Tonight's "54th Annual Grammy Awards" ceremony is shaping up to be a huge night for Adele, who not only is expected to make off with a boatload of trophies, but also sing in public for the first time since having vocal cord surgery.
As usual, the performances will undoubtedly overshadow the prizes. Among the big names taking the stage will be Paul McCartney, Bruno Mars, Foo Fighters, Coldplay, Bruce Springsteen, Nicki Minaj, Rihanna, Katy Perry, Carrie Underwood, Tony Bennett and more. LL Cool J hosts the festivities from the Staples Center in Los Angeles. (CBS)
• Also tonight: Suffering from zombie withdrawal? Relief is finally here. "The Walking Dead" lurches back into prime time, picking up where it left off after the massacre of the barn-walkers. It airs just before the debut of "Comic Book Men," a reality series set in a New Jersey comic shop. (AMC) ... The final season of "Desperate Housewives" rolls on as Susan (Teri Hatcher) gets a surprise visit from her daughter Julie (Andrea Bowen). (ABC).
"Full Metal Jousting" is a new reality series that has modern-day contestants experiencing the thrill of medieval jousting by donning armor, mounting steeds and slamming into one another at 30 miles per hour. (History Channel)
• Monday: A very different kind of jousting goes on at the 136th annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, where canines from across the country look to unleash their talents during opening night at Madison Square Garden. (USA) ... Standouts being celebrated at the "BET Honors 2012" include poet Maya Angelou, singers Stevie Wonder and Mariah Carey, filmmaker Spike Lee, the Tuskegee Airmen, and college track and field coach Beverly Kearney. Gabrielle Union hosts. (BET)
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• Tuesday: It's Valentine's Day on "Glee," and the kids are challenged to find the world's greatest love songs. But the real news is that viewers will finally meet Rachel's (Lea Michele) two dads, played by Jeff Goldblum and Brian Stokes Mitchell. (Fox) ... After a hiatus that lasted way too long, the hilarious "Cougar Town" returns. (ABC)
• Wednesday: It's men versus women as "Survivor: One World" brings a new twist to the venerable reality series. (CBS)
• Thursday: We're in pain just writing about tonight's episode of "Grey's Anatomy." It has Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) coming to the aid of a man who arrives at the ER with his hand stuck in a meat grinder. (ABC)
• Friday: We're expecting "The Help" to collect some hardware at "The 43rd NAACP Image Awards," the event that honors achievements by people of color in entertainment and literature. (NBC)
• Saturday: In "My Cat From Hell," we meet a cat that has a bad habit of vomiting and attacking when it's mad. The owners fear the beast might hurt their 2-year-old son. (Animal Planet)
©2012 the Contra Costa Times (Walnut Creek, Calif.)
