What to Watch Thursday, October 8: ‘Elsbeth,’ ‘Law & Order: SVU’ & ‘Cupertino’ Lead Premiere Night

Thursday is bringing another packed night of fall television. CBS rolls out four premieres, including Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage, Elsbeth and the debuts of Eternally Yours and Cupertino. NBC has the returns of Law & Order: SVU and Law & Order, while Netflix and Hulu have new streaming releases ready to go.

Between the comedy, crime dramas, vampires and a new thriller, there's plenty competing for attention. Fall television has officially reached the point where deciding what to watch might take longer than actually watching something.

TV Cave Top Pick: Cupertino

Cupertino gets tonight's Top Pick as the new legal drama premieres at 10 PM ET on CBS. Mike Colter stars as a lawyer taking on powerful Silicon Valley interests after a professional betrayal, with Rachel Keller co-starring.

The series comes from Robert and Michelle King, whose work on The Good Wife, Evil and Elsbeth makes this an especially interesting addition to CBS's lineup. Corporate power, legal maneuvering and people with entirely too much money behaving badly? There should be plenty to work with here.

Thursday, October 8 TV Schedule

Time (ET)	Show	Network/Streaming	Tonight
Streaming	Below	Netflix	Limited Series Premiere — 6 Episodes
Streaming	The Kardashians	Hulu	Season 8 Premiere
8:00 PM	Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage	CBS	Season 3 Premiere
8:00 PM	The Traitors: New Blood	NBC	New Episode
8:00 PM	Hell's Kitchen	FOX	New Episode
8:00 PM	Scrabble	The CW	New Episode
8:30 PM	Eternally Yours	CBS	Series Premiere
9:00 PM	Law & Order: SVU	NBC	Season 28 Premiere
9:00 PM	Special Forces: World's Toughest Test	FOX	New Episode
9:00 PM	Trivial Pursuit	The CW	New Episode
9:02 PM	Elsbeth	CBS	Season 4 Premiere
10:00 PM	Law & Order	NBC	Season 26 Premiere
10:01 PM	Cupertino	CBS	⭐ TOP PICK — Series Premiere

All times Eastern. Streaming premieres are available on demand; broadcast availability on streaming services may vary by subscription and release window.

CBS Has Four Premieres

Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage kicks things off at 8 PM with its third season, followed by the new vampire comedy Eternally Yours at 8:30 PM. The latter follows a couple whose centuries-long marriage gets an unexpected shake-up when their daughter starts dating a human. Five hundred years together and they're still dealing with family drama.

At approximately 9:02 PM, Carrie Preston returns for Season 4 of Elsbeth, bringing more murder mysteries and unconventional detective work to New York City. Then Cupertino closes the night with a new legal battle, giving CBS a Thursday lineup that moves from family comedy to vampires, murder and corporate warfare.

‘Law & Order’ and ‘SVU’ Return

Mariska Hargitay returns as Olivia Benson when Law & Order: SVU begins Season 28 at 9 PM. The original Law & Order follows at 10 PM with its Season 26 premiere, giving NBC two straight hours of investigations and courtroom drama.

Both series have become television institutions, and their return adds some serious competition to CBS's premiere-heavy lineup. New York apparently has enough fictional crime to keep multiple networks employed indefinitely.

Netflix and Hulu Have New Releases

Netflix premieres Below today, a six-episode thriller starring Josh Hartnett. The series follows a fishing community confronting a mysterious threat, making it a timely addition to October's increasingly spooky streaming lineup.

Hulu also brings The Kardashians back for Season 8, with more family developments, business ventures and personal drama. Whether viewers want supernatural suspense or reality television, streaming has both ends of the spectrum covered.

Thursday ultimately belongs to Cupertino for us, but Elsbeth, Law & Order: SVU and the rest of the returning favorites give viewers plenty of alternatives. The fall premiere rush is showing no signs of slowing down.