Homer Jay's Slightly Demented World View....Mmmmm, World View

Quite possibly the most original mystery ever to grace the small screen. Just what the heck is going on on that island? A ship in the middle of the jungle...mysterious hatches, one filled with horrible records but also a shower that I hope they put Kate in a little more often so we can have more "towel" scenes...a crazy French woman..."The Others," whoever, or whatever, they are...a black-smoke monster of some kind...and a polar bear?!?!? Here's hoping ABC doesn't turn this gem into another X-Files, overstaying its welcome and sinking into stupidity. For now the continuing mysteries make the show more interesting, but if they drag this past about five seasons, they'll have gone too far.

It may be a comedy shot as a phony documentary, but for my money, it's the best reality show on television, hands down. Just about all of us can relate to having one, if not more, of those personalities somewhere in our work history. Valuing my life, I won't identify any of my former or present co-workers as being ANYTHING like the gang in Scranton, of course.

This never-missed-an-episode fan of the prime-time series will admit to mixed feelings when it was announced Meredith "The View" Vierra was tapped as host of the syndicated version, but I was a quick convert. Meredith makes the show perfect for its daytime slot. I still miss seeing a Regis version on the air from time to time on ABC, but for a half-hour a day, Vierra is a genuine, enthusiastic, humorous host who seems more like a friendly companion rather than Regis' over-the-top showman. Sure, the first five questions are usually laughers, but what really makes Millionaire so interesting is finding out just how quickly you can go from being smug about knowing the answers to being totally stumped. Having been in the hot seat for the Disney World "Play It" attraction, I can only imagine just how hard it is when real money is at stake--the game is already harder than it looks when you're sitting down there in the middle of the studio and you realize a bad guess blows you right out of the chair.

Talk about a simple concept. A quiz show with no stunts or gimmicks, no crazily costumed contestants, a low-key host and an essentially unchanged format in its current 20+ year incarnation. And it shows no signs of stopping anytime soon. As dumb as I usually feel watching contestants spit out answers rapid fire, there's usually at least one category in each show where I know the answers. Best of all are those rare days when I know the Final Jeopardy answer while the contestants on the show don't. I can't help but quote Ralph Wiggum at that point: "I beat the smart kids!" Jeopardy is a true classic that shows you can be subtle and still entertaining.

Kind of goes without saying, doesn't it? So how does a strange-looking, crudely drawn series of filler cartoons on a little-watched sketch comedy show on what was then a joke of a network wind up turning into a cultural watershed that's lasted nearly two decades? Sharp, insightful humor balanced with just enough humanity to make the characters (generally) likable without being sappy...and a willingness to turn the jokes back on the show itself. The Simpsons is in a class by itself in the pop-culture universe. Long live Homer and company!