Foster Is HBO's Attempt to Make You Cry Tonight

This doesn't really have anything to do with HBO's Foster, a documentary feature about the fraught situation facing kids in the U.S. foster system, but who here has seen the superhero movie Shazam! starring TV's erstwhile Chuck, Zachary Levi? Show of hands? [counts hands] Okay, more of you should seek out Shazam!, mostly because it's a really good and fun movie and the little kid who played Eddie Kaspbrak in It (who is Brian Grazer's son) is really good and because there's a truly excellent cameo near the end that if you haven't gotten it spoiled for you, try to stay that way — not only all of that, but it's also a really refreshing depiction of the foster system.

Which isn't to sugar-coat the myriad horror stories that have emerged from the foster system. But when the only stories that get told are the horror stories, we aren't seeing the full picture. The loving, functional foster family at the center of Shazam! is not only refreshing, it plays a crucial part of the film's climax that morphs the film from one kind of superhero movie into another. It's great! Now watch Foster!

SPECIAL PRESENTATION: The HBO documentary Foster takes a hard look at the U.S.  foster care system through the first-hand stories of people navigating the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services, the largest county child welfare agency in the country . 8:00 PM ET on HBO

SERIES PREMIERE: Bravo's new series Texicanas seems a bit more Summer House than Real Housewives, and if you understand the distinction therein, you probably stand a good chance of loving Texicans. The show dives into the social scene of San Antonio, Texas, where one of the largest Latino populations in the country has made for a vibrant culture. Six San Antonio sophisticates — Penny, Mayra, Lorena, Anayancy, Karla, and Luz — navigate their own social lives as well as the current moment in American culture which has been incresingly hostile towards immigrants. 10:00 PM ET on Bravo

SEASON PREMIERE: Food Network's Bite Club kicks off its second season of local cuisine and heated competition. Host Tyler Florence tours the country's top food destinations, and in each city, five of the top cooks compete to see who's got the best dishes. 8:00 PM ET on Freeform

NEW EPISODE: The second episode of ABC's documentary miniseries 1969 focuses on the events of Chappaquiddick, where then-Senator Ted Kennedy drove off a bridge into the waters off Martha's Vineyard. Kennedy escaped the accident, but a young campaign staffer, Mary Jo Kopechne died in the car, leaving questions and suspicion that would follow Kennedy the rest of his life. 10:00 PM ET on ABC

ALSO TONIGHT

• The Flash sees our heroes facing off with Cicada II in the episode "The Girl with the Red Lightning." 8:00 PM ET on The CW
• On an all new Bless This Mess, Rio (Lake Bell) and Mike (Dax Shepard) have to catch a chicken predator. 9:00 PM ET on ABC
• On Fosse/Verdon, Bob and Gwen's marital troubles are set against the backdrop of a beach vacation among old friends. 10:00 PM ET on FX
• Watch What Happens Live is a must-watch if you're excited for the upcoming film Wine Country, as stars Ana Gasteyer, Rachel Dratch, Paula Pell, and Emily Spivey all guest. 11:00 PM ET on Bravo

Joe Reid is the senior writer at Primetimer and co-host of the This Had Oscar Buzz podcast. His work has appeared in Decider, NPR, HuffPost, The Atlantic, Slate, Polygon, Vanity Fair, Vulture, The A.V. Club and more.