Friday 10pm, TLC The televised dating show arguably peaked with “Joe Millionaire.” In case you forgot, that glorious 2003 Fox show featured an “everyday dude” (he was an aspiring model/actor) who acted as though he was wealthy in order to woo a bevy of would-be spouses. And at the end he told his chosen girl he was pretty much broke. This is basically the opposite of that, as four international royals (only two are actual princes) are plopped in and around Atlanta to live undercover as they look for American love. Or, as undercover as a guy can be with a camera crew following him around. The royals run the gamut from the alternatively handsome (one is basically a British version of Kenneth the Page from “30 Rock”) to the incredibly hot (a former underwear model with a butt obsession; he is an awful douchebag and I love him).
Sunday 7pm, ABC The fascinating situation with this year’s Emmys is that, for the first time ever, not a single broadcast-network show was nominated for Best Drama Series, Best Actor in a Drama Series, or Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series categories—those nominations all went to cable shows. Expect host Jimmy Kimmel to make multiple cracks at the Big 4’s expense over that fact.
Monday 8pm, ABC All-star seasons of veteran reality shows are pretty commonplace at this point, but when your reality show features celebrities to begin with, you’ve really got to follow through on that title claim. “Dancing with the Stars” has somehow managed to do just that, despite the dance competition routinely being teased for being a repository for has-beens and never-wases. The returning celebs include six series champions (Kelly Monaco, Drew Lachey, Emmitt Smith, Apolo Ohno, Helio Castroneves, and Shawn Johnson), three runners-up (Joey Fatone, Gilles Marini, and Kirstie Alley), and two other finalists (Melissa Rycroft and the notorious Bristol Palin). The only two “all-stars” not to make the finales of their respective seasons are the always-fun Pamela Anderson (sixth in Season 10) and former Cheetah Girl Sabrina Bryan, whose seventh-place finish back in Season 5 was regarded as one of the series’ biggest shockers. Fans of the show should be pleased by the line-up, and fans of sanity can be glad that none of the Osmonds are involved.