TV

Drama Mama: Network dramas return in force

Your weekly guide to TV’s best and worst one-hour shows

With the cable channels stealing all the Emmy thunder this year, you might think that the networks abandoned the drama genre. But the boys (and girls) in blue prove them wrong by returning in force this week. What to watch if you aren’t an Emmy snob:

“Person of Interest” (Tuesday, 10 p.m., CBS)
The Machine leapt to Tuesday nights this year and added Sarah Shahi, whose Super Agent Samantha Shaw stole the show when she was introduced last season. Now that The Machine has gone rogue and started spitting out “irrelevant” numbers to Finch (Michael Emerson), the team could have a tough time this week saving a naval officer in danger, especially since it’s Fleet Week.

“Castle” (Monday, 10 p.m., ABC)
Season 6 of the lighter detective drama picks up where we last left off — with Castle (Nathan Fillion) proposing to Beckett (Stana Katic), who’d just been offered her dream job in Washington, D.C. Mama won’t spoil the answer for you, but she will tell you that taking the action to the nation’s capital could provide the charming goofball Castle with a new setting to screw up/solve cases.

“CSI” (Wednesday, 10 p.m., CBS)
There is a lot of kidnapping and torturing of law enforcement in the TV dramas to kick off this year, and this veteran crime solver is leading the way as D.B. Russell (Ted Danson) and the team track down Morgan (Elisabeth Harnois), following her abduction by a ritualistic killer in last season’s cliffhanger. Guest stars include Eric Roberts and Tim Matheson.

“Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” (Wednesday, 9 p.m., NBC)
Before starting his new life as a good guy on Blair Underwood’s “Ironside,” Pablo Schreiber must first tie up his loose ends as a serial kidnapper on this uncomfortable season premiere. Detective Benson (Mariska Hargitay) is the victim this time around as she’s graphically bound and beaten by Schreiber’s psychopath.

“NCIS: Los Angeles” (Tuesday, 9 p.m., CBS)
If you still haven’t had your fill of cruelty and imprisonment, you can check in with Sam (LL Cool J) and Deeks (Eric Christian Olsen), who are recovering from last season’s traumatic torture at the hands of evil Ruskie Sidorov (Timothy V. Murphy). Unfortunately, the team has little time to hold their hands as they still have to hunt down stolen nuclear weapons in the fifth-season premiere. The progenitor of this series, “NCIS,” also returns Tuesday to fire up its 11th season.