Skateboarders and snowboarders of varying skills are featured in two strong documentaries tonight.
“The Crash Reel” (HBO, 9 p.m.) follows the story of Kevin Pearce, the Vermont showboarder who gave Shaun White a run for his money on the way to the Olympics. While training for 20120 though, practicing in Park City Utah on New Year’s Eve, he suffered a traumatic injury that nearly killed him.
He slowly improved after being in a coma but was obsessed with returning to competition to the dismay of his parents. Already they had one son with a disability, a thoughtful son with Down Syndrome. Would they have another, if he survived at all? It is through Lucy Walker’s lengthy, thorough film that covers a lot of areas of Pearce’s life for many years, that we see him come to a realization of where his life will go.
At the same time, we see how risky extreme sports have become. It’s also very lucrative and parents express guilt. But how about the sponsors and cable networks that feed on it getting more dangerous? A combination of crippling and killer crashes in recent years makess a huge impact on the viewer, if not immediately on Pearce.
The other documentary is much more on the grass roots level, following a couple of skateboarders on the edges of Southern California and their teenage lives, which involve skating, navigating female friendships, a harsh landscape, the fun of hanging around, the influence of a church (which has a skateboarding ministry), and the general instability of the 21st century — with people moving and homes repossessed.
Through “Only the Young” by Jason Tippet and Elizabeth Mims, tonight on “POV” (PBS, 10 p.m., check local listings) we meet a trio of great, resilient kids in a more realistic scenerio than the whole of theatrical teen movies the past 30 years. But with a tendency of breaking boards, their own bid on a boarding competition doesn’t end so well.
Desiree takes her hometown visits to Dallas, Scottsdale, Salt Lake City and McMinnville, Ore., on “The Bachelorette” (ABC, 8 p.m.). That’s the point where her own experience on “The Bachelor” ended when her brother may have scared Sean off. Maybe one of these guys has a similar sister.
Miley Cyrus, LL Cool J, Ke$ha, Pitbull, Icona Pop, Jason Derulo, Krewella and Arielle Kebbel are among the performers on the two-hour music special “The iHeart Radio Pool Party” (The CW, 8 p.m.).
Seems like an illegal rodeo would be one of the lesser crimes investigated this season by “Longmire” (A&E, 10 p.m.).
The contestants on “Get Out Alive with Bear Grylls” (NBC, 9 p.m.) adapt to mountain life when they are dropped there.
Lil Scrappy vows to do something about all that pot smoking on “Live & Hip Hop: Atlanta” (VH1, 8 p.m.). And then maybe there will be some progress made on that nickname.
Also needing a name change? Savi on “Mistresses” (ABC, 10 p.m.).
They’re serving meningitis under glass on “Under the Dome” (CBS, 10 p.m.).
Don’t forget to tune into the “Memory Games 2013” (Science, 10 p.m), following contestants in the 16th annual USA Memory Championship
“American Ninja Warrior” (NBC, 8 p.m.) has a qualifying round from Miami.
The first event in baseball’s All Star break is the great annual event, the Home Run Derby (ESPN, 7 p.m.) from CitiField in New York.
The British director Bryan Forbes gets the focus on Turner Classic Movies tonight with four of his films from the 1960s, “The Wrong Box” (9 p.m.), “Seance on a Wet Afternoon” (11 p.m.), “The Whisperers” (1 a.m.) and “The L-Shaped Room” (3 a.m.). That’s after a collection of interviews by Johnny on “Carson on TCM” (8 p.m.) with Shellley Winters, Ronald Reagan, Robin Williams, Jonathan Winters and Michael Caine.
Daytime Talk
Kelly & Michael: Helen Mirren, Howie Mandel, John Cena. The View: Eric McCormack, George Zimmerman, Gabrielle Reece. The Talk: LeAnn Rimes, Pati Jinich, Deborah Norville. Ellen DeGeneres: Jessica Simpson, Jimmie Johnson (rerun). Wendy Williams: Travis Tritt, Roselyn Sanchez.
Late Talk
David Letterman: Bruce Willis, Bud Selig, Valerie Simpson. Jay Leno: Savannah Guthrie, Anthony Jesselnik, Johnnyswim. Jimmy Kimmel: Armie Hamer, Adam Carolla, Clara (rerun). Jimmy Fallon: Kristen Wiig, Nick Cannon, Adam Ant. Craig Ferguson: Julie Chen, Michael Palascak. Carson Daly: Davey Havok, Kitten (rerun). Tavis Smiley: Dr. Orlando Patterson. John Oliver: Aaron Sorkin. Stephen Colbert: Jeremy Scahill. Conan O’Brien: Charlie Day, Brittney Griner, Jake Owen. Chelsea Handler: Jason Derulo, Jeff Wild, Natasha Leggero, Brad Wollack.