Viewers tired of repeats and game shows should make the logical choice to watch “The Irrational” (10 p.m., NBC, TV-14), a legal procedural with a psychological twist.
With the “Law & Order” factory shut down just like every other production for the duration of the strikes, viewers will also appreciate the casting of “L&O” veteran Jesse L. Martin here. He plays Alec Baker, a behavioral psychologist whom the authorities call in when they are stumped by evidence that doesn’t fit any particular narrative.
A variation on “CSI,” “Irrational” allows Baker, his colleagues, students, lovers and exes to discuss technical psychological theories as well as the common ways that thoughts and perceptions can be altered and misconstrued by listeners trying to make sense of them.
In the pilot episode, he unravels a mystery involving a decorated airline pilot who appears to have intentionally crashed a plane. At first, the garbled audio found on the black box recorder seems to confirm one leading theory about his motivations — until Baker and his cohorts hack into some back channels and blow up that theory and then teach us how audio can be misinterpreted, particularly when we read or see a particular statement beforehand.
“Irrational” can be a little didactic, a refresher semester of Psych 101 combined with a walk-and-talk procedural. But it’s refreshing in many ways. It seems to respect its audience’s intelligence and assumes that viewers might want to learn something new. It’s gloriously free of morbidity. The pilot features no trips to the morgue or gratuitous examinations of rotting flesh. And, as opposed to nearly every dramatic series on CBS, there was not one scene featuring guns or gunfire. That alone is worth the price of admission.
Episodes of “The Irrational” will also stream on Peacock.
— Speaking of irrational behavior, Gordon Ramsay puts on his therapist hat to counsel two brothers whose bickering has put their Astoria, New York, restaurant on the brink of bankruptcy on the season premiere of “Kitchen Nightmares” (8 p.m., Fox, TV-14).
— A platoon of 14 vaguely familiar faces enlists to see if they have what it takes to fake military-grade grit on the season two premiere of “Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test” (9 p.m., Fox, TV-14).
— Just in case you didn’t mark your calendars, today is “NCIS” day. CBS celebrates the 20th anniversary of the popular series with three consecutive episodes. Is that wise? After all, nothing feels more like “any other day” than binging on “NCIS” repeats.
On three episodes of “NCIS” (CBS, r): death boards Air Force One (8 p.m., TV-PG); an envelope’s deadly contents (9 p.m., TV-PG); terror at sea (10 p.m., TV-14).
TONIGHT’S OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
— The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Philadelphia Eagles meet in Monday Night Football action (7:15 p.m., ABC).
— Left behind during the so-called end times, a woman (Anna Kendrick) schemes to thwart the Antichrist (Craig Robinson) in the apocalyptic spoof “Rapture-Palooza” (7:30 p.m., Starz Encore).
— Blind auditions begin on the 24th season premiere of “The Voice” (8 p.m., NBC, TV-PG). Coaches include Reba McEntire, John Legend and Gwen Stefani.
— The Cincinnati Bengals host the Los Angeles Rams in NFL action (8 p.m., ESPN and ESPN 2). For those keeping score, this is the second Monday Night NFL doubleheader in the past two weeks. The next such Monday night will take place in week 14, on Dec. 11.
— “Below Deck Mediterranean” (9 p.m., Bravo, TV-14) enters its eighth season.
— Set in the Amazon, the “POV” (10 p.m., PBS, TV-14, check local listings) documentary “Uyra: The Rising Forest” follows a social and political uprising among indigenous youth.
CULT CHOICE
During World War II, thousands of bobby soxers and man-starved young women swooned for “the Voice,” Frank Sinatra. This, and Sinatra’s health-related deferred draft status, did not sit well with some of the millions of GIs facing harsh conditions in combat. As if to compensate, Sinatra would go on to make many films about troubled veterans and daring soldiers. Among the more audacious is the 1965 thriller “Von Ryan’s Express” (8 p.m., TCM, TV-PG), in which a clearly middle-aged Old Blue Eyes joins a British major (Trevor Howard) to seize a Nazi prison train.
SERIES NOTES
Recaps, prognostication and observations galore on “SportsCenter With Scott Van Pelt” (10 p.m., ABC).
LATE NIGHT
Due to the Writers Guild strike, all late-night shows are repeats.
Jimmy Fallon welcomes Idris Elba, Aubrey Plaza, Sofia Carson and Lauren Spencer-Smith on “The Tonight Show” (11:35 p.m., NBC) … Woody Harrelson, Niall Horan and Atom Willard appear on “Late Night With Seth Meyers” (12:35 a.m., NBC) … “Comics Unleashed With Byron Allen” (12:35 a.m., CBS) hosts a rotating panel of comedians.
