I'll admit, I've never given Nip/Tuck a full run for its money, but I've certainly tried. The leering unpleasantness of it all just doesn't appeal to me. It's odd, because gay creator Ryan Murphy's previous series, Popular, is still one of my favorite series of all time. I guess I'd rather watch Leslie Grossman play identical twins separated at birth and Tammy Lynn Michaels run down the prom queen than see transgender teens have their genitals hacked off by homophobic fathers.

This season the fellas open up shop in Los Angeles, and from what the season preview suggests, the gay stereotypes are there to roll out the red carpet. Granted, all the characters on the show seem pretty despicable, so it's not just the gays that are given the short shrift ... at least it's equal-opportunity misanthropy!

Check out the trailer below for more...

It's being reported that the lead actor for Ryan Murphy's sex-change drama 4 oz has been cast (although it's just "Untitled" for now), and it's none other than Shakespeare in Love himself, Joseph Fiennes. Fiennes (who played gay for Murphy in Running With Scissors) plays the transgender lead (who will undergo transition to female over the series' run) and Blythe Danner and Robert Wagner will play his parents.

Considering Fiennes famously wooed Danner's daughter Gwyneth in his breakout role, it's kind of nice to see her playing his mom here. Given the explosion of transgender characters in recent months (everywhere from the doc series Trans Generation to Ugly Betty to Dirty Sexy Money to Big Shots) it's about time we saw a pilot ordered with a lead transgender character. Now we just have to see if it's good, and if FX picks up the show.

The new fall TV season is upon us which means there's a new line-up of shows to discover. However, only a third of those shows will get a second season and, unfortunately, some will be worthy of a second (or third or fourth). As a fan of "Brilliant but Canceled" shows myself, here are a few shows that included gay characters and deserved a longer run.

My So-Called Life (ABC)

A teen drama that managed to find the fine line between exploring teen angst without letting their characters come off as shallow and self-obsessed, My So-Called Life managed to realistically explore issues teens faced, especially with gay teen Ricky Vasquez, memorably played by Wilson Cruz. Despite a loyal fanbase, the show struggled against Mad About You and a freshman Friends on Thursday nights and ABC canceled the series. Reruns on MTV, however, helped the show find an even larger audience.

Action! (Fox)

A cynical and bitter view of Hollywood, Action focused on Peter Dragon, a selfish and mean-spirited movie producer fighting to maintain his clout after his latest film bombs. Peter heaped abuse on his gay assistant Stuart (played by out actor Jack Plotnick) while repeatedly losing power games against Bobby Gianopolis, a gay mogul whose generous endowment would mesmerize Peter. One of Action's many memorable episodes came when Peter has sex with a closeted star (played by Richard Burgi) in order to convince him to stay closeted. The series also featured Fab Filippo, who'd later play Justin's violinist boyfrined on Queer as Folk, as a drug addicted young star.

• FX has reportedly greenlit a pilot for Ryan Murphy's (Nip/Tuck) transgender series 4 oz., which details a married gynecologist who undergoes a sex change over the planned five-season arc (the character was a sportswriter when last we reported on the project). Murphy will direct and co-produce with Brad Pitt. (t/y Josh!)
  
• Paul Reubens is reportedly joining hype-crazy Pushing Daisies (created by out Bryan Fuller) in a recurring role. Awesome.
• USA Today is running an opinion piece on just how significant the de-wrapping of The Advocate really is.
  
• I know people are all stoked about Vicky Pollard and Daffyd making the trek across the pond for the much-anticipated US version of Little Britain, but it's duplicitous Fat Fighters taskmaster Marjorie Dawes that I'm really excited to see make the trip. Seeing this unimaginably evil woman in the land of the Super-Size is going to be downright horrifying.
• The trailer for gay filmmaker Todd Haynes' Bob Dylan rumination, I'm Not There, is on the web, and despite not being even a tiny bit a Dylan fan, I'm So There. How crazy is it that of all the actors playing Dylan, Cate Blanchett is the closest fit, looks-wise?
  
• Ross "the Intern" Mathews is the cover boy for next month's Instinct, and yet he still speaks in non-gender-specific terms regarding his love life, noting in the press release that his "special someone" has been elusive so far. "It would be nice to be swept off my feet. I want to cut through all the rest: the ones that don't work out." It's fine to not discuss your sexuality on The View or Tyra, but the cover of a gay magazine is a bit different, no? Oh, right ... guess not! UPDATE: a friendly reader noted in the comments that the article itself does refer to Mathews as a gay fella.