One thing that the new Broadway production of Moulin Rouge! has made clear is that as important and memorable as the 2001 Baz Luhrmann musical extravaganza was, just as iconic (if not more so) was the cover of "Lady Marmelade" recorded by Christina Aguilera, Pink, Lil' Kim, Mya, and Missy Elliot. Just the mere rhythmic snapping of the beginning of that song is enough to fully transport an audience. And so when even just two of that legendary quintet get together for a VH1 reality show about a cruise … you get interested.
SERIES PREMIERE: The premise of VH1's Girls Cruise is as simple as it is compelling: Li'l Kim and her most fabulous friends — including Mya, TLC's Chilli, Pretty Vee, and B. SImone — embark on a cruise through the Caribbean, full of fun, romance, and emotional breakthroughs. 9:00 PM ET on VH1
NEW EPISODE: HBO's British import Years and Years continues its terrifying tour through what the near future may well hold, as Europe descends further into crisis while Daniel (Russell Tovey) tries to liberate Viktor (played by Maxim Baldry, the show's breakout star). 9:00 PM ET on HBO
SPECIAL PRESENTATION: Nat Geo presents Great Shark Chow Down, an hour-long special examining five extraordinary shark feeding events — including one instance of more than 200 blue sharks feeding on the carcass of a seven-ton whale — through the eyes of scientists and cinematographers. Per Nat Geo, Great Shark Chow Down is "an epic celebration of sharks from around the world. It ends with a cautionary reminder that these spectacular feasts may soon be a thing of the past as shark numbers crash worldwide." 10:00 PM ET on Nat Geo
SPECIAL PRESENTATION: To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the moon landing, HBO has made its landmark 1998 miniseries From the Earth to the Moon, a 17-time Emmy nominee from producer Tom Hanks, available to stream on its streaming platforms and On Demand portals. Streaming on HBO GO and HBO NOW
ALSO TONIGHT
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.
TOPICS: Girls Cruise, VH1, Lil' Kim, Mya, Reality TV