Once again, here’s a highly selective critical rundown of shows and headlines that stood out during another packed sweeps week.

Classic Bizarro Jerry: Whetting our appetite for this Sunday’s Curb Your Enthusiasm finale, the penultimate episode set amid the table-read and rehearsal for the faux Seinfeld reunion was a terrific curtain raiser. It lifted the curtain on you-are-there backstage shenanigans that played, like the best of this season, as a mix of caustic Curb farce flavored by Seinfeld nostalgia. Great to see all of the original cast assembled again, playing off the new vibe of Larry David World and reading from a script that sounds pretty terrific (and borrowing some classic Curb storylines like the “carpool hooker”). Just as Jerry sardonically greets Newman at his door (unable to stop from cracking up), so does Larry chafe when Marty Funkhauser shows up uninvited to observe—creeping Jerry out with a truly disgusting joke. Larry and Jason Alexander clash over a borrowed pen, everyone (but Larry) condescends to Cheryl’s presence on set, and Michael Richards sends up a notorious tabloid incident from his past as he goes on a racial rant in public against Leon that’s captured by onlookers’ phone cameras. (Leon has visited him under hilarious false pretenses, trying to pass as a Jewish survivor of the fictional Groat’s Disease, but looking more like Farrakhan.) Meanwhile, Larry’s uneasy text-relationship with a persistent 9-year-old fan (who has an embarrassing rash) turns into a pedophile joke as his alarmed dermatologist calls the cops as the episode ends. Can’t wait to see Sunday’s finale.

”O” No!: The era won’t actually end until September 2011, but Oprah Winfrey set off industry shock waves and ruined lots of people’s early Thanksgivings upon announcing she’s stepping away from her daily syndicated The Oprah Winfrey Show when her contract runs out. She won’t vanish from TV, focusing her energies on her new OWN cable network, which launches earlier in 2011 and on which she will no doubt have a very visible presence. (Although she insists that she won’t be transferring the daytime show to the new venue.) But almost instantly, we couldn’t help imagining what our TV world will be like without that daily anchor in the late afternoon, from which this Earth mother and cultural lightning rod has wielded her considerable influence for more than two decades to shape tastes in reading, lifestyle and, more recently, politics. With another mighty “O”—Barack Obama—in the White House, maybe there is no better time for her to pursue a new chapter on cable in her remarkable media career. It was a remarkable week for Winfrey, earning a huge ratings spike on Monday for her long-anticipated one-on-one with Sarah Palin, who dubbed Oprah “the queen of talk shows” when asked about her own aspirations in the field. No one in their right mind disputes that title.

Cult Alert: It was the news every Lost fan has breathlessly been awaiting: The final season of the groundbreaking brain-teaser Lost has been scheduled, and will air on a new night: Tuesdays, at 9/8c, starting with a three-hour event on Feb. 2—a nicely symbolic Groundhog’s Day kickoff for a show that knows its way around time paradoxes. For those wondering how it will fare against the night’s super-powered competition, including CBS’s top-rated NCIS block and Fox’s American Idol juggernaut, it’s worth pointing out that the final season was never going to be about ratings or growing the show’s cult following (which has shrunk considerably from when the show first exploded as a pop-culture phenom). There’s also buzz that when V returns from its hiatus—the cliffhanger is already upon us next week—it could go behind Lost, which would make for a punchy palate-cleanser after an hour of heady metaphysical mind games. The good news here is that Tuesdays all of a sudden will become a lot more interesting in the new year.

More reason to look forward to 2010: NBC’s confirmation that the delightful spy spoof Chuck is also on its way back, with a 19-episode season kicking off with back-to-back episodes Sunday, Jan. 10 before settling in to its former slot of Mondays at 8/7c. This show is one of the few joys on NBC’s dismal schedule, and while I’m not expecting miracles in the ratings, the comedic thrills of a newly empowered Chuck alongside his handlers Sarah and Casey will give us a splendid jolt of polished entertainment to get us through the long winter.

