What's working for me...

1. The Emmys on CBS. After Sunday's pepped-up broadcast, I say we let them keep it.

2. "Flash Forward." It's not the new "Lost," not yet at least, but the first episode does pack a wallop, more in terms of sheer destruction than emotional punch.

3. "The National Parks." Look for my preview of what might be Ken Burns's finest achievement yet in Sunday's A&E.

... and what's not

1. Three-hour Emmycasts. The guilds howl at any attempt to streamline the yearly ordeals. But you can't tell me a tighter, brighter two-hour broadcast wouldn't pull in a much bigger audience than the 13 million who toughed it out on Sunday.

2. Lazy Emmy voters. "The Amazing Race" is always the best reality show in its class? "The Daily Show" has no rivals and Alec Baldwin has no peers in their categories? Really? Or is it that members of the TV academy are just checking the same boxes year after year?

3. "The Naughty Chef." Days after its dance competition series for overweight people ends its inspirational first season, Oxygen shifts into reverse and guns it, with this show about an obese cook who likes to be "naughty" — serving fatty foods without remorse.