Critic's corner

8 p.m., Channel 7
Meet the new season, same as the old season.

8 p.m., TLC
With extra wasabi, please.

9 p.m., VH1
After I finish reading the OED. Aloud. Three times. Standing on my head.

9 p.m., TNT
It has been an uneven season, with the dramatic episodes registering stronger than the comic ones. Last week's missing-child story was compelling and tricky, and it showed how "The Closer" can give typical procedural TV fare added texture. Tonight's episode, in which Detective Sanchez's brother is shot, is directed by Kevin Bacon, Kyra Sedgwick's husband. Don't worry: This is a No "Degrees of" Jokes Zone.

10:30 p.m., MTV
Rich brats are sent to working-class homes. Not so super sweet.

9 p.m., National Geographic
They're obsessed with the coral arrangements?

Comcast, Free Movies
The special effects are truly magical, as the mother and son title characters change from human form to catlike monsters, but writer Stephen King and director Mick Garris load the film down with so much goony comedy that it takes away from the fright factor. Alice Krige, though, gives an amazing performance, poignant and scary, as the mother sleepwalker. Brian Krause plays the son, and Madchen Amick is the virginal prey. (R; runs through Sept. 3)