“Top Chef”
Wednesday 10pm, Bravo
I skipped Season 1 of this chef-based reality show, but caught up during one of Bravo’s countless marathons. It’s not nearly as engaging as its fashion-minded sibling, “Project Runway,”
but it’ll do. My main issue is that it’s tough for the audience to get a real sense of the contestants’ work. If a crappy dress comes down the runway, you can form a pretty clear opinion. If a chef serves a dish, you can maybe decide whether it looks good. For the rest you have to take the judges’ words for it. Anyway, of Season 2’s crop, Sam and Cliff are clearly destined for Final 2, with the third spot up for grabs between intense Ilan, sourpuss Elia, vampiric whackjob Marcel, or stealth bitch Betty. How Bluto clone Michael has remained in the competition this far, I have no idea. The man served a Snickers bar with a Cheeto sticking out of it. I’m not kidding!
“Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”
Friday 8pm, CBS
Undoubtedly the greatest holiday movie ever made. There’s so much to love about “Rudolph”: the Island of Misfit Toys; Burl Ives as the Snowman narrator; pioneering gay icon Hermey the Elf. (He wants to be a dentist, not make toys like everyone else—how much more coded can you get?) The whole thing still stands up 42 years later, especially when you consider the Christmas-themed dreck currently being pumped into theaters. Instead of carting your kids to see Deck the Halls or Santa Clause 3, save a fortune and park their butts in front of this gem. (Just stand by to comfort during the Abominable Snow Monster scenes; those always scared the tinsel out of me.)
“Wedding Wars”
Monday 9pm, A&E
The John Stamos renaissance continues! After a couple stumbles with the caper drama “Thieves” and sitcom “Jake in Progress,” he’s factoring largely into “E.R.”’s surprising resurgence, has a role in the upcoming A Raisin in the Sun remake, and stars in this made-for-TV movie about gay marriage. Stamos plays a gay man and wedding planner who goes on strike after his politico brother writes a speech against gay marriage. This eventually turns into a nationwide crusade for equal rights, while on the home front the brother’s own wedding is threatened. …O.K., so maybe the concept is a little silly. But its heart is in the right place, and Stamos is getting work. Everybody wins!