Series
The ax falls on still more diva dreams as the winnowing continues on Popstars (8:30 p.m. Fri., WB). Mad TV (11 p.m. Sat., Fox) has a Super Bowl-themed episode. Saturday Night Live (11:30 p.m. Sat., NBC) reruns the one with Calista Flockhart and Ricky Martin. CBS follows the Super Bowl with a little something called Survivor: The Australian Outback (7 p.m. PST/10 p.m. EST, Sun., CBS). Who knows, maybe it'll be good? The Sopranos (8 p.m. Sun., HBO) reruns the episode where Tony and crew travel to Italy and Carmela realizes how much she enjoys his absence.
Specials
Joan and Melissa Rivers have nothing but praise and kind words for everybody (ha!) on the Golden Globes Fashion Review 2001 (8 p.m. Sat., E!). Apparently, there's some sort of football game on this weekend, hence the following specials: Super Bowl's Greatest Commercials (8 p.m. Sat., CBS); Saturday Night Super Bowl (9 p.m. Sat., CBS), a Tampa concert featuring Ricky Martin, fresh from his Inauguration triumph; and Super Bowl Uncensored (10 p.m. Sat., CBS; repeated 11 p.m. Sat., MTV), in which CBS's Craig Kilborn and MTV's Chris Connelly embrace Viacom's corporate synergy. ABC shows its unwavering faith in John Stossel by scheduling his latest ABC News Special (10 p.m. Sat., ABC) in this primo time slot. Comedians Mo'Nique, Adele Givens, Miss Laura Hayes and Sommore headline Queens of Comedy (11 p.m. Sat., Showtime), a raunchy 90 minutes of girl talk. The Super Bowl warm-up continues with TRL@The Super Bowl (9 a.m. PST/noon EST, Sun., CBS), in which Carson Daly brings MTV's teeny-pop shill show to Tampa. Expect visits from Britney Spears and -- ohmigod, ohmigod! -- Backstreet Boys and 'N Sync.
Hey, I just figured it out! Viacom, the parent company of CBS and MTV, is on a mission to make the Super Bowl a very special bonding experience for adolescent girls and their dads! The Super Bowl Today Pre-game Show (noon PST/3 p.m. EST, Sun., CBS) commences with Greg Gumbel and Phil Simms debating the question on every Super Bowl viewer's mind this weekend: Who's cuter, Lance Bass or Nick Carter? There's also a pre-game show starring Sting and Ray Charles, but they're even older than your dad, so who cares? But, whatever you do, don't leave the room, even if your dad and his friends are, like, really gross, because -- ohmigod, ohmigod! -- the Backstreet Boys are singing the national anthem! (Bummer: It's not "Shape of My Heart.") Then there's the Super Bowl (3 p.m. PST/6 p.m. PST, Sun., CBS), but you don't have to watch that; you can go upstairs and paint your toenails and write love letters to Lance and Nick with your Milky Gel until the halftime show, which has a video by "Charlie's Angels" director McG and live performances by Britney Spears and Aerosmith and -- ohmigod, ohmigod! -- 'N Sync! Who knew the Super Bowl could be so -- super?
Sports
Super Bowl XXXV:
Backstreet Boys vs. 'N Sync (3 p.m. PST/6 p.m. PST, Sun., CBS)
Basketball:
Spurs at Jazz (3 p.m. Sat., NBC)
Trail Blazers at Timberwolves (5:30 p.m. Sat., NBC)
76ers at Pacers (noon Sun., NBC)
Lakers at Knicks (2:30 p.m. Sun., NBC)
Hockey:
Sharks at Blues (8 p.m. Sat., ESPN2)
Tennis:
Australian Open (women's final, 9:30 p.m. Fri., ESPN; men's final, 10 p.m. Sat., ESPN)
Talk
Rosie O'Donnell (syndicated) Robin Wright Penn
David Letterman (CBS) Jack Hanna, Wyclef Jean (rerun)
Jay Leno (NBC) Matthew McConaughey, Hal Sparks, Snoop Dogg
Politically Incorrect (ABC) Jerry Springer, Darius Rucker
Conan O'Brien (NBC) John Leguizamo, Matt Stone and Trey Parker (rerun)
All times Eastern unless noted.
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