What to Watch on TV: Good Trouble, A Christmas Carol, For All Mankind
Welcome to a new week and another round of What to Watch on TV for the week of December 16th! We’ll be sharing our picks for what to watch this week, from new specials to big guest spots, and significant episodes of TV to look forward to.
This week’s picks include a Good Trouble holiday special, FX’s Christmas Carol, a pair of Apple TV+ finales, and more!
Here are our recommendations for what to watch on TV this week:
Good Trouble Holiday Special – Monday, December 16
ROBERT GANT, SHERRI SAUM, TERI POLO
The show may still be on hiatus, but Good Trouble is dropping a 2-hour holiday special as the Fosters pay the Coterie a Christmas visit. What are the odds that it will be a peaceful one? Good Trouble’s holiday special debuts Monday, December 16 at 8/7c on Freeform.
Episode Description: The Fosters visit the Coterie for Christmas, and Callie struggles to tell her moms about quitting her clerkship. Mariana agrees to volunteer for a holiday festival for the underprivileged. Alice is hiding a secret from the Coterie. Davia strolls down memory lane with Dennis, opening old wounds.
Live In Front of a Studio Audience: All In the Family and Good Times – Wednesday, December 18
ELLIE KEMPER, MARISA TOMEI, IKE BARINHOLTZ, WOODY HARRELSON
ABC brings their live audience experiment back, this time adding Good Times to the mix along with another All In The Family. Live In Front of a Studio Audience airs Wednesday, December 18 at 8/7c on ABC.
Description: In this one-night-only event, an all-star lineup of talent will tackle the roles first portrayed in the iconic television sitcom “Good Times,” including Viola Davis and Andre Braugher as Florida Evans and James Evans, Jay Pharoah as J.J Evans, Asante Blackk as Michael Evans, Corinne Foxx as Thelma Evans and Tiffany Haddish recreating the role of Willona Woods. Jharrel Jerome is also confirmed to join the star-studded cast. Joining forces for a show-stopping musical performance will be ABC’s Anthony Anderson and the legendary Patti LaBelle.
The Masked Singer – Wednesday, December 18
It’s finale time as the final 3 singers compete and viewers get to see who takes home the prize and the identities of the rest of the masked performers. The Masked Singer airs Wednesday, December 18 at 8/7c on Fox.
A Christmas Carol – Thursday, December 19
There’s a new twist on a Christmas classic coming from FX as Peaky Blinders’ Steven Knight takes on A Christmas Carol. The 3-hour series will air in its entirety on Thursday, December 19 at 7:30/6:30c on FX.
Description: Misanthropic businessman Ebenezer Scrooge refuses to treat Christmas as different to any other day, much to Bob Cratchit’s chagrin, as he is desperate to leave work and get home to his family on Christmas Eve. Scrooge’s dead former business partner Jacob Marley begs for peace in his coffin. Although he has repented, the Spirits have news for him. He will linger in purgatory until Scrooge repents, something Marley knows he will never do.
The Witcher – Friday, December 20
The highly anticipated TV adaptation of the series by the same name is ready to make its debut, starring Henry Cavill as Geralt, a monster hunter who soon finds himself paired up with a sorceress and a princess navigating the continent together. The Witcher: Season 1 drops Friday, December 20 on Netflix.
Series Description: Based on the best-selling fantasy series, The Witcher is an epic tale of fate and family. Geralt of Rivia, a solitary monster hunter, struggles to find his place in a world where people often prove more wicked than beasts. But when destiny hurtles him toward a powerful sorceress, and a young princess with a dangerous secret, the three must learn to navigate the increasingly volatile Continent together.
For All Mankind: Season 1 – Friday, December 20
The inaugural season of one of Apple TV’s series comes to an end. For All Mankind drops Friday, December 20 on Apple TV+.
Series Description: Enter a captivating “what if” take on history from Golden Globe nominee and Emmy Award winner, Ronald D. Moore. Told through the lives of astronauts, engineers and their families, “For All Mankind” imagines a world in which the global space race never ended and the space program remained the cultural centerpiece of America’s hopes and dreams.
The Morning Show: Season 1 – Friday, December 20
The Morning Show’s first season comes to an end as the behind the scenes look at a daily show is made and the drama that follows the lives of the crew and the personalities. The Morning Show drops Friday, December 20 on Apple TV+.
Series Description: “The Morning Show” explores the cutthroat world of morning news and the lives of the people who help America wake up in the morning. Told through the lens of two complicated women working to navigate the minefield of high-octane jobs while facing crises in both their personal and professional lives, “The Morning Show” is an unapologetically candid drama that looks at the power dynamics between women and men, and women and women, in the workplace.
Van Helsing – Friday, December 20
The final episode of the season finds everyone dealing with a new development in the threat they’re facing and a face-off for a pair of characters as they come up against an iconic character. Van Helsing airs Friday, December 20 at 10/9c on Syfy.
Episode Description: The President and Ivory try to decipher what really happened in the Dark Realm.
Christmas Love Letter – Saturday, December 21
A relationship advice columnist finds herself in the middle of her own romantic mystery as she receives an anonymous love letter leading her home to figure out who the sender is. Will she solve the mystery? Christmas Love Letter debuts Saturday, December 21 at 6/5c on Lifetime.
Description: When relationship advice columnist Amalie Hess receives an unsigned love letter in a Christmas card, she returns to her hometown to solve the mystery of who sent it and maybe find true love. Christmas Love Letter is produced by Sunshine Films. Starring Ashley Newbrough, Tilky Jones, Chanté Bowser & Izzy Herbert.
Christmas Hotel – Saturday, December 21
A young woman who is hoping to get promoted to manager of a luxury hotel’s upcoming hotel in Rome finds herself being tested, heading home to try and convince the town to embrace a new hotel in the area. When she has to work with childhood friend and crush, will sparks fly? Christmas Hotel premieres Saturday, December 21 at 8/7c on Lifetime.
Description: Go getter, Erin Roberts (Tatyana Ali), works at the high-end Windsor Hotel in New York City hoping to soon be promoted to manager of the luxury chain’s upcoming hotel in Rome. But things take an unexpected turn when her boss instead puts her in charge of opening up a brand new Windsor Hotel in Erin’s hometown of Garland Grove, a small mountain town that that loves all things Christmas, all year round. Upon returning to Garland Grove Erin learns she has her work cut out for her as the town isn’t pleased with the new chain hotel and it’s up to her to find a way to get everyone on board and please the Windsor investors. To make things more complicated the man spearheading the movement against the new hotel is Connor, Erin’s childhood friend who she had a secret crush on in her youth. When Erin decides to make the new Windsor Hotel a year round “Christmas Hotel” to win over the town’s approval she turns to Connor for his knowledge in all things Christmas and the two work together to make Christmas Hotel a a magical wonderland. Soon Erin’s love for both Garland Grove and Christmas is reignited as her connection with Connor grows to new levels making her question everything she thought she wanted.
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Those are our picks for the week! What are you planning to watch? Share in the comments below!
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Brianna Martinez
Brianna spends her time away from briefs, legal research, and pleadings, watching TV and writing about it. She generally has a lot of feelings about TV, which you can read about here and on Twitter.