By Ann Tatko-Peterson

Kynt and Vyxsin, you will be missed. Granted, the goth couple from Kentucky were odd ducks. My idea of a relationship wouldn’t be sharing lipstick with my significant other. And hello, bright pink with black stripes does not a pretty shirt make. But these two were flat out fun to watch, largely because they embraced being different. They joked about themselves — “We know we’re cartoon characters, and we love it,” Kynt quipped in an early episode — which made them easy to like and endearing, even when they had a meltdown last week.

Ultimately, they made one disasterous move. They reached the U-Turn before Nate and Jen but inexplicably chose to U-Turn Nick and Don. Huh?!?! They knew they were closest to Nate and Jen on the detour. Kynt argued that he thought Grandpa Don and Nick would be the slowest — but hello, thanks to the Fast Forward, those two had won the previous round. They were on one of the first flights into India. Even Vyxsin seemed to realize the mistake as Kynt pasted up Don and Nick’s pic. Too bad she didn’t speak up, because in the end, Nate and Jen barely beat them to the mat. Read the rest of this entry »

In today’s CC Times and Oakland Tribune, you’ll find my annual round up of the year’s top television shows with rundowns on all 10. Here, we offer the no-frills, condensed version. I know you’ve got your own opinions, so bring it. Also, be sure to weigh in on our poll of 2008’s best TV shows.

1. “Mad Men” (AMC); 2 “The War” (PBS); 3 “30 Rock” (NBC); 4. “Pushing Daisies” (ABC); 5. “The Sopranos” (HBO); 6. “Lost” (ABC); 7. “Friday Night Lights” (NBC); 8. “Planet Earth” (Discovery Channel); 9. “Dexter” (Showtime); 10. “Damages” (FX)

HONORABLE MENTION: “The Office” (NBC); “Big Love” (HBO); “The Shield” (FX); “Dirty Sexy Money” (ABC); “Weeds” (Showtime); “How I Met Your Mother” (CBS); ”The Riches” (FX); “The Tudors” (Showtime).

Remember that clever and hilarious YouTube video that encapsulated “The Sopranos” in just seven minutes? Now, the folks at ABC.com have followed suit with a clever and hilarious video clip that wraps up the entire story of “Lost” — so far — in 8 minutes and 15 seconds (Get it? Oceanic Flight 815).

Featuring fast-moving clips and breezy narration, the piece goes from the plane crash all the way through that trippy fast-forward of last season. Still, I doubt it if a neophyte could really get a solid feel for the sprawling story and murky mythology of the series. Either way, you’ve got to check it out by clicking here.

It’s my first day back from Christmas break and I’ve got some news for “Idol” worshippers. Fox has announced plans for the seventh-season rollout of television’s No. 1 show.

“American Idol” will kick off with four weeks of auditions, beginning Jan. 15 and 16 (8 p.m., Channels 2 and 40).   These episodes will feature tryout sessions held in San Diego, Dallas, Omaha, Atlanta, Charleston, Miami and Philadelphia.

The lucky hopefuls who get the judges’ approval move on to the Hollywood Round, which will air Tuesday, Feb. 12 (8 p.m.) and Wednesday, Feb. 13 (8 p.m.). On Wednesday, Feb. 13, dreams come true for 24 contestants, as Simon, Randy and Paula announce the Top 12 male and Top 12 female semifinalists.

Then it will be up to America to decide who moves forward in the competition. The first performance show featuring the Top 12 male singers will air Tuesday, Feb. 19. The following night, Wednesday, Feb. 20, the Top 12 female singers will perform. The first results show is set for Thursday, Feb. 21, when the two male and two female contestants with the fewest votes will be sent home. 

For the next two weeks, the males will perform on Tuesdays, the females on Wednesdays and the results show will air on Thursday nights. The Top 12 Finalists will be revealed Thursday, March 6.

By Ann Tatko-Peterson
You’ve got to love T.K. He managed to sum up an entire episode in just three words: “Today was nuts.” No kidding, and I for one loved every minute of it. Let’s start with T.K. and Rachel, who survived a round of Murphy’s Law — what can go wrong, will go wrong. They left their clue behind on a table when asking for directions but escaped disaster when construction on a freeway considerably slowed down four of the other five teams. Then team after team passed them as T.K. struggled to find the name of the next destination during the airborne roadblock. Hope was fading fast, until Kynt and Vyxsin got lost, had car trouble and quickly fell behind (more on that in a minute), allowing T.K. and Rachel to grab a headstart to the pitstop. But wait, they got a flat tire en route. Yet again, as everything kept going wrong, those two kept their cool. Just imagine how much worse it would have been if Nate and Jen had been plunked down in this day of disasters.
Read the rest of this entry »

Well. that didn’t last very long. Annette and Alana, the mother-daughter team from Hayward, made it through only the second episode of “Crowned: The Mother of All Pageants” before being ousted.

Consider it a blessing in disguise. “Crowned” is one of the most ridiculous and off-putting reality shows in recent memory. The less time being associated with it, the better. Congrats to the locals.

Apparently, Annette and Alana were doomed from the get-go and not even a team name change — from the stinky “Silent But Deadly” to the deadly dull moniker of “The Realists” could help their cause. First came a swim suit competition, in which Annette’s mustard-colored one-piece was criticized as being too “disco.” (BTW, what a horrifying and demoralizing challenge: Having these moms don swimsuits on TV. “A woman’s worst nightmare,” according to my wife.)

Then came a stage routine in which the gals were required to perform choreographed exercises to music. The Realists’ routine — made up of yoga, kick boxing, jump rope and boxing – was slammed by the judges for being disjointed and unoriginal. All that was left was a humiliating “de-sashing” and The Realists were sent back to reality.

