A French maid at a funeral

A bit late, I know -- I've been busy watching presidential debates -- but here's another giddy post on "Project Runway." I love when the show tackles regular women with regular shapes, partly because it's fun to see the look of horror on the designers' faces. But mostly, I love seeing creativity applied to women who aren't six-foot-five, and looking down the runway at something I might actually have occasion to wear. I loved most of the outfits this week and thought the judges were spot-on, though I'll sorely miss Steven's deadpan.

And then there was the drama. The arrivals and departures made me realize what else sets "Runway" apart from nearly every other reality show. We're accustomed to seeing manufactured conflict (and "Project Runway" has its share of it, at times) but here, the contestants seem to actually be friends. Something about shared pressure and shared interests must forge true cameraderie: These folks were genuinely sad to see Chris go, happy to see him return, sad to see Jack in pain. And Tim Gunn felt everything most of all. Don't you want him to be your fashion-guru-stepdad? Even if he makes his share of mistakes at 3 a.m.?