Prime Video imports the British drama “Wilderness.” Based on a novel by B.E. Jones, it stars Jenna Coleman (“Doctor Who,” “Victoria”) and Oliver Jackson-Cohen as Liv and Will, impossibly good-looking wealthy types.
The pilot takes its sweet time hinting at Liv’s horrible youth, her distant, adulterous father and a mother devastated and consumed by his infidelity. He’s done such a callous job of getting on with his life that Liv’s mom can’t do much with hers — except drink and make passive-aggressive phone calls to Liv.
Having given up her U.K. media job to move with Will to New York, Liv is obsessed with having the perfect Christmas when she discovers that he’s had an affair on a business trip. After buckets of tears and cocktails, she decides that she and Will need a change of scenery. Only their getaway, a road trip to the Grand Canyon and a bash in Vegas, soon turns out to be a multi-level nightmare. What’s a pretty girl with trust issues to do?
Look, or rather listen, for Taylor Swift’s song “Look What You Made Me Do” in the title credits.
— Politicians are not known for thinking out loud, or for cultivating eccentric reputations. The “American Masters” (9 p.m., PBS, TV-PG, check local listings) profile “Jerry Brown: The Disrupter” offers an exception to that rule.
“Disrupter” also challenges the old F. Scott Fitzgerald observation that “There are no second acts in American lives.” Jerry Brown was elected governor of California at the age of 36, and then returned several political lifetimes later to be reelected at age 72 in 2010.
Brown’s first two terms coincided with some of the shaggier days of the 1970s, when California was the epicenter of laid-back culture. Despite his buttoned-down appearance and history of having studied for years in a Jesuit seminary, Brown was embraced as a political “rock star” and briefly dated singer Linda Ronstadt as well.
Brown’s colleagues, contemporaries and successors, including Govs. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Gray Davis, praise his prescient focus on what would come to be called global warming as well as his embrace of the need for fuel economy and alternative fuels.
The profile returns to an interesting theme, that of a certain media bias toward Brown and California itself. Despite the state’s influence, size and population, it often gets dismissed. Brown dared to think big thoughts and describe grand visions at a time when Californians in places like Silicon Valley were beginning to revolutionize work, media and society. For his pains, the press corps dubbed Brown “Governor Moonbeam.”
— The one-hour special “The Latin Music Revolution: A Soul of a Nation Presentation (8 p.m., ABC) explores the Latin and Caribbean roots of the pop music that has influenced and entertained Americans from the 20th century forward. Look for a focus on 1990s breakthrough stars Ricky Martin, Marc Anthony and Enrique Iglesias as well as Colombian artist Karol G, whose new album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 this year, a first for a Spanish-language album by a female artist.
— Tubi streams new episodes of “Pati’s Mexican Table” in time for Hispanic Heritage Month. Host Pati Jinich also shares recipes for Rosh Hashanah.
TONIGHT’S OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
— A con artist impersonates Jimmy Buffett (appearing as himself) on “Blue Bloods” (10 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14).
CULT CHOICE
A peculiar young man (Bud Cort) is shaken out of his morbid funk by a friendship with a spontaneous elderly woman (Ruth Gordon) in the 1971 romantic comedy “Harold & Maude” (10 p.m., TMC). The very definition of a cult classic, this film played for long stretches almost exclusively in art-house cinemas and took decades to turn a profit. The film’s eccentric tone and Cat Stevens-filled soundtrack clearly had an influence on director Wes Anderson’s 1998 breakthrough “Rushmore.”
SERIES NOTES
Niecy Nash appears on “Secret Celebrity Renovation” (8 p.m., CBS, TV-PG) … “America’s Got Talent” (8 p.m., NBC, r, TV-PG) … “WWE Friday Night SmackDown” (8 p.m., Fox, TV-PG) … A blaze from out of the blue on “Fire Country” (9 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14) … “20/20” (9 p.m., ABC) … “Dateline” (10 p.m., NBC).
LATE NIGHT
Due to the Writers Guild strike, all late-night shows are repeats.
Bret Baier and Susie Essman appear on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” (11:35 p.m., CBS) … Jimmy Fallon welcomes Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Vargas and Maisie Peters on “The Tonight Show” (11:35 p.m., NBC) … Kumail Nanjiani and P!nk appear on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” (11:35 p.m., ABC).
Ana Gasteyer, Bomani Jones, Sam Morrison and Danny Carey visit “Late Night With Seth Meyers” (12:35 a.m., NBC, r) … Cher and Phoebe Waller-Bridge visit “The Late Late Show With James Corden” (12:35 a.m., CBS).
