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What to watch on Tuesday, February 5...

SEASON 3 FINALE, 8pm, PBS
Pioneers of Television
Epic miniseries—including Roots, Rich Man, Poor Man, and The Thornbirds—are spotlighted in the documentary series' Season 3 finale. LeVar Burton, Susan Blakely, and Richard Chamberlain are among the stars interviewed.

8pm, CBS
NCIS
In "Canary," the team pursues a hacker with ties to the world's most nefarious cyber-terrorist. On the heels of last week's Person of Interest, CBS procedurals have clearly decided cyber-terrorism is the hot new trend for this sweeps month. I can't wait to see how Vegas shoehorns in a plot about guys attacking a '60s-era, room-sized IBM mainframe.

8pm, NBC
Betty White's 2nd Annual 90th Birthday Special
Rumor has it Comcast has quietly been buying up biotechnology and medical research companies, covertly pouring billions into R & D for extending the human lifespan. Why? Because Betty White pulls ratings for NBC, and the network is going to celebrate her January 17 birthday during February sweeps every year for decades to come, dammit. In attendance this year are Bill Clinton, Bill Cosby, the cast of White's Hot in Cleveland, and more.

SEASON 2 PREMIERE, 9pm, NBC
Smash
It's time to play the music. It's time to light the lights. It's time to meet a new cast member Jennifer Hudson on the two-episode season premiere of Smash tonight. It's time to put on makeup. It's time to dress up right. It's time to raise the curtain on the retooled musical drama with "On Broadway" and "The Fallout" tonight!

9pm, Fox
New Girl
Tonight's installment is either called "Marriage" or "Table 34," depending on which Fox press release you consult, which is interesting because OH WHO CARES ZOMG JESS AND NICK KISSED LAST WEEK YOU GUYSSSS!!!! Tune in to see what comically romantic fallout results, especially now that hunky Dr. Sam is back in the equation.

SPECIAL NIGHT & TIME, 9pm, ABC
The Bachelor
Sean and the nine remaining ladies vying for his lunkheaded affections jet off to majestic Canada. Deep in the heart of the Rockies, they'll enjoy such "adventurous" dates as monster-snow-truck-riding and cliff-rappelling, before three more contestants are dismissed with a rose and a parting gift of three gallons of maple syrup.

9:30pm, Fox
The Mindy Project
Mindy's troubled that new squeeze Jaime (guest-star BJ Novak) is so attached to his female best friend, so she schemes to match the gal up with Danny in "Harry & Mindy." Nothing says "Valentine's Day" like double dates and ulterior motives!

10pm, TBS
Cougar Town
Bobby Cobb already lives on a boat, and with his new burger-based food truck venture underway in "Runnin' Down a Dream," all aspects of his life will soon center on repurposed modes of transportation. A hollowed-out submarine for a putting green! Penny Can from hang gliders! It's all on the table for Bobby Cobb, folks.

10pm, FX
Justified
"Raylan encounters unexpected danger," says the least-helpful episode summary of all-time about "Kim." Gosh, episode summary, does he also wear a cowboy hat? Maybe he fires off a few one-liners in a weathered deadpan, and then shoots a guy? THROW ME A FRIGGIN' BONE, EPISODE SUMMARY!

LATE-NITE:
– Jennifer Lawrence, Nick Kroll, and Randy Houser on Conan, 11pm, TBS
– Guest host Dave Grohl on Chelsea Lately, 11pm, E!
– New York City police commissioner Ray Kelly on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, 11pm, Comedy Central
– Julie Andrews on The Colbert Report, 11:30pm, Comedy Central
– Josh Duhamel, Kathryn Bigelow, and LiAnne La Havas on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, 11:35pm, NBC
– Eric Stonestreet, Pauley Perrette, and Brandon Bennett on Late Show with David Letterman, 11:35pm, CBS
– Bradley Cooper, Kata Mara, and Emeli Sandé on Jimmy Kimmel Live, 11:35pm, ABC
– Justin Bieber, Naomi Campbell, Local Natives, and Jim James on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, 12:37am, NBC
– Amanda Peet and Paul Williams on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, 12:37am, CBS

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CASTING NEWS

... Law & Order's Jesse L. Martin is headed to (fake) Broadway! Martin, who played Detective Ed Green for a decade on Law & Order, will play the art director of a theater company and might get involved with Debra Messing's character. Martin is just the latest big name to join the show. Jennifer Hudson and Sean Hayes are also on board for Season 2. But can any of these people save a show that was creatively all over the place in its first season? [Deadline Hollywood]

... Carla Gugino, who just finished up USA's Political Animals, is joining New Girl for a three-episode arc. She'll Schmidt's new boss, which means one thing: He is totally gonna hit that. [EW]

... NBC's Animal Practice has cast George's mom, and it's Ghostbusters receptionist Annie Potts. She'll play Virginia, a woman so cantankerous it helps explain why George is such a dick. [TV Line]

... Carrie Preston (True Blood) will return to The Good Wife to reprise her role as fan favorite attorney Elsbeth Tascioni for multiple episodes. [TV Line]

... Isaiah Mustafa will bring the sweet smell of his armpits to Nikita's next season. Mustafa, better known as the Old Spice Guy, will play a former Division agent who has blurry allegiances. [TV Guide]

... The O.C.'s Ben McKenzie will take a step backward and guest-star on the truly awful TBS sitcom Men At Work. He'll play the ex-husband of some girl who is dating one of the guys and good god this show is really terrible. [TV Guide]

BUSINESS TIME

... Animal Planet has re-meowed renewed My Cat From Hell for a fourth season! The show follows a weird guy who helps troubled cats and their owners and the inevitable indifferent boyfriend get along better. It also features the worst BEST use of a guitar case ever. [Animal Planet via press release]

... Homeland producer Howard Gordon and Invasion creator Shaun Cassidy have sold a new project to Fox. The series will follow former CIA operatives, now all grown up with teenage kids, as they get back into the business and go undercover, this time with their family knowing full well what they do. [Deadline Hollywood]

... Fox isn't done with CIA shows. Life creator Rand Ravich has sold another CIA series to Fox called The Prodigy. The drama centers on a CIA agent who must infiltrate the FBI to root out agents who are working with all those countries that hate us. Which is like all of them. [Deadline Hollywood]

... USA is following in FX's footsteps and adapting an Elmore Leonard short story for television. The story is from Leonard's collection of shorts, When the Women Come Out to Dance, and is about an aspiring Miami politician who marries a Colombian woman to help him get elected. It was previously in the works at NBC. [Deadline Hollywood]

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