Far Out: More cult-TV fun, this time on DVD. The release of J.J. Abrams’ spectacular Star Trek movie got all the buzz this week, but the coolest news for sci-fi cultists? The release of the complete series of Farscape in a 25-disc set. Brings back such fond memories of the sexy, whimsical and impassioned space romp that first showed that Sci Fi (now Syfy) could be serious about original programming. I’ve also got a personal connection to this one. In the extras to the fourth-season set, you can see executive producer David Kemper emotionally reading from my online tribute to the show as production is abruptly and unexpectedly halted for good at the end of the fourth season. (A miniseries wrap-up, The Peacekeeper Wars, was yet to come, but unfortunately is not included in this otherwise “complete” set.)

Apocalpyse Now: We knew it wouldn’t be pretty, but even so, Supernatural brought its recent whimsical streak to a tragically dark halt with its midseason cliffhanger, a showdown between the Winchesters and the devil-on-Earth Lucifer, who’s itching to get inside Sam, his destined vessel. (But he’s putting it off for another six months, because that’s how long it will be before the season finale. Sometimes a TV show is just a TV show.) Casualties in this war: mother-daughter demon fighters Ellen and Jo (and they will be missed), who sacrifice themselves after Jo is mortally wounded by invisible hell-hounds. “Don’t miss,” Ellen warns Dean as he and Sam go on their mission with the Colt (acquired from a dapper demon named Crowley, who calls the brothers “the Hardy Boys”). As the women go boom with their improvised bomb to take out the hounds from hell, breaking the boys’ hearts (especially Dean’s, who gave Jo a final kiss), the brothers head to their rendezvous with the devil—and with death. Make that Death, capital D. The Big Daddy Reaper, as Bobby calls him, noting “the last time they hauled him up Noah was building a boat.” With Castiel imprisoned in a ring of fire, taunted by Meg (who has no idea the demon spawn will follow the humans on Lucifer’s disposal list), the brothers find Lucifer on the brink of a death pit, waiting for midnight to unleash the Angel of Death itself, the Pale Rider in the flesh. The moment arrives. Dean shoots. Dean does not miss. Down goes Lucifer, who goes “Owwww.” (Even at its darkest, Supernatural can make you smile.) The Colt can’t kill Lucifer after all, and that is bad news. After Lucifer lays out the brother-vs-brother allegory of his relationship with the archangel Michael, he finishes his ritual: “Oh, hello, Death.” And we end with the boys back at Bobby’s, who burns the group photo as we pay homage to those kick-ass women who gave their all for the cause. It’s going to be a long wait until Jan. 21, when the story resumes.

Look Who’s Watching: Did anyone else notice the similarity between the silent Reapers, lurking around Carthage in Supernatural, and the omnipresent Observers who made for a most excellent episode of Fringe? When Castiel expositioned, They only gather like this at times of great catastrophe,” it was eerily similar to the Fringe reveal that the Observers “show up at important moments of human history,” making it all the more ominous that they’ve been sighted 26 times in the past three months alone. The episode introduced to a moody Observer named August, who kidnapped a young woman he been following since she survived the San Francisco Earthquake as a child. “She crossed my mind somehow,” he later muses, grappling with this thing the humans call “feelings.” Such a haunting episode, as August puzzles: “Why I do see that she is important?” He’s unaware it’s that crazy little thing called love. The other Observers enlist a hit man to correct the natural order of things—the girl August took was destined to die in a plane crash—but August dies instead, which makes the girl suddenly important, because “she is responsible for the death of one of us.” A bit of circular logic there, but a memorable and affecting episode. And tell me you didn’t get chills when the Observer, watching Olivia in a rare moment of glee with her niece on a symbolic roller-coaster, intones, “Look how happy she is. It’s a shame things are about to get so hard for her.” Poor Olivia. Lucky us.

