There's such a barrage of reality shows swallowing up our television time, it's hard to keep track of who's schmoozing with whom and who's been doing the backstabbing. Here's the cooler talk about last week's episodes of some of your favorite reality fare, written by The Salt Lake Tribune's resident unscripted-TV buffs. (Warning: Spoiler alert. If you didn't watch last week, read at your own risk.)

Dancing with the Stars

Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 7 p.m., KTVX Ch. 4

What happened?

A whole new group of stars hook up with professional dancers for a third season, and believe it or not, former Dallas Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith can dance! Believe it or not, MSNBC political pundit Tucker Carlson, left, cannot! (But you knew that already). Not suprisingly, Carlson was eliminated, in part for not knowing what to do with a lapdance in the beginning of his performance.

What were they thinking!

Tucker, the bowtie may work for geeky, hot-aired conservative talk-show types (or crusty newspaper editors) but it doesn't work for ballroom dancing.

Best whine & cheese moment

Having said that, the cheesiest thing about ballroom dancing has to be those skin-tight, unbuttoned-to-the-bellybutton shirts for the men. No wonder Tom Jones sang on the show this week.

Who should get booted

Sara Evans may carry a country tune, but she can't seem to glide across the dance floor like the rest of them.

Survivor: Cook Islands

Thursday, 7 p.m., KSL Ch. 5

What happened?

It's the whites vs. the African Americans vs. the Latinos vs. the Asian Americans this go around. And they are proving that you can be any ethnic race to be slow, stupid or too conniving. Regardless, the Asians won the first challenge, which probably put white supremacist groups in an uproar. Sekou Bunch of the African American team was the first to be booted.

What were they thinking!

To boot the team member who was doing the most at camp was not smart. Considering the African-American team was struggling to build its boat at the start of the challenge, they need all the help they can get.

Best whine & cheese moment

Thankfully, no one has started to whine or moan about the conditions on the island yet and so far all are taking the hardships in stride. We're sure it won't be long however before the bugs and weather reduce some to tears.

Who should get booted

It's hard to guess this early and with so many contestants, but Jonathan Penner, the writer (is that really his last name then?), already has riled other team members.

Contributor: Vince Horiuchi