Fosse/Verdon Ends with All That Jazz

While the public reception to FX's miniseries Fosse/Verdon has been one of muted respect more than rabid enthusiasm, we can all be thankful that the show — about the professional and personal partnership between stage/screen legends Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon — was never framed as a test case for what FX in its post-Ryan Murphy years. It definitely could have been, as It bears some similarities to Murphy's Feud, which tracked the Hollywood histories of Joan Crawford and Bette Davis as they intersected and clashed around the making of Whatever Happened to Baby Jane. Fosse/Verdon too sought out to tell the behind the scenes story of Fosse and Verdon's coupling, separation, and continued professional partnerships surrounding the making of such projects as Cabaret (on film) and Chicago (on Broadway).

With Murphy having signed his crazy lucrative Netflix deal, his existing FX series will continue, but the networks road to the future will no longer run through Murphy Country. But while Fosse/Verdon wasn't the kind of outrageous attention-grabber that another season of Feud might've been, that shouldn't detract from the fact that it was a solid miniseries anchored by a rather transcendent performance by Michelle Williams as Verdon. 

SERIES FINALE: Fosse/Verdon wraps up with Bob Fosse directing the story of his life in All That Jazz, while Gwen Verdon looks ahead to an uncertain future. The episode is titled "Providence," which aside from being a term with heavy religious connotations, is also the middle bame of Bob and Gewn's daughter, Nicole. 10:00 PM ET on FX

SEASON PREMIERE: As often happens, the brand new season of America's Got Talent brings with it new judges. Simon Cowell and Howie Mandel are back, but Mel B. and Heidi Klum are out, and in their place are actress Gabrielle Union and dancer Julianne Hough. Meanwhile, Terry Crews (Brooklyn Nine-Nine) takes over hosting duties from Tyra Banks. It's a brand new set of talent for America to impress. 8:00 PM ET on NBC

SERIES PREMIERE: Songland is a unique reality competition show where aspiring songwriters get to essentially pitch their songs to a different recording artist each week. For this premiere episode, it's John Legend. 10:00 PM ET on NBC

SEASON PREMIERE: In the fourth season premiere of TNT's Animal Kingdom the Cody clan pulls off a risky robbery, while Smurf (Ellen Barkin) and Pope (Shawn Hatosy) continue to be on shaky ground. Meanwhile, J (Finn Cole) steps outside the Cody canopy to see how it goes, and a new criminal crew is introduced that has a connection to the Codys. 9:00 PM ET on TNT

SPECIAL PRESENTATION: While his perhaps ill-considered entry into the 2020 Democratic Primary has taken some shine off of him as a Democratic rising star, there's no doubt that Beto O'Rourke's galvanizing campaign for the U.S. Senate seat from Texas was an inspiring political moment. HBO, as they do from time to time, was able to capture that shooting-star magic from the campaign trail. While Running with Beto in its "on the road with the candidate" vibe seems similar to the early-2000s films made by Alexandra Pelosi (Journeys with George), this film is actually co-production with Crooked Media, the company behind the Pod Save America podcast that HBO partnered with for specials leading up to the 2018 midterms. 8:00 PM ET on HBO

ALSO TONIGHT

• 1969 wraps up its docu-series look back at the pivotal year that changed America. The episode "Fortunate Sons" focuses on the culture war between the Nixonian old guard and an increasingly influential counterculture. 9:00 PM ET on A&E
• 30 for 30 airs their new film Qualified, about the first woman to qualify for the Indy 500. 9:00 PM ET on ESPN

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.