Reality Check: The force of nature that is Russell continues to blow through Survivor: Samoa. Armed with a clue from reward challenge, eluding his pursuers in his hunt for his third (!) immunity idol, Russell scores again. He really is the Picasso of this game. Once again, he orchestrates a tribal council that even jaded Jeff Probst finds fascinating. A tie vote (between Natalie and Laura) goes to a second round, and Russell has convinced rocket scientist John to flip to the Foa Foa side, ousting a stunned Laura. Erik on the jury spoke for all of us when he muttered with glee: “Man, this is good (bleep).” … If there was any doubt that talent has little to do with Dancing With the Stars’ results, Joanna Krupa getting bounced after her gorgeous Vienna Waltz and sizzling salsa should prove it. Donny Osmond and the admirably game Kelly Osbourne are fan favorites, but Mya’s the front-runner for next week’s finals. … The Top Chef final four (Kevin, the Voltaggio brothers and Jennifer) was pretty much what everyone had expected, but I was bummed that no one aced the high-falutin’ Bocuse D’Or challenge, and Kevin got the prize money for playing it safe. I doubt that will apply for the next round. … From the anticlimax department: Historically dull seasons of America’s Next Top Model and Project Runway conclude with the christening of front-runners Nicole and Irina. (No wonder Runway also-ran Carol Hannah spent much of that finale in upchuck mode. They should have just awarded Irina the prize weeks ago and put this misbegotten LA season out of its misery.)

Saturday Night Deadly: You could get whiplash from the highs and lows of Saturday Night Live. Just one week after Taylor Swift delivered a knockout guest visit with some truly fun sketches, Mad Men glamour girl January Jones bombed in a series of embarrassingly atrocious gags (the worst a collection of fart jokes in Grace Kelly Rear Window drag). Her material was awful, but even so, her inability to stay in character and a tendency to crack up mid-sketch—while the audience sat in stone-cold silence—made this one of the most awkward outings ever. Too bad, because Jon Hamm hit a home run on the show last season. Some people just aren’t cut out for this. (We knew she was in trouble when she was caught mouthing “Which camera?” in her first sketch.) Still, give the girl an Emmy nomination for her exceptional work as Betty Draper this year.

The Pregnant Pause: Enough with the stupid baby drama. Lynette keeps her pregnancy from Carlos and Gaby on Desperate Housewives, and as payback, he threatens to ship her to Miami. She deserves it. Two weeks in on the reveal that Rebecca is pregnant on Brothers & Sisters, and she still hasn’t told future groom Justin, because he’s too busy studying. On the same show, Scottie and Kevin have ridiculous snit fits with each other every time the issue of their surrogate parenting comes up. And on Grey’s Anatomy, Dr. Sloan barely has time to digest the fact he has a grown daughter, who shows up unannounced, then she announces she’s pregnant with nowhere to go. (Lexie isn’t the only one put off by this development.) It’s enough to make you empathize with Modern Family guest star Elizabeth Banks, as the party girl who so resents her gay buddies’ newly adopted baby she mutters drunken threats about darling Lily. “Show me the pictures of Yoko,” she sulks about the tyke who broke up her little group.

All things considered, Finn singing “I’ll Stand By You” to a sonogram on Glee, and his reveal to Quinn’s uptight parents that their little girl is pregnant—done to the tune of “You’ve Having My Baby”—almost seems realistic. (The scene where Finn brings heartbroken Quinn home to his own more accepting mother was one of Glee’s more authentically touching moments to date.) And the best pregnancy reveal of the week? New Christine (Emily Rutherferd) surprising ex-fiance Richard with the news on The New Adventures of Old Christine, but not before she tells off his crazy date (Jennifer Grey, real-life wife of Clark Gregg). “Is it mine?” he says, getting a well-deserved slap from both Christines.

Line of Duty: [Friday Night Lights SPOILER ALERT Ahead] Kudos to Terry Kinney as The Mentalist’s Sam Bosco, who got a hero’s exit in a sensationally intense episode after being shot multiple times by his secretary, a zombie-puppet of the murderous Red John. This FBI guy, at first an adversary than an ally of Patrick Jane (and who carried a torch for Teresa Lisbon to the end), was a strong addition to this season, and his shocking demise had real impact, especially on Jane (Simon Baker’s best work this season). … [FNL SPOILER ALERT] On Friday Night Lights, more heartache for the Saracen family, as Matt returns home from a hunting trip with Riggins (who took away hapless Matt’s gun) and finds a tearful Julie bearing the news that his dad was killed in Iraq. Art, life, love, duty: Nothing comes easy for this boy. I imagine this tragedy sets up his impending departure from Dillon. If ever someone needed to get out in the world, it’s Matt.

