jonandkateplus8

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus because he knows exactly what every self-respecting television watcher wants for Christmas: a finalized Jon and Kate Gosselin divorce.

Despite claims from attorneys that the divorce wouldn't be final until next month, court records show that the reality show couple's papers officially went through on Friday.

So want to know who got the house and who got the kids? Here's an update for ya: WHO CARES?!? The couple have no mind-grating show, no equally mind-grating presence on so-called news shows and now no quadruply mind-grating marriage to tempt the press with at every corner. It's finally over ... right?

It's been said it would happen over and over and over and over again, but it finally looks like the merciful end is finally near.

An attorney for Jon Gosselin says his client's divorce could be final by as early as next month.

That giant breeze that just blew through your window wasn't the cold winter Christmas weather. It was the collective sigh of relief of an entire country.

As Barbara Walters prepares to show viewers her annual list of the 10 Most Fascinating People of the Year (pictured, featuring Lady Gaga and Walters) in a special airing tonight, we realized that TV gives far too much airtime to people at the other end of the spectrum. With that thought, here are the year's 10 least fascinating people on TV. Let's all try to make it a New Year's resolution that we won't be talking about these people's overexposure again a year from now.

If you've ever watched The Soup or Community, you know what a (hot) genius Joel McHale is. But while his scruffy mug tends to get all of the credit for the funny that The Soup constantly brings, I've got to give it up for the video editors on staff for this one.

Now that Jon and Kate is off the air, TLC is scrambling to figure out what mildly offensive reality concept it's going to use to win over America once again. Instead of coming up with an entirely new concept (because, let's face it: ideas are hard), The Soup posits that TLC is just going to combine all of their already successful shows into one.

TLC has decided to build their success on little people, tattoos, pageant kids, cake shows and folks who have way too many babies, so let's just cut the crap and give the people what they want. In this case, the people want Fertile Little Tattooed Pageant Parents Who Enjoy Baking.

Call it a sign of a successful show or the end of an unmitigated disaster, but the reign of Jon & Kate is officially over and joy has replaced tyranny in the universe.

In short, TLC's newest reality hit Cake Boss has officially taken over the coveted 9 p.m. slot on Mondays vacated by Satan's favorite show, Jon & Kate Plus 8.

For those of you who have not left your cave in the last month, Jon & Kate officially left the airwaves last Monday thereby stitching the hole that its pure evilness created in the annals of time and space and staving off the unholy apocalypse. And in case your wondering, no, I never liked the show.

Marking an emotional end to a tabloid-fueled series, 'Jon and Kate Plus 8' garnered 4.3 million viewers for the series finale. The episode aired this past Monday night on TLC. The finale showed a stark drop from ratings garnered for TLC during its season premiere episode, according to the New York Times.

The fifth and final season of 'Jon and Kate Plus 8' started off with a bang, given the news that Jon and Kate Gosselin had commenced divorce proceedings. The premiere broke records for TLC with 9.8 million viewers, giving the network its best ratings night ever.

Last night was the series finale of Jon and Kate Plus 8 and the show ended as if it was any season finale. The family went on their two last adventures while Kate and Jon narrated how they will be good parents. TLC tried their best to put Jon in a negative light, but Jon's media training forced him to make diplomatic statements.

With the divorce, Jon and Kate Plus 8 was cut short. The dynamic between the parents was something to watch, but the real focus was eight children learning about the world and each other in the process. Each started gaining true personalities and by the end, I finally was able to distinguish between Alexis and Leah.

The Beginning of the End

The 'Jon and Kate Plus 8' series finale opens with a shot of an error-riddled sign that Jon's legal team posted outside the entrance of their home: "Notice: No film crew or production staff from TLC is permitted on this property under penelty [sic] of trespass. Johnathon Gosselin [sic]"

The spelling errors are something you might expect from one of The Gosselin's 9-year-old twins, Cara and Mady, but by now we know it's the work of Jon Gosselin, putting an end to the TLC show that put him on the map. The Gosselins' struggles to raise their brood of twins and sextuplets, and their reaction to the dissolution of their marriage, has been a dramatic ride that the world has followed both on- and off-camera, but now the saga of Jon and Kate Gosselin is finally coming to a close ... in this particular incarnation, anyway.

What started off as one of the sweetest shows on television ended up being one of the biggest tabloid circuses of all time.
In light of tonight's series finale of 'Jon and Kate Plus Eight' on TLC, we look back fondly on the show's best moments.

Watch memorable moments from 'Jon and Kate Plus 8,' after the jump ...

'Jon & Kate Plus 8' (9PM, TLC) series finale
While the family's trips to a dairy farm and a firehouse might have seemed charming when the show first began, the tabloid magnets that Mister and Missus Gosselin have since become preclude us from finding anything to enjoy about the episode -- save for the fact that (phew!) it signals the end. The end of the constant pics of the party Hardy-ing Christian Audigier fan Jon in our weekly mags? Probably not, but we at least now we have hope. Now we have hope ...

Right now, I'm watching the Hayes family of TLC's Table for 12 chat with Regis and Kelly. It's not the first time we've seen them lately; since the second season of their show premiered, they've been all over the talk landscape.

We're definitely seeing them a lot more than when the show's first season debuted; in fact, TLC seemed to premiere the story of the Hayeses, who have two sets of twins and a set of sextuplets, on the QT last March. The relatively soft launch was a bit of a mystery to me, given the network's love of multiples. I mean, these guys had Jon and Kate beat by a mile, right?

But now that I look back at it, there were two things keeping TLC from really pushing the Hayes family back then: 1) Betty and Eric Hayes actually liked each other (read: they're boringly happy) and 2) Jon and Kate were still a couple. Now that J&K have exploded into a toxic tabloid mess, TLC needed someone to promote, and the Hayes' relative happiness seemed to be the perfect antidote.

In this clip from her interview with Natalie Morales on the TLC special 'Kate: Her Story,' an emotional Kate Gosselin relates a story of sadness, regret and isolation as she discusses her very public divorce from Jon Gosselin.

Kate discussed the emotional toll that the divorce has taken upon her during the special which aired Monday night in place of 'Jon & Kate Plus 8.' "I don't let out how hard it is," she says. "I'm awake in the middle of the night thinking, 'Am I making the best decision?' It's very lonely. I've gone through a lot of tough times, but never alone."

Watch the video after the jump.

Who says that justice is a forgotten concept that only exists as a hope and no longer as an important facet of a fully functional society?

Jon Gosselin is about to have his day in court. Take that, evil!

TLC is suing for the former star of Jon & Kate Plus 8 for breach of contract, accusing accused him of violating an exclusivity and moral clause in his contract. I was shocked. Reality shows have morals? Of course it makes sense that the only morals involved in reality shows would have to be enforced by a contract.

Jon and Kate Gosselin are breaking up -- again.

Radar Online reports exclusively that 'Jon & Kate Plus 8' will end in mid to late November, according to sources outside TLC. So far, the network has yet to comment.

In September, the network announced that the show would continue with Kate only, under the new title 'Kate Plus 8.' The show was supposed to premiere on Nov. 2, until Jon filed a cease-and-desist order, forcing TLC to halt production.