Ms. Marvel, Adam Sandler in ‘Hustle,’ ‘The Janes’ on HBO, President Biden on Kimmel

Ms. Marvel

Superfan becomes superhero, sounds about right for a Marvel series marveling at all things Marvel. But the six-part Ms. Marvel benefits from the charming lead performance of Iman Vellani as Kamala Khan, a Muslim American teenager from Jersey City who rebels against her overprotective parents when it comes to things like cosplay and sneaking out to attend an AvengersCon fan event in the big city. Though her school counselor advises her to “pull yourself together and join reality,” when Kamala puts on a mysterious bangle tied to her family’s past, she inadvertently gains super powers that she struggles (sometimes comically) to master. “Let’s be honest, it’s not really the brown girls from Jersey City who save the world,” she muses. But maybe this is another rule Ms. Marvel is destined to break.

Hustle

Adam Sandler is earning positive reviews for his latest movie role as Stanley Sugerman, a jaded scout for the Philadelphia 76ers in this uplifting sports drama. Stanley’s prospects and enthusiasm rise when he travels to Spain, where he’s exposed to the raw gifts of streetball player Bo Cruz (played by Juancho Hernangómez of the Utah Jazz) and has a star-is-born epiphany. Queen Latifah plays Stanley’s supportive spouse.

The Janes

This documentary could hardly be timelier, as filmmakers Tia Lessin and Emma Pildes profile a group of seven women who, in the days before Roe vs. Wade legalized abortion nationally, created an underground network designed to provide safe and affordable illegal abortions for women with unwanted pregnancies. The film features first-hand interviews with the women, who called themselves “Jane” as a code name and were arrested in Chicago in the spring of 1972. Also participating: Some of the women who received abortions from The Janes, plus reflections from lawyers and doctors, including a man who helped teach The Janes how to perform the procedures safely.

Jimmy Kimmel Live!

Billed as his first in-person appearance on a late-night show since taking office, President Biden sits with Jimmy Kimmel during his Los Angeles visit. (Biden previously appeared virtually on The Tonight Show back in December.) “No malarkey,” Kimmel teased in a jokey tweet. That remains to be seen.

Inside Wednesday TV:

• The Flash (8/7c, The CW): Series star Danielle Panabaker directs an episode where electromagnetic-powered hero Allegra (Kayla Compton) saves the day while Barry (Grant Gustin) is off the grid and out of town chasing answers about a new Meta.
• Bargain Block (9/8c, HGTV and streaming on discovery+): Home renovation couple Keith Bynum and Evan Thomas are back to restore Detroit neighborhoods a block at a time. For Season 2, they’ve found neighboring run-down properties they plan to renovate and upgrade, giving one home a Hamptons-style beach vibe and the other a sleek Art Deco makeover reminiscent of The Great Gatsby.
• Hungry for Answers (streaming on discovery+): Viola Davis is an executive producer of a food series that delves into the Black history behind classic American dishes and spirits. Restaurateur and cookbook author Caroline Randall Williams is the guide, asking questions like “Who Gets to Cook Black Food?”, “Where Are All the Black Farmers” and “Is Jack Daniel’s Black?”
• Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey (streaming on Netflix): Emmy-winning filmmaker Rachel Dretzin presents a four-part docuseries that goes inside the secret polygamous sect of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS) and its self-professed prophet, Warren Jeffs, now serving a life sentence. The series features interviews with women and men who managed to escape the cult that forced underage marriage and pregnancy, treating women as plural wives and breeders.