Urinetown Revisited: Unhappiest trend of the week: an obsession with pee. An excruciating South Park takes the boys to a water park where everyone pees in the pool, causing an environmental catastrophe (and yellow tidal wave) that a racist Cartman somehow connects to the Mayans’ 2010 prophecies. Before they’re rescued, a fastidious Kyle is forced to drink a jar of urine. … Not much higher on the evolutionary scale, a ridiculous 30 Rock subplot finds Liz plotting to get the roomier upstairs apartment away from her gay hipster cop neighbor (Nate Corddry). When all else fails, she borrows Frank’s “sun tea” trick of peeing into an open container, in this case a large flower vase in the living room. (Frank uses his jars of waste to water a 30 Rock window garden.) It’s about as funny as it sounds.

Faces to Watch Talk about range. This season’s go-to chameleon is Sarah Drew (once a regular on Everwood), who popped up on Glee as the psycho stalker student Suzy Pepper. “Trust me. I’m a cautionary tale,” she tells obsessive Rachel. (Trust me, we know.) Hard to believe this is the same person who played the Mercy West resident who got fired on Grey’s Anatomy and Sal’s unhappy wife on Mad Men. … It was fun to find a too-rarely-seen character actress, Vicki Lewis (once a NewsRadio scene-stealer), showing up on two comedies this week: on Curb Your Enthusiasm (as the mom of Larry’s young text-pal) and The Middle (as a put-upon social worker). … Modern Family doesn’t need to lean on stunt-casting to win our hearts, but Edward Norton was a scream as Spandau Ballet’s pathetic bass player/backup singer Izzy LaFontaine, hired by lousy gift-giver Claire to play “their song” (it wasn’t) for Phil as an anniversary surprise. Loved Norton’s dismay when he realizes Phil isn’t an authentic “fan-dau."

The Honor Roll: Loved Marge Simpson’s “Snuggle Dice,” intended to seduce a tuckered-out Homey on The Simpsons. Unfortunately, when rolled, the dice spell out mismatched directions like, “Lick/Eyes,” “Spank/Hair,” “Whisper Into/A--” … Sarah Palin’s Going Rogue memoir goes rogue in a 24-style sketch on Jimmy Fallon’s late-night show, as a self-propelled book (we see its POV) escapes its handlers and races to a hotel room, where it sheds its book jacket and gets busy in bed with another best-seller, New Moon. A hoot. … On The Good Wife, we learn that Peter Florrick (Chris Noth) has hired a pretty new “reputation handler.” (Alicia is not amused.) Even so, he’s denied bail when the opposition plays dirty. … … Liz Lemon cracks a joke on 30 Rock about “the stupid green peacock in the corner of the screen,” a staple of NBC’s periodic “green weeks.” Kenneth looks askance at the green bird, as do we.

The Dishonor Roll: The Amazing Race pixillates the gay brothers’ crotches during the Amazing Race mud-volleyball challenge, somehow managing to call even more attention to their underwear-cloaked privates. … Heather Locklear arrives with a thud on Melrose Place, more ice queen than hot to trot. For my full review, go here.

They Said It: “I don’t know why I find his stupidity charming. I mean, he’s cheating off a girl who thinks the square root of 4 is rainbows.”—Kurt crushing on Finn in a Glee voiceover. … “I like Peggy.”—Fred Armisen during January Jones’ Mad Men-themed SNL monologue. (Fred being Elisabeth Moss’ husband.) … “When the king dies, nobody shows up to see the court jester.”—Wanda Sykes commenting on the Jackson brothers’ new A&E reality show during her Wanda Sykes Show roundtable. … “Are you a candelabra?”—Matt on The Amazing Race, unfortunately anthropomorphizing a clue on his way to being ejected with dad Gary. … “Where is the off button on this moron?”—A congressman on the Dunder-Mifflin board getting his fill of Michael Scott on The Office. Funny, I say that a lot watching this show, especially when they venture outside the actual office. … “I can’t not think of things I want.”—Phil on Modern Family imagining the gifts he’d like to get, a hilarious list that includes robot dog, night-vision goggles and speakers that look like rocks. If he ever grows up, he’ll be dangerous.

So what jumped out for you this week, good or bad? Sound off in the comments below. Finally, because of the holiday, there won’t be a Week in Review next Friday (though I will still be reviewing TV during the week). Happy Thanksgiving!