What to Watch This Week: October 6 to 12

From a return to Riverdale to the best of the Bard, we round up our top 10 shows to watch this week

1. Doctor Who – Sunday, October 7, 5 p.m. & 11 p.m., Space | Season Premiere

Superstitious folks generally regard 13 as an unlucky number, but it certainly is being kind to Jodie Whittaker. The English actress makes history this week as the Thirteenth Doctor, the first female incarnation of the titular Time Lord in the sci-fi cult hit Doctor Who. The current reboot of? a show that is a British TV institution opens its 11th season Sunday on Space, simulcast with the U.K. premiere. Per franchise tradition, Whovians actually got their first glimpse of the new star at the end of the 2017 Christmas special, which climaxed as the Twelfth Doctor (Peter Capaldi) regenerated into Whittaker’s form. The Doctor’s new female embodiment was so unexpected that the character’s space-and-time ship, the TARDIS, refused to recognize her, ultimately hurling Whittaker’s Doctor out of the flying craft. Which brings us to the title of the season-11 premiere: “The Woman Who Fell to Earth,” which finds the shaken Doctor, disoriented and unable to remember her name, dropping from the night sky into South Yorkshire, England. Luckily, she soon makes the acquaintance of three locals who are destined to become her new Companions: Graham O’Brien (Bradley Walsh), Ryan Sinclair (Tosin Cole) and Yasmin Khan (Mandip Gill).

2. The Walking Dead – Sunday, October 7, 6 p.m., 8:26 p.m. & 9:52 p.m., AMC | Season Premiere

The Walking Dead has never been shy about eliminating favourite characters for the sake of the storyline, with fans constantly bracing themselves for who gets bitten/bludgeoned next. But while it is true that in the zombie apocalypse no one is safe, there is one character who has seemed invincible–until now. As we enter the ninth year of the comic book adaptation, those who scour the Internet for clues to the season ahead are getting ready for the farewell many could never have imagined.

In July, Andrew Lincoln confirmed reports that he’ll be leaving the series at some point during its ninth season, a departure that was his decision. While Rick Grimes has lost many close friends and family members along the way (most recently, his own son), it is hard to imagine the series that revolves around the grizzled deputy who ventured out in search of survivors after waking up in a hospital in the midst of the apocalypse, without that very man at the centre.

3. Ballers – Sunday, October 7, 9 p.m. & 1 a.m., HBO Canada | Season Finale

No matter how things play out in this week’s fourth-season finale, fans of Dwayne Johnson’s sports-world comedy need to latch onto one very important fact: the show’s already been renewed for another go-round.

4. Shark Tank – Sunday, October 7, 10 p.m., CTV & ABC | Season Premiere

The 10th-anniversary season kicks off with a premiere in which a husband-and-wife team pitch the Sharks on some next-gen camping gear, an Atlanta man presents a smart delivery device that wards off package thieves and a child inventor looks to wow the panel with a non-toxic, non-permanent form of adhesive designed for kids.

5. 2018 American Music Awards – Tuesday, October 9, 8 p.m., CTV & ABC

Brush up on your dance moves, because the long-running awards show? that celebrates the best ?in contemporary music is hitting the stage to dole out more trophies, with black-ish star Tracee Ellis Ross ready to once again emcee the toe-tapping happenings.

6. Riverdale – Wednesday, October 10, 8 p.m., The CW | Season Premiere

As we open on season three, Archie is awaiting the verdict in his murder trial and decides to spend what may be his last days of freedom in unexpected fashion. Elsewhere, Jughead and his Serpents go to war with the Ghoulies, while Betty has a blowout with her mom and sister that dredges up some dark secrets (as if there weren’t already enough of those in this town).

7. Supernatural – Thursday, October 11, 5 p.m., Space; 8 p.m., The CW | Season Premiere

It’s brother vs. brother in season 14 of this B.C.-shot series, as Sam gathers the Apocalypse World hunters to track down Dean, who’s been possessed by archangel-on-a-mission Michael. Meanwhile, a newly de-graced Jack adjusts to life as a mortal and Castiel is burned by an unreliable source.

8. The Haunting of Hill House – Friday, October 12, Netflix | Series Premiere

This “modern reimagining” of ?the iconic Shirley Jackson novel follows five siblings who grew up in America’s most haunted house. Now adults, they’re reunited by the suicide of their youngest sister, which forces them to finally confront the ghosts of their own pasts—literally.

9. The Romanoffs – Friday, October 12, Amazon Prime | Series Premiere

The Romanoffs were the most assassinated yet celebrated royal family in history, which automatically makes their collective history one worth delving into. But here, Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner twists the narrative by setting the story in the present day, and following a group of people who believe themselves to be descendants of the Russian royals. What makes this project even more unique is that it features eight standalone episodes, each revolving around one such “descendant.”

Set to debut weekly on Amazon Prime Video, the series was shot across three continents, utilizing local productions and creative talent from Europe, the Americas and the Far East. Naturally, Weiner not only wrote and produced every instalment, but he directed all eight episodes as well.

The first two parts drop this week in a supersized debut. “The Violet Hour” stars Aaron Eckhart, Marthe Keller, Ines Melab and Louise Bourgoin, while part two, “The Royal We,” draws an impressive all-star cast including Corey Stoll, Kerry Bishé, Janet Montgomery and Noah Wyle. Subsequent episodes will feature the likes of Diane ?Lane, Kathryn Hahn, Jack Huston and Weiner’s old Mad Men stars Christina Hendricks, John Slattery, Jay R. Ferguson and Cara Buono.

10. Shakespeare Uncovered – Friday, October 12, 7 p.m. & 8 p.m., WTVS; 9 p.m. & 10 p.m., KCTS | Season Premiere

It’s time to brush up on your Shakespeare. Again. More performers associated with the Bard’s immortal plays serve as guides as Shakespeare Uncovered starts its third and final season Friday. The first night offers two Oscar winners: Helen Hunt (As Good as It Gets) talks Much Ado About Nothing, followed by F. Murray Abraham (Amadeus) discussing The Merchant of Venice.