Dear Edward and 7 Other Shows to Watch This Week

Looking for your next binge-watch, or just need to fill an hour? Welcome to Your Weekly Watch List, our curated collection of the best shows on television. Here’s what to watch from Monday, January 30 through Sunday, February 5.

Heavy drama, hip hop, and musical nostalgia rule the week, which brings the premiere of Dear Edward, Chuck D’s enlightening music documentary series Fight the Power: How Hip Hop Changed the World, and an all-star Schoolhouse Rock! 50th Anniversary Singalong.

Notable TV Premieres This Week

Fight the Power: How Hip Hop Changed the World: Tuesday, 9:00 PM ET on PBS

Public Enemy frontman Chuck D leads this four-part series about how an underground music genre rose from the Bronx to become one of the most influential social and political forces in America. Featuring interviews with artists like Killer Mike, Will.i.am, Monie Love, Ice-T, Roxanne Shanté, and MC Lyte, Fight The Power traces hip hop’s roots from the tumultuous racial landscape of the 1980’s to its central place in the Black Lives Matter movement and beyond.

The Ark: Wednesday, 10:00 PM ET on Syfy

Set in a time when humanity’s survival is dependent on finding new worlds to colonize, The Ark depicts the first such expedition to a potential new home. Sadly for the young colonists hyper-sleeping on board this first-ever space ark, something goes terribly wrong, leaving them adrift and facing shortages of everything from water to breathable air. With the ship’s command crew wiped out, it’s up to the awakened young passengers to find a way to survive. Created by Dean Devlin (writer of high-concept big screen blockbusters Independence Day and Stargate), The Ark promises a heady mix of science fiction and drama.

Dear Edward: Friday, Apple TV+

Based on the best-selling novel by Ann Napolitano and created by Friday Night Lights’s Jason Katims, this drama series examines the aftermath of a fatal airline disaster in which only a young boy named Edward (Colin O’Brien) survives. Taylor Schilling (Orange Is the New Black) and Friday Night Lights star Connie Britton play family members trying to process the tragedy and Edward’s miraculous escape, emotional arcs that will make for no-doubt wrenching viewing.

Harlem Season 2: Friday, Amazon Prime Video

Harlem’s second season returns to the funny, fast-paced lives of four best friends (Meagan Good, Jerrie Johnson, Grace Byers, and Shoniqua Shandai) as they navigate dating, careers, and being single Black women in New York. Created by Girls Trip writer Tracy Oliver and executive produced by Amy Poehler, Harlem takes the Sex and the City formula to some boldly funny and insightful new places. Look for two new episodes to drop every Friday.

Full-Season Binge Releases

The Great British Baking Show: The Professionals: Wednesday, Netflix

Don’t look for Paul Hollywood or Prue Leith in this spinoff, as the pro bakers vying for bragging rights (and a very nice cake plate) are judged by stringent pastry experts Benoit Blin and Cherish Finden. For those looking for a taste of the classic series, fan favorite GBBO contestant Liam Charles hosts the show alongside comedian Tom Allen, who provides commentary as England’s finest pastry makers compete to prove that their macaron towers can topple just as magnificently as the amateurs’s. The full sixth season of The Great British Baking Show: The Professionals drops all at once, though Netflix has labeled it Season 1 here in the States, just to be confusing.

Documentaries and Special Events

Pamela: A Love Story: Tuesday, Netflix

In the wake of last year’s unauthorized Hulu series Pam & Tommy, former Baywatch star Pamela Anderson takes her life story back from the tabloids in this intimate documentary. Vowing to “reclaim the narrative” around her career and the fallout from the stolen sex tape that was the salacious basis of Pam & Tommy, the model and actress, just off a Broadway run as Roxie Hart in Chicago, looks to set the record straight.

Schoolhouse Rock! 50th Anniversary Singalong: Wednesday, 8:00 PM ET on ABC

For viewers of a certain age, there are few Saturday morning TV memories fonder than the educationally catchy songs of Schoolhouse Rock — and this star-studded retrospective of toe-tapping numbers “Conjunction Junction” and “I’m Just a Bill” arrives just in time to remind them how old they really are. With covers performed by everyone from The Muppets to the Black Eyed Peas to Shaquille O’Neal (with the Boys & Girls Club of Atlanta), this special promises fun for all. (Lucky NE-YO gets to perform “Verb,” easily the funkiest groove 1970’s children’s TV had to offer.)

The 65th Annual Grammy Awards: Sunday, 8:00 PM ET on CBS

Trevor Noah returns for his third stint as host of the music industry’s biggest night. Nominees for this year’s Grammys include Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar, Adele and Brandi Carlile. Fun fact: Beyoncé’s nine nods this year tie her with husband Jay-Z for most nominated artist in Grammy history, with 88 each. Not that it’s a competition or anything.

If You Have...

An Hour

History’s Greatest Mysteries: The Loch Ness Monster Season 4 Premiere: Monday, 9:00 PM ET on History
Nate Barzgate: Hello World: Tuesday, Amazon Prime Video
Welcome to Flatch Season 2 Finale: Thursday, 9:00 PM ET on Fox

An Evening

The Watchful Eye: Monday, 9:00 PM ET on Freeform
La Brea Season 2 Winter Premiere: Tuesday, 9:00 PM ET on NBC
Stand: Friday, 9:00 PM ET on Showtime

A Full Day

Cunk on Earth: Tuesday, Netflix
Freeridge: Thursday, Netflix
Murf the Surf: Sunday, MGM+

Up Next

Not Dead Yet: Wednesday, February 8 on ABC
You Season 4, Part 1: Thursday, February 9 on Netflix
Super Bowl LVII: Sunday, February 12 on Fox

Dennis Perkins is a freelance entertainment writer with bylines at The A.V. Club, Paste, Ultimate Classic Rock, The Portland Press Herald, and elsewhere.