It’s official: Your favorite shows are already wrapping up their seasons with “a very special” holiday episode. What’s on Mama’s nice and naughty list:
“Arrow” (Wednesday, 8 p.m., The CW) Oliver (Stephen Amell) and his abs try to reignite the Christmas spirit in his family when he finds out they stopped celebrating when he and his father went missing. The show is The CW’s best offering, so if you haven’t checked out the superhero yet, give yourself the gift of a hot guy in a perpetual state of undress.
“Parenthood” (Tuesday, Dec. 11, 10 p.m., NBC) The Braverman family has predictably handled Kristina’s (Monica Potter) cancer diagnosis with the exact right combination of fear, humor and heart-ripping sentimentality. This week, the Christmas season leaves Kristina and hubby Adam (Peter Krause) wondering how many holidays they have left together, so invest in an extra box of tissues. Crosby (Dax Shepard) and Jasmine (Joy Bryant) celebrate their first Christmas as a family. And in the least surprising dramatic turn, Sarah (Lauren Graham) finds herself torn between Mark (Jason Ritter) and Hank (Ray Romano).
“Hart of Dixie” (Tuesday, 8 p.m., The CW) If you’ve been anxious about the imminent arrival of an overly critical relative, you can commiserate with Rachel Bilson’s dippy doc, whose loathsome mom, played by JoBeth Williams, plans a return to Bluebell for the holidays. But Zoe’s efforts to avoid mommy dearest could ruin Christmas Eve for this entire caricature of a southern town in a story that could only seem “dramatic” to a 10-year-old.
“The Mindy Project” (Tuesday, 9:30 p.m., Fox) Mindy and lawyer boyfriend Josh (Tommy Dewey) throw an office holiday party at her apartment, once again allowing her to be a ob/gyn without actually having to do any work related to being a doctor since the pilot. Her schedule makes Cliff Huxtable look like a neglectful workaholic. The show is palatable for mindless holiday fare, but if you want real funny, series star Mindy Kaling’s tweets are the better bet, especially because they don’t require a half hour of your life.
“The Vampire Diaries” (Thursday, 8 p.m., The CW) Fortunately, this bloodsucker series thought ahead (or not) about how to hook the kids during the holidays by naming their ancient villainous vampire Klaus (Joseph Morgan). Unfortunately, the show has become so bogged down in the various reasons Klaus wants to kill or torture everyone who’s ever been born since time began so he can begat his hybrid nation (not the cars, but the vamp-werewolf mixes), it almost makes Mama forget to watch for his shirtless scenes. Almost.
“Up All Night” (Thursday, 8 p.m., NBC) Before another hiatus and retooling — the show is moving to a multi-camera format in front of a live audience, giving co-star Maya Rudolph someone to ham it up for — Reagan (Christina Applegate) and Chris (Will Arnett) un-enjoy a holiday snow day with their daughter.