If you’re a “Glee” fan and you were going through withdrawal this week, take heart. Next week’s episode “Wheels” is about as good as it gets. Artie (Kevin McHale, the kid in the wheelchair) feels left out of the group because he has to travel separately to sectionals. The team, however, decides to see what it’s like in his wheels. They each spend three hours a day in a chair and, sure enough, get a sense of his world. As the topper, they perform “Proud Mary” in the chairs and the number more than rolls on the river.
Also, Kurt (Chris Colfer) and Rachel (Lea Michele) are determined to sing “Defying Gravity” from “Wicked.” They have a diva-off and, yup, they’re both good.
And then? You also get some insight into the family life of Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch). She softens considerably and when you see why you’ll never look at her the same way again.
The episode, written by producer Ryan Murphy, is so good it should be must-see-TV in high schools.
So, set the DVR, next week, you gotta get your “Gleek” on. It’s that good.

Bruce Miller previews “The Men Who Stare at Goats,” “Fourth Kind,” “The Box” and “A Christmas Carol” in this week’s Movies in a Minute.

Michael Irvin and Mark Dacascos are toast, which means we’re getting down to the nitty gritty. That’s good because it’s hard to watch them play those reindeer games with the lights while the dancers pretend to look nervous. I’m betting they let them know in advance who’s leaving.
Aaron Carter was in the bottom three and didn’t deserve to be. Still, he has an attitude that doesn’t wear well. He also has a couple of scars (one on his nose bridge, the other on his lip) that suggests he got in some kind of knife fight (ooooh, dangerous). He can dance all right, but he just needs to quit with the faux humility.
Mya could be challenged by Carter, Donny Osmond or Joanna Krupa. Kelly Osbourne seems the most likely to go next. Osmond could stumble, too, but you can see he just wants to finish higher than his sister.

“Show business icon Donny Osmond.”
What in the world does that mean? When Tom Bergeron introduced Osmond with that rather lofty title Monday night, I wondered if “Flashforward” had caused me to miss something.
I think it’s just a writer’s way of saying, “We don’t have anyone who’s working on anything these days.”
That said, the ICON didn’t do badly, but neither did most of the participants. Monday night, it looked like the Iron Chef guy and Michael Irvin would be cut. Kelly Osbourne wasn’t as great as the judges said, but she seems to have enough fans to keep her in a few more weeks.
Mark Dacascos, the Iron Chef guy, wasn’t dreadful but he didn’t have much rehearsal with his fill-in partner, causing him to come up short. Irvin played the “coach” card and Aaron Carter tried to soften his reputation as the show’s dink.
Still, all of the dancers were pretty fun to watch in their group numbers. They had plenty of drama and some fairly sweet moves.
Derek Hough could be headed for a second Disco Ball trophy, considering his partner Joanna Krupa knows how to take risks. Mya pulled back a bit, hurting her chances for a hands-down win and the judges were so outrageous someone should tell them they’re not the show’s stars, no matter how lame the “real” stars are.
Len Goodman, the cranky judge, had the night’s best line: “I was tempted to dust off me 10 paddle.” If you think about it, it could have hidden meaning.
Best dancers Monday night: Joanna and Derek.
Going home: Michael and Mark.
Biggest show business icon: Wasn’t La Toya Jackson in the audience? (Seriously, what is she doing there week after week? Do we have to see her next spring?)

The March of Dimes held its sixth annual Signature Chefs Auction Thursday night and the food was incredible. Eight restaurants/catering firms offered a range of selections. My plate was heaping so I latched on to the perfect buffet line technique — eat while visiting the stations.
My favorite entree? An au gratin potato dish that included sweet potatoes, cheese, regular potatoes, more cheese and some crumbly mixture (note my culinary description) that told you immediately they were packed with calories. They were created by Distinctive Gourmet and, if Chef Al Clark will share the recipe, I’ll pass it along. Trust me, they were to die for.
Gourmet A Go-Go impressed with baby back ribs, Minerva’s wowed with tiramisu, Briar Cliff University offered up stuffed dates (no, really, they were amazing), Raspberry’s had to-die-for desserts, Bev’s served up a smokin’ Cajun Bar B Que and Luciano’s stood out with Penne Russo, a signature dish.
Those, mind you, were just MY faves. Throw in dozens of other main dishes, appetizers and desserts and you’ll understand why I (and several others) waddled out of the Convention Center.
The People’s Choice Award? That went to Distinctive Gourmet, which also had a pretty nifty stage setting.
More important? The event benefited the March of Dimes.
Great food. An even better cause.
You shoulda been there.

Weigh-in: One more pound lost.
Workout: One more friend gained.
Fitting old pants: Priceless.

