Ox Notes: December 8, 2009

The Amazing Race ended on Sunday night with a seemingly inevitable win by Meghan & Cheyne. The winners chatted with E! and People, who also interviewed bickering brothers Sam & Dan. Reality Blurred summarized several other interviews with the TAR finalists.

After this lackluster season -- in which the most amusing part of the finale was a network PSA promoting Pap Smears as Christmas gifts -- I'm demoting TAR to DVR-only status. It's a glorified travel show at this point due to formulaic casting, and I no longer feel compelled to watch it live.

Dancing with the Stars pro Derek Hough dropped by the sets of British reality shows Strictly Come Dancing and X Factor.

Andrew McCarthy, star of '80s comedy classics like Mannequin and Weekend at Bernie's, will direct an upcoming episode of Gossip Girl.

On March 21, VH1 debuts its new series, Basketball Wives, which follows the exploits of Jermaine O'Neal's, Antoine Walker's and Eric Williams' significant others.

In January, ESPN picks up the show Sport Science, which explores technological developments in sports. In this clip from the show's Fox Sports Net days, golfer Padraig Harrington tests whether a Happy Gilmore swing really works: