THE CLOSER
Monday, 9 p.m., TNT
STRIKE BACK
Friday, 10 p.m., Cinemax
TEACHERS ROCK
Saturday, 8 p.m., CBS (WireImage)
ANIMAL PRACTICE
Today, 10:38 p.m., NBC (Neil Jacobs/NBC)
MAJOR CRIMES
Monday, 10 p.m., TNT
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On the run
In the first season of AMC’s “Hell on Wheels,” Cullen Bohannon (Anson Mount) was a man bent on revenge. The former Confederate soldier joined the traveling town that services the construction of the expanding transcontinental railroad to find the men responsible for his wife’s murder. One problem, a biggie: Bohannon murdered an innocent man. He’s on the run now and wanted for murder. Meanwhile, Durant (Colm Meaney), the man building the railroad, dispatches newly emancipated slave, Elam (Common) to deal with the posse that robbed his payroll.
HELL ON WHEELS
Today, 9 p.m., NBC
The last word
A young street hustler, Rusty Beck (Graham Patrick Martin), sees what appears to be a man burying a woman in LA’s Griffith Park, prompting an investigation Brenda (Kyra Sedgwick) is convinced will lead to Phillip Stroh (guest star Billy Burke). But Brenda’s obsession with Stroh threatens not only her career, but also her life. Co-starring Jon Tenney.
THE CLOSER
Monday, 9 p.m., TNT
Give me a gun — now!
Manly men Damien Scott (Sullivan Stapleton) and Sgt. Michael Stonebridge (Philip Winchester) gear up for another season of corpuscle-crushing violence on Cinemax’s “Strike Back.” Scott finds himself on a conventional counterterrorism mission in Kenya when something goes horribly awry. (A child terrorist points a gun and takes some hostages.) Section 20, the London headquarters for all this derring-do, immediately contacts Stonebridge, who’s leading a quiet life, training recruits and being a good husband, and deploys him. Things explode. People die. Oh, and there’s a girl: the masculine actress Rhona Mitra, who knows how to point a gun and shoot, when necessary.
STRIKE BACK
Friday, 10 p.m., Cinemax
Classroom valentine
Carrie Underwood and Josh Groban topline “Teachers Rock,” a music special that honors US educators and promotes the Walden Media inner-city drama “Won’t Back Down” starring Viola Davis and Maggie Gyllenhaal. Performing alongside Underwood and Groban will be country artist Dierks Bentley and pop group Fun. It’s not all music, though. Everyone has a teacher they loved, and viewers will hear the recollections of musicians Usher, Adam Levine and James Valentine and such actors as Davis BFF Meryl Streep. Morgan Freeman, Jennifer Garner, Pauley Perrette, Matthew Morrison and Miranda Cosgrove.
TEACHERS ROCK
Saturday, 8 p.m., CBS
Monkey see, monkey do
Veterinarian Dr. George Coleman (Justin Kirk) loves the animals he treats. The owners, though, are better off keeping their distance. For example, Dorothy Crane (JoAnna Garcia Swisher) once held the key to George’s heart, but today she also holds the key to the family business, as she takes over Crane Animal Hospital. Dorothy is whip-smart and ambitious, and she’s going to make George pay for the past. Needless to say, he’s determined not to make any changes, which includes poker games with a resident capuchin monkey, Dr. Rizzo (Crystal). Also starring are Tyler Labine (“Reaper,” “Sons of Tucson”) as Dr. Doug Jackson, a vet who’s great with animals but hapless in matters of the heart, Bobby Lee (“Harold & Kumar”) as Dr. Yamamoto, and newcomer Betsy Sodaro as Nurse Angela.
ANIMAL PRACTICE
Today, 10:38 p.m., NBC
Change of guard
The LAPD is still reeling with the recent departure of Deputy Chief Brenda Lee Johnson, creating a tough transition for the newly appointed head of Major Crimes, the stern Capt. Sharon Raydor (Mary McDonnell). But there is no time to get used to her way of doing things as the department rushes to reach a plea bargain when a string of grocery store robberies results in a death. After proving to be a valuable source for the case, undercover police detective and military veteran Detective Amy Sykes (Kearran Giovanni) is transferred to Major Crimes. Meanwhile, Raydor protects teenager Rusty Beck (Graham Patrick Martin) after he runs away from his foster family. Co-starring Tony Denison.
MAJOR CRIMES
Monday, 10 p.m., TNT