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What to Watch for week of July 11 to July 17

Alphas Five people with heightened capabilities (superstrength, supersenses, etc.) band together to fight crime. The quintet are led by David Strathairn, who’s sort of Professor X to their X-Men (the premiere is co-written by X3 screenwriter Zak Penn). Strathairn helps the credibility of the melodrama a lot. Alphas may remind some viewers of Heroes, and is a dropped ABC pilot, but it’s not damaged goods. It’s fun and swift, and Callum Keith Rennie has a larger role than he did on The Killing, here playing the Alphas’ Pentagon contact. B —Ken Tucker

What to Watch for week of June 27 to July 3

The second-season premiere finds Laura Linney’s Cathy having visions of dead neighbor Marlene (keeping Phyllis Somerville around: good idea) and joining us in dismay at the improbable relationship between weird bro Sean (John Benjamin Hickey) and pregnant Rebecca (Cynthia Nixon). Much of ‘s unoriginal dramatization of cancer concerns is mitigated by the fresh, dynamic performances of Linney and Oliver Platt as husband Adam. Plus, I’m glad Cathy finally stands up to Sean and calls him out on his self-righteous BS. B+ —Ken Tucker

What to Watch for week of June 20 to June 26

Hoarders Season 4 of disposophobia begins! In the less tragic of tonight’s tales, we are invited to a doll-infested house that disturbingly boasts an amputation ward. But that is a step up on the sanity scale from a senior citizen using more than a decade’s worth of trash as her heat insulation. The garbage plot takes the (10-year-old, mold-encrusted) cake when a previously AWOL identical-twin sister shows up, poodle in hand, on the final clean-up day to make an even larger emotional mess. And that is really saying something. B+ — Joe Lynch

‘Drop Dead Diva’: Season 3 dish!

Image Credit: Sony Pictures Television/Annette Brown Lifetime’s Drop Dead Diva returns Sunday night, and with it, guest star Paula Abdul, who’s been known to pop up in Jane’s dreams when she has a crisis with Grayson. And him being in a coma after getting hit by a automobile and finally calling her “Deb,” the name of his late fiancée whose soul is now in attorney Jane’s body, certainly qualifies.

Bill Maher, Jane Lynch: Weiner roasting

Last night on Real Time with Bill Maher, the host brought out Jane Lynch to read transcriptions with him of the Facebook messages exchanged by Rep. Anthony Weiner and blackjack dealer Lisa Weiss. Big warning: Not suitable for work or young ears. But I have to say, really funny, and this may be one of the ideal performances Maher has given. His intonation and emphases suggest a man who’s really into his material. As for Lynch, she makes you forget Sue Sylvester and makes you all the more enthused for her upcoming Emmy hosting gig.

‘House’ boss: Cuddy exit unplanned

The character of Lisa Cuddy wasn’t expected to disappear after House’s seventh season. In fact, executive producer David Shore told EW that he was planning on Cuddy’s alter-ego, Lisa Edelstein, to be back for more after they shot the drama’s finale. Shore can’t even state if Edelstein will be back for an episode or two to properly finish her storyline. “We have to plan for her not coming back.

What to Watch for week of May 30 to June 5

Platinum Hit With cooking shows, you watch people make food; with design shows, you watch people make clothes or decorate; with a songwriting competition like this, you watch people sit and stare at the ceiling and hum. Also, you cannot tell me these contestants came to the show without a headful of riffs and hooks they simply plug into the week’s challenges. The musicians are the usual callow reality-show egomaniacs, as contrasted with the more demure self-regard of judge Kara DioGuardi. Host Jewel, unaccountably more helium-voiced than ever, is blissfully genial. C- — Ken Tucker

‘Torchwood’: Starz will not tame Capt. Jack

As Starz gets ready to unleash Torchwood: Miracle Day this summer, there’s one element of the sci-fi drama that’s not referenced in the trailer. When word first broke of the U.S. network picking up the cult favorite BBC series and changing its setting to Los Angeles, fans worried the show’s immortal bisexual hero, Captain Jack Harkness, would be portrayed differently.

What to Watch for week of May 23 to May 29

House At the begin of the seventh season, we saw what it’s like when Gregory House (Hugh Laurie) is sober, in love, and — gasp! — happy. Well, that certainly did not last long. Even after getting dumped, becoming hooked again on Vicodin, and marrying a Russian maybe-prostitute, our favorite curmudgeon faces more dire drama. During tonight’s season finale 24′s Shohreh Aghdashloo as the patient of the week), House does something extremely unexpected. Sheesh, what is left for him to do? Tune in to find out. —Sara Vilkomerson

‘Celeb Apprentice’: Final 2 tell all!

Image Credit: Douglas Gorenstein/NBC It’s a duel of the fundraising dynamos with Marlee Matin and John Rich battling it out for the title of the next Celebrity Apprentice. But before they can plead their case to Donald Trump on Sunday’s finale, they have to plead it to me! They — along with interpreter –to-the-stars Jack Jason — join yours truly on the newest edition of the InsideTV Podcast to break down the entire season and why they should be named the winner.