Does Weeds have the guts to do what most assume Weeds no longer has the guts to do? 

TV Features TV

Here’s what’s up in the world of TV for Sunday, July 1. All times are Eastern.

TOP PICK

Weeds (Showtime, 9:30 p.m.): The seventh-season finale of Weeds ended with an ominous set of crosshairs, but no one assumed that the aging show would follow through on that potentially tragic conclusion if it returned for an eighth season. Now that eighth season has arrived, and Myles McNutt is eager to see if the story of pot-dealing mom Nancy Botwin still has the capacity to surprise.


REGULAR COVERAGE

Ultimate Spider-Man (Disney XD, 11 a.m.): “Me Time,” declares the title of your friendly, neighborhood Spider-Man’s latest animated adventure. And he’s going to need it, what with everyone wanting a piece of him once The Amazing Spider-Man opens. Oliver Sava knows when it’s best to leave a celebrity be.

Rev. (Hulu, 5:30 p.m.): It’s hard to make friends when you’re an adult—even harder to make them when you’re an adult in a new city. Todd VanDerWerff weaves a friendship bracelet for Adam and his new buddy Leon, in the hopes that no comical misunderstanding will ever come between them.

True Blood (HBO, 9 p.m.): Aw, vampires are parents too—or “makers,” or whatever—and Pam’s worried about being the right kind of maker for her new progeny. Carrie Raisler suggests a trip to the mall for some bad-ass, airbrushed maker-progeny T-shirts.

Falling Skies (TNT, 9 p.m.): The episode synopses for Falling Skies ought to distinguish between “motorcycles” and “bikes,” because if “Youngbloods” is seriously asking us to care about missing bikes when there’s an alien invasion on, someone’s priorities are out of whack. Even a Portland resident like Les Chappell knows bicycles aren’t that important.

Episodes (Showtime, 9:30 p.m.): The second season begins with boffo ratings for Pucks! and major tension between the points of the love triangle that created the show. It’s times like these where David Sims thinks everyone involved should ask themselves, “What would Joey Tribbiani do?” (And, a follow-up: “How you doin’?”)

Longmire (A&E, 9 p.m.): It’s Longmire: SVU as the case of the week introduces the Wyoming lawman to [Affects cowboy twang.] “sex offenders of the new west.” Zack Handlen was Mariska Hargitay on speed dial.

The Newsroom (HBO, 10 p.m.): The time-traveling journalists of News Night work hard to get the scoop on Arizona’s controversial-in-2010-and-still-racist-today immigration law, SB 1070. Meanwhile, Scott Tobias investigates rumors that Greece might not have any money.

Metalocalypse (Cartoon Network, midnight): It must be love for Nathan Explosion and producer Abigail, the latter of whom is pretty sure it isn’t. If this—coupled with Pickles’ unrequited affection for Abigail—is what causes Dethklok to go full Fleetwood Mac, Phil Dyess-Nugent wants to narrate the Behind The Music episode.


TV CLUB CLASSIC

South Park (Classic) (1 p.m.): It’s a very South Park holiday weekend, as Phil Dyess-Nugent welcomes Starvin’ Marvin and Mr. Hankey, The Christmas Poo to the family table. Please keep Mr. Hankey away from the gravy, Phil.


WHAT ELSE IS ON?

The BET Awards ’12 (BET, 8 p.m.): Siri, cancel golf today: ’cuz it’s BET Awards night for host Samuel L. Jackson and a gazpacho of performers including D’Angelo, Usher, and Nicki Minaj. Siri, how long has it been since D’Angelo was on TV? Oh, Sam knew that.

Queen & Country (PBS, 8 p.m.): The Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II spills over into this four-part documentary about the British monarchy. If there’s no B-roll showcasing Queen Elizabeth tea towels, the filmmakers have failed us.

Masterpiece Mystery: Endeavour (PBS, 9 p.m.): After suffering a heart attack in 2000, long-running U.K. law man Inspector Morse returns to the airwaves in a prequel set in 1965—where Morse is, of course, a preternaturally gifted pre-teen pod racer on Tatooine.

Ron White Tribute To The Troops (CMT, 9 p.m.): When July 4 falls in the middle of the week, we Americans just don’t know where to put our patriotism. Given the placement of this comedy special, it looks like the stand-up also known as Tater Salad opts for the seven-days-of-hot-dogs-and-fireworks treatment.

The Incredibles (ABC Family, 7 p.m.): Box-office receipts aside, Brave isn’t wowing ’em like golden-age Pixar fare: Probably because it has The Incredibles to live up to, a film that offers a better treatment of Brave’s themes of heroism, family, and legacy—and the chance for further Samuel L. Jackson-related shenanigans.

Galaxy Quest (Cinemax, 8:15 p.m.): In a clever parody of fandom taken to the extreme, Galaxy Quest asks the question, “What if the cast of a beloved sci-fi franchise had to perform the heroic feats they pretended to perform on TV?” The results are better than they might be with William Shatner at the helm.

Tour de France: Stage 1 (NBC Sports, 8 p.m.): With the NHL in the rear-view and the Olympics still 26 days away, NBC Sports finds its other reason for existence: The 3,200 km bike race across France, celebrating its 99th year of making people care about cycling for three weeks.


IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Bigfoot: Did you begin your week expecting to watch a clumsily staged homage to the climax of North By Northwest starring Greg Brady, Danny Partridge, and Sasquatch? Neither did Phil Dyess-Nugent, but here we are. Thanks, Bigfoot!

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