Tonight's TV Hot List: Friday, Oct. 17, 2008

Crusoe
8 pm/ET NBC
While the name Robinson Crusoe may cause some to cringe as visions of book reports and required reading spring to mind, this television adaptation of Daniel Defoe's classic novel is no snooze. In the opening episode, Crusoe is captured by pirates who've come to the island in search of treasure. And since this episode kicks off well into Crusoe's time on the island, he's had plenty of time to rig some very impressive traps, making it a pretty bad day to be a pirate. — Brie Hearn
Check out clips of Crusoe in our Online Video Guide.
Everybody Hates Chris
8 pm/ET CW
The series pays homage to The Cosby Show with this unique episode that recreates the Cosby set. In it, a cute girl asks Chris to the school's homecoming dance. Great, right? There's just one problem: Her dad, Dr. Clint Huxtable (Orlando Jones), insists on first meeting him. To say Chris is nervous about the encounter is an understatement. On the work front, Drew fills in for Chris at Doc's store and persuades Doc to "feng shui" the place. Awesome! — Tim Holland
For full episodes of Everybody Hates Chris, visit our Online Video Guide.
NUMB3RS
10 pm/ET CBS
Eight people, including two police officers, are murdered execution-style in a Los Angeles coffee shop. The brutal crimes lead to a complicated investigation that unearths a messy trail of corruption, blackmail and sex. Meanwhile, Don and Charlie continue to sit on the hot seat as McGowan (Keith Carradine), the FBI's no-nonsense agent, digs deeper into his probe of the brothers. — Tim Holland
Crunch some NUMB3RS in our Online Video Guide.
Crash
10 pm/ET Starz
The Best Picture Oscar-winning film cruises to cable as a compelling dramatic series. It's a collection of polyglot profiles of all walks of ethnic Los Angelenos that also features another creepily charismatic turn by Dennis Hopper, who plays a poetic, proselytizing psychotic record producer in the middle of a "fallow period" of creativity. Other prominent characters include more dirty, corrupt, adulterous, conflicted cops than you can shake a nightstick at, and a boiling-over melting pot of troubled citizenry. — Ray Stackhouse
For clips of Crash, visit our Online Video Guide.
Ghost Adventures
10 pm/ET Travel
This new series follows a crew of ghost hunters as they try to stir up the spirits at paranormal hot spots across the country. The opener visits Bobby Mackey's Music World in Wilder, Ky. The country-music nightclub is located in an old slaughterhouse, and if that's not creepy enough, it's also home to a sinister past that includes murder, suicide and satanic-cult activity. Yikes! For a look at how this intrepid crew got started, tune in for their 2006 documentary Ghost Adventures: The Beginning at 8 pm/ET. — Karen Andzejewicz
For clips of Ghost Adventures, visit our Online Video Guide.