I've been branching out in my television viewing over the last week, what with the total lack of new episodes. In doing so, I managed to get reacquainted with someone whom I hadn't exactly forgotten existed, but who I hadn't ever expected to see on TV again either.

Tuning into HGTV's My House Is Worth What?, I was startled to see that the show is hosted by Kendra Todd, best known as the winner of season three of The Apprentice. Todd was a worthy winner of her season, but as "good TV" she was badly lacking in that she was plain-looking, relatively humorless, quirk-free, and had an irritating voice. Donald Trump never seemed to like her much, which, if anything, is a complement. But I certainly never suspected that Todd might have any future career in television.

The voice is still an issue, but Todd has a much more youthful look these days, and her personality seems to have undergone a full Paige Davis-type transplant. Best of all for the discerning viewers of HGTV, she comes across as authoritative as well as enthusiastic.

On last night's show, we began with Jamie and Josh, who had been renovating their Victorian in Milwaukee, which they bought for $335,000 in 2004. They had gone beyond what they had budgeted for renovations and now estimated they had spent around $110,000. Josh was hoping the house was now worth at least $475,000, and Jamie was wondering if it would be worth it for them to keep working on an upper floor. A real estate agent voted thumbs up to most of what they had done, calling them excellent investments. The agent informed them that while the renovations and craftsmanship were excellent, there were still those little issues like the lack of a master bath, but they hit the $475,000 goal.

Next, we headed to South Beach in Miami, where interior designer Marcos was hoping to unload a studio apartment which was small but really decked out. Marcos had been permitted to buy the common area of the complex as his yard. He paid $285,000 for the home and put $51,000 into improving 430 square feet of living space. Marcos was hoping to hear that the appreciation of the apartment would take him up to $350,000. The agent sent to look at it was impressed to see the little touches he had put into the place. The bedroom area was considered really small, and the lack of storage space was likewise considered limiting. But the agent loved the yard, which Marcos had spent $75,000 on. Marcos also had two parking spaces to throw in. Marcos was told the location, the yard, and the parking were awesome, but the living space was small enough to limit the buyer pool. The agent said he would list the apartment at $425,000, which was much more than Marcos had hoped for.

Finally, we were on to Atlanta where Stacey had bought a home as an investment for her retirement, but was now worried the changing market had left her high and dry, so to speak. She had bought the home for $610,000 and spent $190,000 on upgrades, mostly to the basement and yard, and turned it into a 7-bedroom, 5-bath. She hoped the house was now worth $900,000. The agent liked the central location, the increased curb appeal of the landscaping, the storage in the kitchen, and the open space downstairs. The basement was practically a second home in itself. The agent's only negative news for Stacey was the state of the market itself. He said he would feel comfortable listing the house at $925,000, which she was reassured by. So on this show at least, the real estate market still rocks. Good work, Kendra!

Crowned:

The members of Alana and Annette's clique were upset about their de-sashing, while the opposing clique was thrilled to still be intact. Linnea ordered the women to get into evening gowns in just 15 minutes. Linnea introduced the women to Nick Verreos, last seen as a loser on Project Runway. He gave a quick critique of the gowns the women chose. Linnea told the women that the challenge would be to choose new gowns from a large collection, with the mothers in charge of the process. Nick would judge who was best.

After the new gowns were picked, Nick mostly had compliments, though Angela of Beauty Is Skin Deep was docked for an excessively high cut. The winners were Ada and Christan, who renamed themselves the Blessed Beauties after being chewed out for the name "Hot and Not" for two straight weeks. The prize was a gift certificate for a spa, as the teams were having trouble choosing the box with the jewels.

One of the cliques, the one that has been edited as the evil one so far, listened to the other clique on an intercom. Angela confronted the clique for talking behind people's backs and being rude, which Gina thought was interesting coming from a panty-flasher. Angela was still unwilling to forgive the following morning. Linnea presented the elimination challenge: the women would pose for professional photos, with the moms again making all the key decisions.

The women all underwent makeovers first. Pamela, who was concerned that an appearance-based challenge would put her and Felicia at a big disadvantage, chose to get rid of her bangs. Rachelle looked skeptical of mom Melinda's ideas on how to pose, while Tenia disapproved of what Angela decided. Gina started to cry in the middle of the posing, but her photos with Hollis turned out well. Pamela fussed over what to do while Felicia fretted.

At the de-sashing ceremony, Shanna Moakler said the teams would be judged on style, composition, and how well the daughter was showcased. Everyone loved the catty redheads Patty and Laura, but Tenia criticized the job her mom had done and the judges seemed unimpressed as well. Blonde West Virginians Brenda and Heather received praise for how much they had improved since the first week. Jenileigh and Moya were knocked for not being glamorous enough. Gina and Hollis got unanimous kudos, as did Jill and Nicole. Ada and Christan were praised for the name change and for their photo. Carson was happy that Christan was no longer a "bee-yotch." The judges felt Pamela and Felicia looked very uncomfortable and had poor composition. There were gasps when Melinda and Rachelle showed their photo -- the judges hated the dresses and the full-length pose. Melinda cried backstage.

