox, we have The Great North, in which Bigfoot belief is the accepted side. On The Simpsons, Mr. Burns backs veggie burgers. And on Family Guy, who cares. 
• Zoey’s needle starts a-skippin’ after she visits a medium on a very special episode of Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist on NBC, as the person writing this round-up shows his age with a vinyl reference.
• Meanwhile, on the same station, Stan sows doubt in his faithfulness and Beth grapples with the Secret Service and this sounds like a relatively calm episode of Good Girls. 

• We move into the second half of the sixth season of AMC’s prequel Fear the Walking Dead with hope lost, but Grace found. And cruel Virginia (aka prequel Negan) and her Pioneers still have the upper hand. Things are so bleak you expect they might get better. Then you remember what franchise you’re watching.
• Vanessa Bell Calloway’s Lady Ella Johnson returns on Bounce for a fifth season of Saints & Sinners, which picks up after the events of the movie Saints & Sinners: Judgement Day which aired in February.
• Oxygen gets into the true crime gawkin’ game airing Catching a Serial Killer: Bruce McArthur.
• It’s a busy day for shows on Lifetime or Hallmark (or shows that sound like they should be). We’ll start on UPtv where The Big Sick gets a lighter and whiter tv movie twist with A Love to Remember. Hallmark cuts into the NY Times turf (and you don’t want to cross Will Shortz–he’ll stab you with an awl which is the answer to 17-down, btw) with Crossword Mysteries: Riddle Me Dead. Finally, on Lifetime, our main course is Beware of the Midwife where the PBS staple goes rogue and steals a baby.

• Finally, we say our goodbyes to the Gallagher gang of Shameless which broadcasts its final episode on Showtime after 11 seasons of lows, highs, more lows, shenanegans, and even yet more lows.