An Idiot Abroad - Friday November 25, 10PM ET, Discovery

If you've missed the latest collaboration between Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, this is the perfect chance to get on board. Ricky (recently confirmed to return to host the Golden Globes) and Stephen send their sad sack friend Karl Pilkington out to see the world and make fun of him mercilessly as he whines and complains his way around some of the most incredible locales on our planet.

It sounds mean, and it is. But you'll only feel sorry for poor Karl -- who'd be happier at home in his flat with a cup of tea -- for a few minutes. then you'll be laughing too hard to care. This week, Karl takes the legendary Trans-Siberian Express train into China. Fans may remember Karl's feelings about the Great Wall from last season. He was, shall we say, unimpressed.

A host can make or break an entire episode of 'Saturday Night Live.' In fact, the mere presence of some celebrities like Chevy Chase, Milton Berle and Frank Zappa have turned their slice of Saturday late night into the lowest moments of "Must-Miss TV."

However, things are looking good this season. A preliminary list of hosts includes Oscar nominated actress Gabourey Sidibe, former 'SNL'er and '30 Rock' star Tina Fey and 'Golden Girl' actress and new found Internet champion Betty White.

However, some pop culture icons, nay legends, will never get to prove their celebrity power by hosting this comedy powerhouse simply because they never got an invitation, the show wasn't around in their time or they physically couldn't go to the studio. These hosts would have made for the best shows if the laws of time and space went on a week-long coffee break.

(S01E01) I thought I had a good idea of what to expect going into this short series. I caught all of Showtime's Masters of Horror series, though its first season was terribly disappointing when you think of what you'd expect from the directors chosen. Masters of Science Fiction doesn't necessarily focus on the directors, basing the "master" part of the title on, well, anything that makes it a science fiction story. I'm not sure how I feel about that.

ABC certainly doesn't seem to be making the same mistakes as it did early this century when it relied on only one show (Who Wants to be a Millionaire) to carry its entire programming schedule. In other words, it's not counting on the successes of Lost, Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy to carry the the whole network. So, only does it have a full slate of new series to try out on the public, but it is also experimenting with a few concepts that haven't been seen in awhile.

One of these is a new anthology series named Masters of Science Fiction. Created by IDT Entertainment, the same people who gave us Showtime's Masters of Horror, the six episode series will feature adaptations of stories from acclaimed science fiction writers such as Harlan Ellison, Robert Heinlein and Robert Sheckley. Each episode will be introduced by physicist, author, and recurring actor on The Simpsons Stephen Hawking.

A number of actors from current and new ABC series will be cast in this anthology. This includes Anne Heche from the upcoming series Men in Trees, Terry O'Quinn from Lost, and Desperate Housewives' James Denton. Also appearing will be Sam Waterson (Law & Order), Elisabeth Rohm (Angel), Sean Astin (Lord of the Rings), and Macolm McDowell.