We’re heading toward the end of the “Desperate Measures” program and I’m starting to see results. I know this because a woman stopped me at Hy Vee and said she could see my cheekbones. I didn’t have the heart to ask her which cheeks. I also felt guilty enough to avoid the candy aisle and head over to, gulp, bananaland.
I know the next weeks are going to be difficult. My kitchen remodeling project is almost done and I’m going to start filling my refrigerator with food. Interestingly, food that’s good for you needs refrigeration. Food I love can sit out in bags for months. So, I’m going to try and find food that needs refrigeration. I have an M&M drawer in the new kitchen (no kidding — it was the first thing I wanted) and now I’ve got to think of alternatives for a drawer with a glass front that was designed to hold candy. Don’t even suggest a vegetable drawer.
My fellow “DMers” are making great strides. They look thinner, they complete the exercises and they actually appear to be having fun. Interestingly, I’m still the big whiner. I didn’t lose that. But I did realize if you ask a trainer to “show” you how to do an exercise, you eat up time that could have been spent doing the exercise yourself.
I also learned:
1. I still can’t do situps with my arms crossed.
2. I could have the beginnings of buns of steel. I’m feeling plenty of pain in my “glutes” and I actually think my big butt is smaller than it once was. (I once told that to my sister and she said, “Look behind you. It’s still there.”)
3. There are machines that I swear no one but Desperate Measures people use. There’s one that makes you move like a horse and two that flex muscles I don’t think should be flexed. There’s also one that’s ideal for football players but I never see football players on it.
4. Do people who exercise hurt all the time? If that’s the case, I am now a person who exercises.
5. I don’t think I could have been loyal to the program without the bonding that comes from being with other people in the same situation.

During our last group outing, a Y official (and I’m not naming names, Abigayle) shot footage of us working out. If this turns up somewhere and it’s not favorable to me, just know I was unable to hear the trainers’ commands. If I do look like I know what I’m doing, consider it good editing. I wanted final cut (like Tom Cruise gets) but no one was buying.

Next week: The final weigh-in. OMG.

Bruce Miller reviews this week’s new films.

I defy you to sit still during the Michael Jackson documentary “This is It.” The music is so infectious, so stirring you’ll want to dance along with the King of Pop.
While it isn’t a polished example of what that last concert might have been, it is pretty good — particularly since Kenny Ortega, the show’s director, pulled out so many visual gems you’ll wonder if any artist could top it.
In addition to 3-D movie segments, the concert was going to feature so many of MJ’s hits it would have had to last a good two or three hours. The show required plenty of dancing and lots of singing. And that’s where the questions begin.
Had he lived, would Jackson have been up to that kind of grueling pace? In the film he looks incredibly skinny. At one point (in a goofy jacket with big shoulder pads), he resembles Jack Skellington. He doesn’t seem fragile. He just looks it.
He’s kind of a diva, too, demanding musicians and lighting artists to come in exactly when he wants them.
Because “This is It” is such a crazy quilt of rehearsals, it’s valid to wonder if he ever got through an entire run of the show without stopping.
The man’s abilities, though, are clearly on display. Deny him any props and you’re negating pop history. He had the goods — the voice, the songwriting ability, the dancing — to earn any artist’s respect.
Healthy? He appeared to be from these scenes. Had the concerts in London gone on, he would have been back at the top of his game and people would be awaiting a different documentary — one chronicling his triumph.
This brings tears — and joy. The joy? That someone managed to capture what might have been.
It’s a wonderful film — one that easily could win the year’s Best Documentary prize.

Melissa Joan Hart and Louie Vito are goners. They should have taken Michael Irvin, too.
Attempting to inject a little drama in the loser rehash show, producers had a dance-off AND a lot of drastic introductions. But really, bad is bad. Melissa stumbled. Louie frequently stopped and Michael — who will live to dance another day — ain’t no Emmitt Smith.
Taylor Swift sang, too, but this wasn’t much different than the appearance she (and others) make on the Friday edition of the “Today” show.
Take away the drama — the fake drama — and this is just a rerun.
My advice: Tune in the last five minutes of the “results” show and you’ll be just fine.
Louie should have been doing those backflips weeks ago.

A dance marathon? It’s a good thing — and the folks at “Dancing with the Stars” should think about doing more of them, particularly since they show just how bad folks like Michael Irvin really are.
Since this is a double-elimination week, it’s almost certain he’ll go home. Who else? Well, Louie Vito is vulnerable, but Melissa Joan Hart is my guess. She’s clunky.
Other observations:
1. What’s La Toya Jackson doing in the audience? Michael’s big week was LAST week. Is she angling to get on the next edition of “Stars”?
2. Aaron Carter is a little, um, full of himself. He’s pulling tricks we haven’t seen since Susan Lucci. A leopard doesn’t change its spots. He’s still a jerk.
3. Donny Osmond has to tone it down. He has been around Marie too long and now he thinks he has to do drama. Worse yet? He tries to act like he and Kym are Bobby and Cissy. Not.
4. Mya is coasting.
5. Kelly Osbourne acts like “Stars” is the only thing keeping her from rehab. She shouldn’t be so fragile. And that bit on the trapeze? Stupid.
6. Derek Hough needs to be the center of attention at all times. Even the flu couldn’t tone him down.
7. How many ads for “V” can they put on?
8. Mambo? You bet. The final dance was superb.
9. Best line: “The last refuge of the untalented are gimmicks and props.” Thanks Len Goodman, we couldn’t have said it better.
10. As bad as he is, Louie can do a mean backflip.