Too many cooks seasoning Bravo’s ‘Top Chef’ kitchen

There are too many cooks in the kitchen once again on Bravo with the start of season two of “Top Chef.”

As with any new reality season, the cast of characters has changed, but the idea behind the show is the same and so is my opinion of it.

The contestants are what make this one worth watching (if there’s nothing else on).

I can’t help it. I like food, I like to cook, but I just can’t seem to wrap my taste buds around this one no matter how hard I try.

Celebrity chef Tom Colicchio and Gail Simmons of Food & Wine magazine return this season as judges, but are joined by a new host. Padma Lakshmi, actress and writer, is the author of “Easy Exotic.” She wrote the cookbook for Miramax Books and won the International Versailles Event for best cookbook by a first-time writer. The book is a low-calorie, low-fat ethnic cookbook.

Lakshmi’s diverse television work includes “Padma’s Passport” on The Food Network, and in April she will appear in the ABC mini-series “The Ten Commandments.”

Season two of “Top Chef” premieres on Bravo at 11 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 18, after the finale of “Project Runway.”

I haven’t seen any preview tapes, but Logo, the ad-supported MTV Network targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender viewers, has picked up the reality series “Jacob & Joshua: Nemesis Rising.”

The show follows Curb Records recording artists Jacob and Joshua Miller. The identical twin brothers from Montana make up the pop-rock group Nemesis, and the show records their attempt to survive in the music industry as they come out publicly about their sexual orientation.

I’m waiting for my copy in the mail, so be sure to read for more details in the coming weeks.

And perhaps this isn’t considered reality television, but Spike TV deserves credit for the Ultimate Fighting Championship event aired last Tuesday.

With viewers, fans and even the fighters disappointed at the outcome of the July pay-per-view fight between Tito Ortiz and Ken Shamrock, Spike and the UFC decided to give viewers what they wanted – free of charge.

In the July fight, the referee called the bout just more than a minute into the fight. Fighting legend Shamrock was disturbed that the fight was stopped and wanted to keep going.

Ortiz agreed and the two met again Tuesday to settle the score. Ortiz once again came out on top, but Shamrock agreed it was fair and graciously left the octagon, reportedly for the last time.

Spike showed that television truly is about the viewers and did the right thing. Thank you, Spike, UFC, Ortiz, and Shamrock for giving us what we wanted.