At the end, Shanna said most teams had improved over last week. Ada and Christan were named the winners again, while the Tomboy Queens and Gifted Dolls were the bottom two. Pamela and Felicia were told they weren't expected to look like a certain type of beauty, but needed to show improvement, while Melinda and Rachelle were criticized for not putting their lengthy pageant experience to use. The Tomboy Queens were told to pick up the giant bedazzled scissors (tears from the Gifted Dolls) and de-sash--themselves (tears of joy)! [Sofa Chip]

The Kennedy Center Honors:

This marked the 30th year for this honors show, one of the hardy perennials of end-of-the-year television, even though it isn't deemed ratings-friendly enough to be broadcast live when it takes place in early December. Cameron Diaz, who would have been waaaaaay far down on the list of people I would have chosen for the task, paid tribute to Martin Scorsese, the sickly little Italian boy who went on to change American film, and who has made movies that are "not just something you have seen, but something you have lived through." Francis Ford Coppola joked about the number of people who have confused him with Scorsese. Robert De Niro said that if Scorsese had directed this awards show, "I would have already whacked Steve Martin."

Speaking of whom, the comedian-turned-movie-star-turned-author was also an honoree. Steve Carell paid tribute to Martin by calling him "even smarter than he is letting on." Martin's amazingly varied career was recapped, from his time as a teenage magician at Disneyland to the Smothers Brothers show to his absurdist standup routine, which made him the biggest star in comedy by the late 1970s. A facetious chorus line was accompanied by comedians who share a similar sensibility: Ricky Jay, Bill Irwin, and Martin Short. Earl Scruggs even came out to serenade his fellow banjo player.

Smokey Robinson spoke on behalf of Diana Ross, whose accomplishments seem a little less than everyone else's considering most of them happened as part of a group. Terrence Howard came out to talk about suns and stars and generally sounded as if he was warming up for a Kennedy Center Honors for Cheech and Chong. Jordin Sparks, a vocalist who very much sings in the Ross tradition, performed "Someday We'll Be Together."

Yo-Yo Ma talked about Leon Fleisher, and said he communicates ideas and concepts in his piano playing. Fleisher triumphed on his recordings of the Beethoven piano concertos before moving into teaching and conducting. The mini-concert paying tribute to him brought down the house. The night's last honoree, Brian Wilson (looking as uncomfortable in public as ever), was described by Art Garfunkel as the man who brought tight harmonies and a California sensibility to rock and roll. Lyle Lovett croaked out "God Only Knows," while Hootie and The Blowfish (how's that for random?) flew in from a county fair in New Mexico to perform "I Get Around" and "California Girls." At no point did Wilson crack a smile or even appear to change facial expressions. At the end of a concert by some choirboys, beach balls flew through the air. Wilson caught one. [A Whiff of Smiff]

Funniest Commercials of the Year 2007:

Yes, this was a show that asked us to voluntarily watch commercials for an hour. But there is clever work done in the ad medium, and this special hosted by Kevin Nealon recounted some of the better spots of this past year, including the Absolut Vodka pillow fight, the cavemen in their original non-sitcom form, Kevin Federline on the fries, and some very inventive young engineers in Norway. One thing was made clear by this hour: men looking stupid in ads is a worldwide phenomenon. I disagree with the following link (on Why Don't We Get Drunk and Blog?); the commercial he talks about makes me giggle every time I see it. Seriously, I giggle. [Why Don't We Get Drunk and Blog?]

Newport Harbor: Home For the Holidays:

Chrissy's gang at college prepared to separate for the Thanksgiving holiday (four whole days!). Chrissy worried about the awkwardness of seeing Clay at home, after he surprised her hanging out with Billy. Grant told Clay that the Santa Barbara kids were "a different breed," and suggested they hang out with a new batch of girls in order to help forget them. Taylor and her friend Alex realized that Clay was, like, on the market again. Grant grilled some burgers and told Clay they would be "hanging out with booty." Booty soon showed up and got into the hot tub with the boys. Samantha and Allie discussed whether Clay was, like, upset about him and Chrissy. Billy suggested Chrissy come up to San Jose to see him on break.

At Thanksgiving dinner, everyone at Chrissy's talked about why they were thankful. Chrissy wondered about what to do if she saw Clay. Chase said he had never dated anyone like Kylie and wasn't sure what to do. Chrissy had decided to go to the party after all, despite the presence of Clay. Chrissy told Kylie that if Chase agreed to meet her parents, he must be getting serious. Chase gave Kylie's mom flowers. Her dad asked Chase what he wanted to do for a living, and Chase didn't know. Chrissy arrived at the party and saw girls hanging off Clay. Chrissy felt weird and had to be reminded that she was the one who had broken up with him. She wanted to leave anyway.

Chase felt he had done well with the parents, but now wondered if Kylie was OK with him coming to Santa Barbara. Chrissy told her dad, who was cleaning the pool, that the party was "fine," which he knew was a lie. She said she realized she's not totally over Clay, even though she does like Billy and stuff. Her dad said it was hard to know what would happen, but what was meant to be will happen. Chrissy looked at a photo of her and Clay and appeared wistful. [Sports by Fletch]