"America's Next Top Model" (2003)

There's nothing better than watching a gaggle of beautiful women cake their faces in makeup, strut around Los Angeles mansions and take "spontaneity" lessons from master improv artists. This is the backdrop of "Top Model," where potential beauty queens crash-land on the runway and iconic models (Janice Dickinson, Twiggy, show founder Tyra Banks) get to criticize their every twirl and eye-flutter. Some of "Top Model" may seem a little fetishistic -- models pose with strange men, pose semi-nude, pose with animals -- but hey, that's show-business. Amusingly enough, none of the show's contestants has yet been cited as an official -- or even honorary -- "supermodel." The current it-girl, Gemma Ward, seems safe at the top of the fashion world.

"Last Comic Standing" (2003)

Comics can be nasty -- hurling four-letter words and insults at their audiences, throwing hissy fits when the people aren't laughing and mocking serious topics with thoughtless vitriol. In comparison, "Last Comic Standing" is almost wholesome: no foul language (auditioners are instantly cut), no vicious remarks about abortion or child molesting. These comics can be edgy, but they're also generally funny -- and their genuine desire to make the audience laugh makes each comic endearing, even if we don't root for them all. Despite the use of some established comics (imagine Mandy Patinkin competing on "American Idol"), "Comic" is a good, old-fashioned yuk-fest, where the winning contestant is the biggest purveyor of mirth.

"Dancing With the Stars" (2005)

Truly, this series has re-invigorated America's interest in dance. Unlike most TV competitions, the competitors are already celebrities, so they're not battling for fame -- just a brighter spotlight. Strangely, Hollywood was slow to pick up this BBC concept ("Strictly Come Dancing," as it's known in England), for "Dancing With the Stars" is already native to nearly every continent on Earth, from Chile to Hungary. What these countries don't have is the grislier knock-off, "Skating With Celebrities," where famous people get to learn how to figure skate, and fracture noses and tailbones in the process. Argentines may pull off seductive tangos, but it takes Deborah Gibson to show that pain makes gain (that is, until the third episode, when you're voted off).

"Who Wants to Be a Superhero?" (2006)

It just goes to show that you don't need to be a cover girl, or a comic genius, or even sing on-key. Sometimes you can just be a really terrific nerd. "Who Wants to Be a Superhero?" is a fanboy's dream: to dress up as a crimefighter, pick a cool-ass name like "Nitro G" or "Major Victory" and show off a superheroic prowess by buying lunch or hanging out with a grade-school class. Created and hosted by Stan Lee, the guru of graphic novels, "Superhero" promised its winners a starring role in a Dark Horse comic book, an original Sci Fi Channel movie and a trip to Universal Studios. Thanks to a hearty teenaged response, the studio promised "Superhero" a second season this coming summer.