Weekend TV: 'CSI: NY,' 'Walking Dead,' 'Homeland'

• 'CSI: NY' welcomes Sela Ward
• 'Walking Dead' welcomes compelling new characters
• Where will 'Homeland' go next after last week's shocker?

CSI: NY
CBS, Friday, 9 ET/PT

If you were thirtysomething or thereabouts when thirtysomething was on the air, odds are you still think of Peter Horton as Gary, despite his very successful career as a producer and director, and his guest appearance on CSI: NY as an FBI agent. He'll be sharing that show, of course, with the luminous Sela Ward of Once and Again, which, like thirtysomething, was produced by Marshall Herskovitz and Edward Zwick. There are some terrific hours on TV these days — but not so many that we couldn't still use another show from Herskovitz and Zwick. Please?

The Walking Dead
AMC, Sunday, 9 ET/PT

Television's most horrifying — and, perhaps, harrowing — series returns for a third season with its depleted band of survivors once again in search of shelter. Considering how quickly this show runs through regular characters, they're also in search of new castmates, and you'll meet a very promising one tonight in Danai Gurira's Michonne. There are times Sunday when Dead plays like a spectacularly bloody video game, with the team picking off zombies at will, but don't let that fool you. This series is also capable of moments so terrifying and emotionally charged, they'll make you gasp for breath.

Homeland
Showtime, Sunday, 10 ET/PT

Speaking of breathtaking, last week's brilliant, game-changer of an episode ended with Saul learning the truth about Brody. Now on Homeland, we find out what he does with what he knows. Put this show, Dead and CBS' The Good Wife (9 ET/PT) on your DVR, and you've stored as good a three-hour TV block as you're ever likely to find.