What to Watch on Tuesday: Birthdays and surprises on “This Is Us” season finale

EW Staff
·3 min read
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We know TV has a lot to offer, be it network, cable, premium channels, or streaming platforms including Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+, Facebook Watch, and others. So EW is here to help, guiding you every single day to the things that should be on your radar. Check out our recommendations below, and click here to learn how you can stream our picks via your own voice-controlled smart-speaker (Alexa, Google Home) or podcast app (Spotify, iTunes, Google Play).

This Is Us

HOW/WHEN & WHERE TO WATCH: 9 p.m. on NBC

Season Finale

This Is Us unspools the final installment of its fourth season with a birthday celebration — it's baby Jack's first — as the family convenes for a three-layer cake. Also on the menu: considerable conflict between Randall and Kevin, who haven't been seeing eye-to-eye on Rebecca's treatment for her emerging Alzheimer's. "I think people are going to be really satisfied," says This Is Us executive producer Isaac Aptaker of the finale. "What exactly happened between Kevin and Randall, we'll get to that by the end of the finale. And then we'll be throwing in some new questions that people won't see coming, because how could they?" —Dan Snierson

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One Day at a Time

HOW/WHEN & WHERE TO WATCH: 9:30 p.m. on Pop TV

Season Premiere

This is it! One Day at a Time is kicking off season 4 on a new network, and the entire Alvarez family is ready to bring the lols. The season debuts on Pop TV with a special appearance from Ray Romano, who'll portray a 2020 census worker named Brian. Yes, the theme song has been reworked into something much shorter, but in exchange, fans get an entire season with their favorite Cuban American family. As to what will unfold this season: love finds Penelope (Justina Machado), Abuela Lydia (Rita Moreno) joins Tinder, Elena has relationship troubles, and Alex (Marcel Ruiz) gets a girlfriend. Dale! Papito, Dale! —Rosy Cordero

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The Way Back

HOW/WHEN & WHERE TO WATCH: Available to buy/rent on digital platforms/VOD

Ben Affleck is underrated as a movie star. I recently made my full case on EW.com, but the actor-director's turn in Gavin O'Connor's basketball drama is evidence enough. Affleck stars as Jack Cunningham, a former high school standout who has fallen on hard times, leaving him drinking away his days and nights, until he's asked to coach his alma mater. The role of a coach in a sports drama is catnip for movie stars (see Denzel Washington in Remember the Titans or Al Pacino in Any Given Sunday), but, despite the troubles befalling Jack, Affleck never overplays it or goes too big, which is impressive considering how wrong those drunk scenes could play in the wrong hands. And maybe his effectiveness in those moments is because of his own battle with alcoholism, a history that is hard to ignore when watching Jack carried home after a night at the bar or throwing back a beer in the shower. —Derek Lawrence

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What ELSE to Watch

8 p.m.

The Conners — ABC

The Resident — Fox

Ellen's Game of Games — NBC

NCIS — CBS

8:30 p.m.

Bless This Mess — ABC

9 p.m.

The Biggest Loser — USA

FBI — CBS

Schitt's Creek — Pop TV

Vanderpump Rules — Bravo

Empire — Fox

mixed-ish — ABC

9:30 p.m.

black-ish — ABC

10 p.m.

Cherish the Day (season finale) — OWN

FBI: Most Wanted — CBS

For Life — ABC

Council of Dads (series debut) — NBC

Project Blue Book (season finale) — History

10:30 p.m.

Miracle Workers: Dark Ages — TBS

Streaming

Tom Segura: Ball Hog — Netflix

Bloodshot (movie) — VOD

*times are ET and subject to change