Spring is here! Where to escape when you need a TV break:
“Cougar Town” (Tuesday, 10 p.m., TBS)
Take the traditional route to the Sunshine State for a little fun in the sun. Unfortunately, there isn’t much for the wine-swilling crowd to enjoy when Jules’ (Courtney Cox) dad (Ken Jenkins of “Scrubs”) must deal with the onset of Alzheimers symptoms. This sunny gang is fairly adept at handling touchy-feely moments, but it’s difficult to imagine anyone getting a laugh out of this story.
“Bates Motel” (Monday, 10 p.m., A&E)
Not that Mama suspects anyone is planning their next vacation at Norma’s (Vera Farmiga) truly awful establishment, but those lumpy beds just got a lot less comfortable now that she’s revealed to son Dylan (Max Thieriot) that his daddy (Kenny Johnson of “The Shield”) is the brother who raped her. And Dylan isn’t even the son who ends up going psycho.
“Da Vinci’s Demons” (Saturday, 9 p.m., Starz)
Travel abroad — and back in time — to 15th-century Florence as the second season of this historical fantasy about a pint-sized, sexy Leonardo da Vinci (Tom Riley), whose thoughts are recreated in a weird, a-ha video style. We last left the Renaissance man in a bit of a bind as he rescued Lorenzo (Elliot Cowan) just after the besieged Medici realized his artist was boinking his mistress, Lucrezia (Laura Haddock). If you need a refresher course on this quasi-history lesson, Starz Edge hosts a first season marathon starting at 1 p.m.
“Hot in Cleveland” (Wednesday, 10 p.m.,
TV Land)
When you hear “spring break,” who doesn’t think Cleveland? And Betty White? Perhaps it isn’t your fantasy getaway, but the series is going to go live for its season premiere.
“From Dusk Till Dawn” (Tuesday, 9 p.m.,
El Rey)
Go south of the border with this remake of Quentin Tarantino’s 1996 supernatural bloodfest. Eye candy D.J. Cotrona (right) does a decent job filling the George Clooney role, playing the cold-as-ice bank robber Seth Gecko to his trigger-happy brother Richie, played by Zane Holtz. Two episodes in, the brothers have escaped to Mexico with the pastor (Robert Patrick) they took hostage, after which they all stumble upon a strip club full of vampires. So far, the TV show is just a really stretched-out version of the movie, but if you didn’t see the original, it’s an entertaining-enough series joining the long line of TV blood suckers.