Good for them. 

With the writers strike now lasting for what seems to be forever, the entertainment industry is starting to freak out about the upcoming awards show season. Awards shows, after all, are a cottage industry in Hollywood. So they don’t really care if you get more than eight episodes of “Lost,” or if “24″ ever makes it back on the air – what’s really important is that we honor all the pretty people, dammit!

And so drastic contingency plans have to be made. If we don’t have writers penning all the lame jokes and monologues, the stars might actually have to think of something to say all by themselves. The first show to be affected is “The People’s Choice” shindig. CBS announced today that the ceremony, which typically airs live, will be taped for a Jan. 8 telecast. Queen Latifah, who previously was tabbed as host, will be part of the new format.

The show will include pre-recorded acceptance speeches by winners as well as their responses to questions sent in by fans, according to a press release. The “new approach will give fans a more personal glimpse into the lives of their favorite actors and musicians,” awards President Fred Nelson said.

Late Wednesday, CBS released a terse statement saying, “The show will go on. The People’s Choice tradition on CBS will continue and we plan to introduce some new ideas in the process.”

New ideas? Ooh, scary. Remember, this is the same network that thought “Viva Laughlin” was a good new idea.

Coming soon: The Golden Globes (Jan. 13) and the biggie, the Oscars (Feb. 24). If the strike continues, I plan on taking up a joke collection for the Academy. So go ahead and send your best one-liners right here. Just please refrain from using the words “Uma” and Oprah.”

Male call: Tila picks a dude. (AP Photo)

This week’s doubleheader of cable dating shows ended last night with Tila Tequila choosing Bobby (the boy) over Dani (the girl) on the finale of “A Shot at Love With Tila Tequila.”

It’s a decision that undoubtedly will add fuel to those rumors that Tila was never a bisexual as she claims. But if that’s the case, she did a great acting job because she obviously formed a very strong bond with Dani over the course of the show and Dani was pretty broken up after being rejected last night.

In fact, it seemed as if both finalists truly wanted a shot at love with Tila — that they were both wholeheartedly invested in winning their girl’s heart. You didn’t get that same feeling the night before with Buddah on “I Love New York,” and, as a result, Tila’s finale had more emotional oomph to it.

For the record, Tila, in a recent interview, said she dated  girls exclusively when she was young and didn’t ”experience a guy” until late in high school. 

Walnut Creek native Julie Tan is currently riding high in the new ABC game show “Duel,” but her lack of Santa’s reindeer knowledge could prove to be her undoing.

So far, Tan, 37, is the only contestant to have won a pair of duels in the six-day, tournament-style event. That’s good enough to place her on top of the leader board, but she could have solidified her postion if only she had known more about Rudolph and the gang. She was defeated in her third duel on a question that asked her to name the number of reindeer in Santa’s sleigh team, plus the number of days in Huanakah. Julie blew it by thinking Santa had 12 reindeer — when we all know his team of flying fur balls is made up of nine — Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen — plus Rudolph.

Julie, a wife and mother of a 14-month-old son, will now have to wait to see if anyone can knock her off the leader board. If she can hang in there, she’ll get a chance to play for the jackpot on Sunday, which could be as high as $1.5 million. If not, she’ll be seeing reindeer in her sleep.

My TV-savvy editor, Ardua Harris, and I watched the “I Love New York 2″ finale from our separate corners last night and immediately wanted to dish afterwards. Here’s how it went. Feel free to toss in your comments:

ARDUA: So Chuck, I’m finally admitting it out loud: I love “New York.” Tonight, she chose Tailor Made to be her man. Tailor Made! I really thought she would go for Buddha. They had a showmance like I have never seen on a reality dating show. He just wouldn’t take any of her crap. Tailor Made was the right choice for her. She needs someone she can mold. I’m so glad this show’s finale turned out better than last week’s disappointing “Top Model” ender. Has a reality show ever been this entertainingly bad?

CHUCK: Yeah, it was bad. And it WAS entertaining. I don’t know if I’ve ever watched a reality show where I so doubted the sincerity of all the principles — yet I couldn’t look away. And as put-on as everything felt, I still didn’t know which way New York would go until the absolute final moment. Some delicious drama down the stretch there.

ARDUA: Hmm….I believed Tailor was sincere, though I don’t doubt we’ll be seeing “I Love New York 3.” VH1 knows not to let a good thing go. While we’re talking about bad reality TV, another trashy/good show ends tonight — “A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila.” Any predictions there?

CHUCK: Yeah, I’m with you on No. 3. But first the reunion show, which should be nuts. Really looking forward to that, although New York promised us “no flareups” when we interviewed her. Why do I not believe her? … As for Tila, she also told us that she found “true love.” My pick is Dani.

ARDUA: You’re right. Dani will be the pick. This show wants to be groundbreaking. But tellingly, I was reading the synopsis of the episode, and it says “in the first season finale…” They don’t even pretend anymore.

CHUCK: Oh, I also have no doubt we’ll be seeing more Tila lap dances. MTV knows they’ve got a hot star on their hands. They’ve already recruited her as host for their New Year’s Eve special. Just goes to show you the growing power of MySpace.

ARDUA: I’m glad these shows are over, though I joined “Tila” late in the game. It’s almost time for “American Idol” to start which won’t leave much time to watch anything else. The writers strike is making it a little easier for me. (Now I’ve got time to catch up on “Pushing Daisies.”)  I’m sure we’ll be back for more “Idol” talk. Until then…

CHUCK: Yes, until then. I look forward to breaking down “Idol” with you. I know we’ll agree on just about everything … Right? … Right?

(NOTE: Turns out that Tailor Made and New York have been shacking up for months following production of the show. For the story, click here).