AfterElton Hot 100 vet David Beckham plays peek-a-boo at a Seoul press conference

In a continued effort to bring you all that is important in the world of gay entertainment and ensure that you are being spoon-fed images of gorgeous, commoditized manflesh, we present the newly-minted AfterElton Briefs. Following the usual assortment of carefully-selected news items, interested readers can find a refreshing pic of a hot man in underwear after the jump. Yes, we're serious.

• Why did no one tell me that there was a new episode of Planet Unicorn?! In fine PU form, it's a Christmas episode ... in February. This is your brain on drugs, kids.

• This fella is liveblogging (kinda) the Pink Flight to Sydney Mardi Gras. The updates stopped when he got on the plane, so either he couldn't get online or he had one too many pink martinis and blacked out in the lavatory.

• Anderson Cooper covered the murder of gay teen Lawrence King on his show, but unfortunately the CNN podcast elected to cut that segment in favor of a singing kid in underwear.

• A big happy birthday to Elizabeth Taylor. The legendary actress and tireless AIDS research supporter turns 76 today. 
  

• I know this is awful, but this guy freaking out on Scare Tactics at the "genetically altered rat-boy" is still one of the funniest things ever to air on television.

• Vanessa Williams was given the HRC Equality Award over the weekend, and gave a lovely acceptance speech. Even better, it was presented to her by Becki Newton (Ugly Betty's wonderfully evil Amanda) and Nessie dropped some great UB references and told some great stories about her own growing up with gay colleagues and friends along the way.

And today's Briefs are brought to you by...

• Director Frank Oz says there is nothing wrong with the way Peter Dinklage's gay little person is treated in his film Death at a Funeral.
  

• Lance Bass talks to the New York Times about "fan-boys" and what comes next for him.
  

• The out Darren Star and Sex and the City columnist Candace Bushnell are no longer BFF.
  

• Speaking of BFFs, Ugly Betty's Michael Urie & Becki Newton in joint interview to LA Times discuss how they met and all their on set improvising.

• Olivia Newton-John's closeted gay employee kills self. Prompts singer to speak out publicly about seeking help for depression.

Ugly Betty fans rejoice! Your favorite show is back and after having seen the first two episodes, I can tell you it's better than ever. No sophomore slump here! In fact, tonight's ep packs more laughs, plot and touching moments than many shows manage in half a season.

The second season premiere opens with a hilarious sequence where Betty (America Ferrera) dreams she's starring in her own telenovela. The pic above is Betty in her dream's maid get-up. Wait until you see what Henry (Christopher Gorham) is wearing.

Later we get Wilhelmina's (Vanessa Williams) evil henchman Marc (Michael Urie) providing hilarious sound effects during a confrontation with Betty.

And here is Marc with Amanda (Becki Newton), who is having all sorts of issues. Her low point comes when someone mistakes her for Betty.

But it's Hilda (Ana Ortiz) who gets the best storyline in tonight's episode. I don't want to give anything away, but I promise you won't be disappointed in it — unless you're the Grinch.

The thing I most admire about Ugly Betty is how seamlessly it manages to weave together all of its various plot lines and styles. The show can veer between outright hilarity and "Kleenex" moments on a dime. There is a scene in the second episode involving Marc and Justin (Mark Indelicato) that perfectly embodies the show's amazing ability to pull that off. It's not just a credit to the writers and directors, but the actors as well. The way Urie can go from snarky to caring in a heartbeat and make me believe it's genuine is worth watching alone.

Entertainment Weekly gave the episode a B and said some snarky things about it that, frankly, just baffle me. This is great television and I don't know what more you could ask from a show.

BTW, we're giving Betty the full recap treatment this season, so check back tomorrow for Steven Frank's take on it — including his patented "Justin Meter", which tracks Justin's fabulousness for each episode!