No, it's not the oft-suggested rumor that "American Idol" judge Paula Abdul has something other than the show sponsor's drink in her oversized Coca-Cola cup.

Still, that's probably the scenario many viewers believed when Abdul, looking very dazed and confused, began analyzing two songs that dreadlocked contestant Jason Castro had just performed last Tuesday.

Problem was, he only sang one.

The other contestants and judges seemed stunned at first, but the deer-in-the-headlight look soon gave way to giggles and guffaws. Host Ryan Seacrest then tried to brush off the blunder, attributing the mistake to the show's frantic pace. He quickly suggested that Paula simply was probably reading her comments on two contestants, not just Jason.

Nice try, Ryan.

What Paula instead had done was reveal what many people had already assumed - that Randy's rips, Paula's "Perfects!" and Simon's scathing assessments weren't such brilliant off-the-cuff comments, after all. Rather, they were as rehearsed as the performances.

In a nutshell, here's what happened. With "AI" now dwindled to five contestants, each was to perform two songs on the show instead of one. In a one-hour format (and with countless commercials), it was difficult to fit everything in. Ryan announced at the outset that the judges would delay their comments until after each singer gave both performances.

Evidently, things moved along faster than anticipated, and when the first round of singing ended, Ryan went to Randy for a quick review. Randy looked at his notes, and gave mostly one-word comments about each singer. Visibly confused, Paula scrambled to come up with something about Castro, and after gently chiding him on his first performance, started to say something similar about his second song as well. And the secret was out.

Every week, evidently, judges watch the final show rehearsal and take written or mental notes. When the contestants perform live, the judges already have an idea what they're going to say, but can always adjust to comment on strange hairstyles or forgotten lyrics. Last week, though, the judges had previewed performances of two different songs and were prepared to comment on both songs simultaneously. When Ryan inadvertently switched things up, Paula spilled the beans.

Of course, the big reveal won't detract much from the show. Still, it's one more strike against Seacrest, whose tenure on "AI" is rumored to be nearing an end as producers try to freshen the format for next season.

Def Leppard?

Paula's major miscue was not the biggest shocker last Tuesday. That honor came with a flip of the dial to "Dancing with the Stars." It had one of its dancing couples performing in front of a live band - none other than '80s rockers Def Leppard. Not exactly the music you'd expect in a ballroom. At least the group's descent from its stadium days took longer than that of Air Supply, which was playing weddings just a few years after its chart-topping hits ended.

A story untold

It's becoming obvious that when TV writers were walking the picket lines last fall, they weren't contemplating upcoming plot lines. Several hit series seem to have returned without benefit of quality scripts. "Desperate Housewives" tried to dismiss Orson's murder attempt on Mike with a 30-second "I'm sorry" scene that was poorly written and acted. "House" tried to devote screen time to all of its many characters; as a result, the main plot was all but forgotten. And NBC's Thursday night sitcom block lowered the bar, as did Fox's once-promising "Back to You," which debuted as a 21st-century take on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" and now has slid into "According to Jim" territory.

Kudos, though, to "Boston Legal," which cleverly worked its new timeslot into the plot, even gently ribbing ABC for not yet renewing it for another season. It should also be mentioned that "Lost" didn't miss a beat on its return episode, although, to be fair, its writers plotted out details of the show's remaining three seasons long before the strike.

'Sarah' the second

"Boston Legal" is one of about a dozen network shows not yet renewed, although trade papers report that its chances for another season are steadily improving. Also likely to be back are "How I Met Your Mother" (thank you, Britney Spears), "New Adventures of Old Christine" and "The Unit." Fox already ended speculation about its major "on the bubble" series by renewing "Sarah Connor Chronicles" two weeks ago.

If you're a fan of "Women's Murder Club," "Men in Trees" or "Shark," though, better put pen to paper. All three shows appear headed toward cancellation and your nearest DVD outlet.

TV online

We haven't quite been able to update that ancient one-liner from "Blondie," "Don't touch that dial," but we're getting closer. The WB, complete with its signature frog, is returning - to your computer.

Many of the defunct network's better shows will be available online at thewbtv.com beginning in August. Among the reruns available for viewing at your leisure are "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Gilmore Girls" and "Smallville," along with NBC's "Friends."

Terry Hazlett covers TV and radio for the Observer-Reporter. He can be reached at snowballrizzo@aol.com.

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