‘Days’ of John Oliver’s Lives, UFC Contenders, More ‘Talent’ Callbacks

Days of our Lives

We gave Last Week Tonight host John Oliver an “A” for playing the pivotal role of Z, a World Security Bureau top dog, when he guested in a three-episode arc on General Hospital earlier this summer. Now sporting a different helmet of hair, the British-born late-night comedian returns to the soap world, this time in Salem, for another three-episode stint shrouded in mystery (he’s also scheduled to appear Wednesday and Friday). Maybe in the future, he can perform a three-network hat trick and show CBS viewers that he’s both bold and beautiful. A soap fan can dream.

Dana White’s Contender Series

The competition’s 10th season finds a new home on streaming as Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO/president Dana White seeks new talent, with five UFC fights scheduled on the card in the opener from Meta APEX in Las Vegas. Who knows? The winners could find themselves playing the White House someday.

America’s Got Talent

Mixed martial arts might not be on the agenda, but expect more stunts, songs and other forms of entertainment as judges Simon Cowell, Sofia Vergara, Mel B, and Howie Mandel make the final cuts in a second week of callbacks. Successful acts move on to the live shows, which begin Tuesday, August 18.

Rory Scovel: Show Must Go On

Most recently seen on HBO‘s Rooster as quirky campus cop Donnie Mullins, comedian Rory Scovel brings absurdist charm and satirical bite to a stand-up set in his second comedy special for Netflix. He imagines a biblical reenactment and a home invasion and reflects on how hopeless he’d be without his wife, among other riffs.

Kitchen Nightmares

If Gordon Ramsay shows up in your kitchen, you know you’re probably in trouble. His latest stop-and-rescue mission is Renate’s German Restaurant in Hanover Park, Illinois, where the owner’s management style has led to poor staff morale and bruising reviews. Can Ramsay’s tough love turn things around?

Food Network‘s similarly themed Kitchen Undercover (9/8c) embeds itself in the San Pedro (California) Brewing Company, where the wait staff is openly drinking, and the kitchen crew could use an injection of passion for their craft. Chef Antonia Lofaso observes from afar while sous chef Nestor Milian goes incognito inside the business, with the hope that they can save the establishment by refreshing some old family recipes and adding some signature cocktails.

INSIDE TUESDAY TV:

• Signs of a Psychopath (9/8c, Investigation Discovery): The true-crime series’ 11th season opens with back-to-back episodes.
• Beat Shazam (9/8c, Fox): In a battle of the East and West Coasts, sisters from Georgia and best friends from New York take on skateboarding buddies from L.A. in a new round of the musical guessing game.
• Zorro (streaming on MHz Choice): The French swashbuckler series starring Oscar winner Jean Dujardin wraps its first season. Also new to the streamer from South Africa: the limited-series docudrama Cousins, depicting the 20-year campaign for justice after two 12-year-old cousins are kidnapped and murdered in the Free State province in 1966.