TV

What to Watch: Thurs, October 11

The fourth season of The Vampire Diaries kicks off tonight, where new vampire hunter could be big trouble for Elena and the Salvatore brothers

The Vampire Diaries (New Season)
8 p.m., The CW; 9 p.m., CTV2
As the fourth season of this supernatural series begins, Elena (Nina Dobrev) and her friends are finishing up their final year of high school, but she has bigger problems now that she has a dark secret and has made her choice between the Salvatore brothers. Meanwhile, a new vampire hunter (Todd Williams) has arrived in Mystic Falls on a deadly mission.

The Vice Presidential Debate
6 p.m., ABC, NBC, CBS, KCTS, FOX, CNN, News Network & WTVS
We’ve already seen Obama and Romney face off, and this live debate features U.S. Vice President Joe Biden taking on the guy who wants his job, Paul Ryan. Let’s hope Biden hasn’t lost his touch for putting his foot in his mouth, otherwise this thing is going to be a serious snooze.

Beauty and the Beast (New Series)
6 p.m. & 9 p.m., Showcase; 9 p.m., The CW
Smallville’s Kristin Kreuk stars in this new supernatural series about a no-nonsense homicide detective who is led to a reclusive doctor named Vincent Keller (Jay Ryan) with whom she shares a personal connection from their past. Keller, however, lives off the grid and hides a deadly secret — when he becomes angry, he turns into a dangerous beast.

Covert Affairs (New Season)
7 p.m. & 10 p.m., Showcase
After the disastrous mission in Stockholm, Auggie is given a new assignment. Meanwhile, Annie (Piper Perabo) is now working under Lena Smith (Sarah Clarke of 24), who immediately sends her to Marrakech to retrieve a rogue MI6 agent pretending to be a British businessman.

Mapping the World
8 p.m., Knowledge
This three-part BBC series looks at the history of maps and, as dry as that may sound, host Jerry Brotton manages to make things fascinating, whether he’s showing us some of the first maps from more than 3,000 years ago or explaining the political importance of maps.

Undercover Boss Canada
9 p.m., W Network
It’s a dirty job, but someone has to do it — which is something the employees of the Tervita Corporation (which specializes in environmental cleanup for the mining and energy industry) know all too well. Now it’s time for the company’s vice-president, Fory Musser, to get his hands dirty.