We know Jim Gaffigan and Bowen Yang will be watching closely for behaviors to mimic when Saturday Night Live parodies the first and only debate between the presidential contenders’ running mates, Tim Walz and JD Vance. CBS Evening News anchor and Face the Nation’s Margaret Brennan moderate the faceoff from New York City’s CBS Broadcast Center, once again with no studio audience. And while the moderators have pledged not to fact-check in real time, CBS News has reserved the right to turn off candidate microphones when it isn’t their turn to speak.

Before the debate — or after, on the West Coast — American Experience offers an historical perspective on the vice president’s role in The American Vice President. Once considered an ornamental assignment, the position has over time evolved into a critical post a heartbeat away from the White House, gaining even more prominence with the ascension of Kamala Harris during this campaign season. With a history of assassinations, deaths, incapacitating illness and scandals (in the Nixon White House) creating vacancies in both executive offices, the documentary reveals how many modern vice presidents have become closer partners to the commander in chief.

A white-knuckle episode of the biographical docudrama finds Aaron Hernandez (a very good Josh Rivera) sweating out preparations for the NFL Draft. No one doubts his athletic ability on the field, but his off-the-field behavior and sketchy background have recruiters concerned. Thomas Sadoski (Life in Pieces) costars as agent Brian Murphy, whose goal to “control the narrative” means burnishing his client’s reputation, controlling his temper and keeping him out of trouble. It’s not looking great until New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick (a well-cast Norbert Leo Butz) sees the young athlete’s potential.

The catty cast welcomes a new member, art curator and model Racquel Chevremont, as well as a recurring “friend,” fashion entrepreneur Rebecca Minkoff, each hoping to fit in. Season 15 opens with Brynn Whitfield moving into her dream apartment, where the housewarming party becomes (what else) a battleground for rumors and gossip.

In the aftermath of the photo-shoot shooting incident, a broadly satirical change-of-pace episode takes the form of a film within a film by those pretentious Brothers Sisters (Catherine Cohen and Siena Werber). Despite themselves, vital new connections are unveiled through their verité styling and surveillance-camera spying. Their mantra: “Keep shooting and the story will reveal itself.”

INSIDE TUESDAY TV:

• WWE NXT (8/7c, The CW): Superheroes are mostly out on this evolving network, but wrestling superstars are in as the WWE franchise finds a new home.
• Murder in a Small Town (8/7c, Fox): Cassandra (Kristin Kreuk) invites police chief Karl (Rossif Sutherland) to be her prom date when the local high school invites all alums to a 50th-anniversary party. Naturally, the dance and their evolving relationship are interrupted by a murder investigation.
• The Daily Show (11/10c, Comedy Central): Michael Kosta goes live after the vice-presidential debate, with journalist Paola Maros as his guest.
• The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula (streaming on Shudder): The goth version of Drag Race returns for “Season 666.”
• Tim Dillon: This Is Your Country (streaming on Netflix): The comedian works up the crowd in an unscripted comedy special that appears to be parodying The Jerry Springer Show (which just seems redundant).
• The Mouse Trap (streaming on Peacock): This is what happens when iconic characters enter the public domain. A serial killer in a Mickey Mouse costume terrorizes young adults trapped in an amusement park after hours in a 2024 thriller making its streaming debut.