Have you been watching Nip/Tuck, even though Portia de Rossi has been AWOL for so long? I have, and I haven't been able to stop thinking about the recent psycho stalker story line, with special guest star Sharon Gless. [Warning: Spoilers]

When Gless first showed up on the show, I was thrilled. Her character, Colleen Rose, was sassy, smart and funny — just like I like Gless, and like I'm used to seeing her. But things soon took a turn for the criminally insane. We learned that Colleen wasn't really a talent agent; she was just trying to get close to Dr. Sean. And when an actual agent interfered, teddy-bear-collecting Colleen decided to stuff him. It was one of the most gruesome murder scenes — not to mention one of the trippiest — I've ever seen on TV.

Last week, it looked like Colleen met an untimely death at her own hands. I'm not sure whether she'll be back for one last gasp tonight, or will even be mentioned again. But I do know one thing: I don't understand why Gless took the role. (I'm not the only one.) I guess maybe she thought it would be fun to play crazy. But the story line was just plain misogynist — Colleen the capable professional soon became Colleen the desperate, menopausal, lonely, diabolical crone. It seems very far beneath Gless.

I might be overreacting. But most of the women on Nip/Tuck are appallingly two-dimensional, and not just because they're vain moneyed types seeking plastic surgery. Creator Ryan Murphy (who is gay, not that that means anything at all in terms of his attitude toward women) seems to want to destroy his female characters and erase their humanity. Whether it's Kimber (or Eden) the slut — don't even get me started on their violent sex scene last week — or Colleen the psycho or Julia the meat-seeking rag doll or Liz the barely there prudish lesbian or Kate the fat actress, they're easy to sum up and difficult to care about. … continue reading