Last night's season finale of Shameless set a record for Showtime: It was the highest-rated season-closer for a new series in 10 years (behind, ahem, Queer as Folk in 2001). With tonight's premieres and next Sunday's The Borgias, Showtime's on a roll. ---

What's new tonight:
United States of Tara (Showtime) Season Premiere: What’s Tara’s (Toni Collette) answer to taming her stress-triggered, multiplying multiple personalities, one of whom (redneck asshole “Buck”) is going on mysterious overnight motorcycle rides to another town to terrorize people at gunpoint? Going back to college to finish her degree, of course. Even better, her psychology professor (ultimate score guest star Eddie Izzard) doesn’t believe multiple personality disorder—dissociative identity disorder, as she corrects him—is even a real condition, even when he meets “Dr. Shoshana” on the first day of class. United States of Tara is still Showtime’s most underrated series; this risky, twisty third season should change that. Tara is still, however, preceded by the overrated ...

Nurse Jackie (Showtime) Season Premiere: If anything, Nurse Jackie proves that it takes a special kind of actor to turn a lying, drug-addicted, adulterous, middle-aged narcissist into a likeable comedic character. Unfortunately, that actor is Californication’s David Duchovny, not Edie Falco. Too much critical praise is wasted on this show, but I'm willing to wait and see if the third season finally earns it.

Also new tonight:
Dancing With the Stars, Castle (ABC); Mad Love (CBS); The Event, Harry’s Law (NBC); Bethanny Ever After (Bravo); Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations (Travel); Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives (Food Network); Being Human, Stargate Universe (Syfy); The Hard Times of RJ Berger (MTV); WWE Monday Night Raw (USA); Conan (TBS)

Preview: What's to come on the third season of Showtime's United States of Tara: