TODAY'S MUST-SEES

"House of Saddam," 7 p.m., HBO. The first half of this miniseries (re-running at 5 p.m.) was fairly involving, as Saddam Hussein built his Iraq dictatorship, barely surviving the Gulf War. Now the second half creates powerhouse drama. There's the crumbling of his sons and sons-in-law, amid drugs and deception. There are the attempts to flee, then the final capture and (two years ago) execution. No matter how you feel about the war or about capital punishment, you'll find this film bracing and surprisingly satisfying.

"Survivor," 7 p.m., CBS, with reunion at 9. This is the good part. The field gets trimmed to two and we jump to a live broadcast, to count the votes. Afterward, Jeff Probst interviews the winner and the others. It's a formula that has been refined over nine seasons and 17 editions; with Probst (now an Emmy-winner) in charge, it works.

OF NOTE

"Lost Holiday: The Jim and Suzanne Shemwell Story" (2007), 5 p.m., Lifetime. Here's another film that's well above the TV-movie average. It's the true story of two people lost in the mountain snow, while their family was gathering for Christmas.

"Skins," 5 and 8 p.m., BBC America. This is a pivotal episode, setting up next week's terrific season finale. Chris is back from the hospital and Cassie takes care of him; there are hard feelings and things will get worse.

"Snow" (2004, 6 p.m.) and "Snow 2 Brain Freeze" (8 and 10 p.m.), ABC Family. The original film was a delight, with Tom Cavanagh as a young Santa-in-waiting and Ashley Williams as a zookeeper who helps him find his stolen reindeer. Now we get the sequel: They're married and he's forgotten who he is and what he does. This is a problem, especially as Christmas nears.

"The Santa Clause 2," 7 p.m., ABC; and "The Santa Clause," 9 p.m., Disney Channel. They're just trying to confuse us now. The sequel starts first, the original follows. They cross in the middle and your VCR might have a nervous breakdown.

"The Simpsons," 8 p.m., Fox. This reruns a "Prince and the Pauper" takeoff, with Bart trading places with a wealthy look-alike.

"Spaceballs" (1987), 8 p.m., CW (Oceanic Digital Channel 93). With the failure of its new Sunday shows, CW is plugging in old movies. This one is a sometimes-funny Mel Brooks film, with Daphne Zuniga as a spoiled rich kid in space.

"Desperate Housewives," 9 p.m., ABC. Here's a rerun of the season-opener. It's a good hour, leaping ahead five years to find lives in chaos — and a new mystery man arriving; he'll soon bring death and dismay.