What to Watch Tonight: Vikings, the Debuts of American Crime and Dig, and Scandal

What to watch on Thursday, March 5...

8pm, CBS
The Big Bang Theory
Sheldon applies for a one-way Martian voyage in "The Colonization Application," perhaps seeking entirely new species to annoy and alienate. But Amy is none too pleased at the prospect of losing her beau to the Red Planet. In other relationship pickles, Leonard surprises Penny within a ribald gift and Raj goes a-snooping in Emily's pad.

8pm, ABC
Grey's Anatomy
A gallery full of doctors watches Amelia and Stephanie operate on Dr. Herman in "The Distance," but honestly most of them are just there to see Katy Perry and Left Shark perform at halftime. With Dr. Herman under the knife, Arizona takes on one of her cases, much to Bailey's consternation.

8pm, NBC
The Slap
Manolis is determined to pull the family back from the brink and persuade Aisha to forgive Harry. "Sometimes what you truly need to slap... is your pride," he'll solemnly intone, and then everyone will hug and we'll all get out of this thing four episodes early.

8:30pm, CBS
The Odd Couple
After forgetting Felix's birthday, Oscar hopes to make up for it with a last-minute bash in "The Birthday Party." He also hopes to make a good impression on Casey, possibly with the help of guest-star Dwight Howard.

9pm, ABC
Scandal
The nation is gripped by the latest Beltway calamity in "The Lawn Chair," but the Fitz administration has its hands full figuring out what to do with the V.P. Is anyone else starting to suspect the Fitz administration is as bad at choosing vice presidents as it is at... well, everything else?

9pm, NBC
The Blacklist
In "T. Earl King VI," Red is drawn into a treacherous game with a powerful family that obtained its vast wealth from the most sordid of enterprises. Huh, I had no idea The Blacklist was planning a crossover with Richie Rich.

9pm, Fox
Backstrom
When an ecoterrorist blows up an oil pipeline in Backstrom's childhood hometown in "Enemy of My Enemies," the ornery investigator is forced to reconnect with his estranged father (Robert Forster), the local sheriff.

9:30pm, CBS
Mom
"Dirty Money and a Woman Named Mike" finds Christy and Bonnie unprepared for the ways prison has changed Regina (Octavia Spencer).

SERIES PREMIERE, 10pm, ABC
American Crime
Felicity Huffman and Timothy Hutton lead the cast of this drama from Oscar-winning 12 Years a Slave screenwriter John Ridley. The first installment begins with home invaders murdering a war veteran and badly injuring his wife. As the investigation begins, what appears to be a straightforward case soon reveals further questions and complications.

SERIES PREMIERE, 10pm, USA
Dig
Sadly not a gritty live-action adaptation of popular early '80s Nintendo game Dig Dug, this 10-episode series instead centers on a troubled FBI agent (Jason Isaacs) who investigates a murder and stumbles onto a millennia-old conspiracy in Jerusalem. And since it comes from Homeland's Gideon Raff and Heroes' Tim Kring, being capped at one season can only work in the show's favor.

10pm, IFC
Portlandia
Dave and Kath hope to log some rehearsal time before a karaoke party in "You Can Call Me Al," but since the episode's guest list includes Paul Simon and Jeff Goldblum, I can't help but think they'll be a little outclassed no matter how much practice they get.

10pm, CBS
Elementary
In "For All You Know," Sherlock is linked to a murder that occurred during the nadir of his addict days. As he learns more about his ties to the victim, his doubts about his own true character grow.

10pm, FX
Archer
Slater tasks the gang with putting one over on a royal family in "Pocket Listing." After all, a successful con requires charm, grace, stealth, and flawless coordination, and I think we can all agree the ISIS crew possesses those qualities in spades.

10pm, NBC
Allegiance
The FBI suspects a mole is afoot, and they're almost surely correct since no law enforcement agency on a TV show is complete without a mole. Meanwhile in "Tipping Point," Victor cooks up a new way to keep the O'Connors on his radar, and Natalie screws the pooch in her search for a lead.

10pm, History
Vikings
The new settlement sows its first harvest and greets the visiting King Ecbert in "Warrior's Fate," and the gracious monarch will politely ignore the fact that their welcome banner clearly misspelled "Ecbert" on like the first three tries. Back in Kattegat, Harbard's arrival in the Great Hall captivates Aslaug and Helga but triggers Siggy's Spidey-sense.

LATE-NITE:
– Adam Sandler, Jonathan Banks, and BROODS on Conan, 11pm, TBS
– Journalist Gerald Posner on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, 11pm, Comedy Central
– Phillip B. Agnew, Godfrey, Sunny Hostin, and Michael Skolnik discuss Ferguson, MO., on The Nightly Show With Larry Wilmore, 11:30pm, Comedy Central
– Hugh Jackman, Tiffani Thiessen, and Hozier on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, 11:35pm, NBC
– Naomi Watts, Reggie Miller, and Carly Rae Jepsen on Jimmy Kimmel Live, 11:35pm, ABC
– Jada Pinkett Smith, Ginnifer Goodwin, Robert Smigel, and Kate Pierson on Late Night with Seth Meyers, 12:35am, NBC
– Jane Lynch, biologist Dan Riskin, Ed Alonso, and guest host Drew Carey on The Late Late Show, 12:37am, CBS

WHAT ARE YOU WATCHING TONIGHT?