What's On: Nip/Tuck On A Budget

Glee creator Ryan Murphy has been working double time lately: responding snarkily to Macy's Thanksgiving Parade snubs and running that other show that he sold to Fox Entertainment Group six years ago. Fortunately, Murphy won't have to pull Chuck Lorre duty for long, because Nip/Tuck actually finished shooting its final season a few months ago and begins airing those new episodes tonight. Still, for anyone expecting a crazy threesome, some incestuous necrophilia, or the surprise return of Dawn Budge (Rosie O'Donnell) to kick the sixth season off the right way, know that the economic downturn has dampened everyone's spirits at McNamara/Troy.

Nip/Tuck [10 PM, FX]

The practice recruits Dr. Mike Hamoui (Mario Lopez), a surgeon specializing in vaginal rejuvenation, to bolster business. Sean (Dylan Walsh) and Teddy Rowe (Rose McGowan, filling in for Katee Sackhoff) improve on their relationship and Matt (John Hensley), depressed by the economic climate, tries his hand at miming.

South Park [10 PM, Comedy Central]

In its typically bad-but-hilarious taste, last week's episode parodied the summer's flood of celebrity deaths with poorly animated versions of Billy Mays, David Carradine, Farrah Fawcett, Ed McMahon, Walter Cronkite, DJ AM and Michael Jackson. Tonight, Butters desperately tries to kiss a girl so his friends stop teasing him, while one overly aggressive cop fights prostitution in South Park.

Late Show With David Letterman [11:35 PM, CBS]

Guests: Tina Fey, Chris "Mad Dog" Russo, Mika

America is ready for a woman to host a late night talk show, but only if it's Tina Fey. Joan Rivers had her run and Chelsea Handler is making headway as an acerbic cable talking head, but for a woman to succeed on network television, she needs to be able to joke without sounding like she has a chip on her shoulder. Tonight, watch as Letterman banters back and forth with Fey, his heir apparent, who is promoting Thursday night's 30 Rock season premiere.

Uncle Buck [8 PM, WGN]

Aside from his brief blip in the Oscars' "In Memoriam" montage, America's sadness over the death of John Hughes has largely been channeled into an appreciation of his contributions to American culture and cinematic teen angs. The kids in this John Candy vehicle are more broadly sketched than those in, say, The Breakfast Club, but Jean Louisa Kelly's performance as the bitter older niece Tia ranks among the best bitchy older sister performances of all time. It's still crazy to think anyone would want to leave the Chicagoland area for Indianapolis, but Kelly makes us believe that it's a possibility.