Oprah Winfrey is expected to announce today that she is closing down her talk show in two years, on Sept. 9, 2011.

The queen of daytime isn’t leaving at the top of her game - ratings have been dropping for her, like everyone on the dial. There’s just too much fragmentation of the market happening now. Still, she commands a loyal audience that will probably follow her to cable if she indeed chooses to move her show to the Oprah Winfrey Network, also launching in 2011. With a fortune estimated at over $2 billion, she can afford to sit at home if she chooses, but I suspect she won’t.

There may be a lot of chatter on daytime, but Oprah has always stood above the pack, with class and warmth. She has tried, in her own way, to implore others to explore their inner lives and empower themselves to rise above difficult circumstances. Her book club has sold millions of books, made some authors household names and helped keep publishing houses afloat in difficult times. She has made stars out of her favorite guests, Dr. Phil, Rachael Ray and (expected to have his own show) Nate Berkus. 

Filling that daytime hour won’t be difficult, but it’s hard to imagine anyone ever coming close to the impact that Oprah has had on her viewers.

What do you think? Will you miss Oprah? Who do you think could replace her?

This is what we waited so long for?

Heather Locklear’s much-publicized return to CW’s “Melrose Place” was a bust. For the most part, the blame belongs with the writers, who don’t seem to know Amanda Woodward. Caleb’s (Victor Webster) firing was a good way of re-establishing Amanda, but when was Amanda ever such an obnoxious homophobe? She had one crack after another, blaming him for concentrating on (beep) instead of assets.

Making Ella (Katie Cassidy) suffer? Excellent. Ordering her to make sure Riley lost her job? That’s not Amanda. She’s hard but not pointlessly vindictive.

The show closed with Amanda searching Sydney’s apartment, but noteably there was no shot of Amanda entering the world’s most decadent courtyard after years. Wasn’t that worth a few seconds of screen time? Another misfire.

As for Locklear, the body was rocking, but her face has an unpleasant waxen sheen and her voice seemed about twice as deep as I remembered.

We have to wait until Dec 1. for the next original episode. Amanda crosses paths with Michael Mancini (Thomas Calabro) and seems to intimidate all the new residents.

As for Riley, I bust a gut when we learned her mother is a Boston Globe editor. That’s why she’s so boring! It’s genetic.

What do you think? Can Locklear save this “Melrose Place”?

I’m starting to think Sarah Palin doesn’t like the media. I can’t imagine why she’d feel that way.

The ex-governor sat with Oprah Winfrey for a full hour to discuss her memoir “Going Rogue” (available Tuesday) and it was a fascinating conversation. Oprah doesn’t get the credit she deserves for trying to put her guests at ease and also ask the questions viewers are thinking about at home - like why exactly did she resign her governorship?  (Palin replied that she felt she could do more about the issues she cared about as a private citizen.)

Sarah Palin does not like Katie Couric. Give credit to Oprah again for running the now-infamous clip that featured Couric asking Palin about the books and magazines she reads. Palin’s point of view, that she was tired of the questioning that seemed to paint Alaskans as rubes, seems credible. Couric was tossing a softball at her, but at the end of a long day, it might have seemed insulting. She got her back up over it, as the clip proves. But today, to me, it seems like a misunderstanding over intentions that became overblown.

But speaking of getting one’s back up - did anyone else catch her rolling her eyes when Oprah persisted in asking about her possible presidential aspirations? All I can say there is: Get used to it.

Interestingly, the only moment I felt she was less than credible came right at the opening, when Oprah, being Oprah, plunged right into the controversy that existed between the two of them: That alleged snub. Oprah, an Obama supporter, explained she didn’t have any of the candidates on before the election. Palin seemed to hedge here, quipping finally she was too busy at the time to notice.

There was some cute home video of the kids at home. Onetime possible son-in-law Levi, as reported already, is welcome for Thanksgiving.

Despite her complaints that the McCain camp mishandled her, she argued that ultimately it didn’t matter: The voters had watched the economy tank under a Republican and they wanted a change. That seemed to be the most perceptive analysis of the hour.

 What did you think? Did the Oprah sitdown change your view of Sarah Palin?

… is Christopher Daniels.

If you watched the pay-per-view Sunday night, you saw an action-packed wrestling show. Despite the predictable results, everyone seemed to bring their best game.

The stakes were the highest in the main event, which was a rematch between heavyweight champion AJ Styles, Samoa Joe and Daniels. Their 2005 bout is still talked about today, rightfully so, as one of the best matches in TNA’s history.

I watched that epic bout earlier in the day and it still holds up. The guys performed a number of crazy, gravity-defying stunts. The energy was ferocious. The rematch didn’t live up to the original - but it came close, thanks mostly to Daniels, who looks and moves just as he did five years ago. The “Fallen Angel” has had a checkered history with the company - more recently working as the humorous Curry Man - until finally getting another shot to capture some glory for himself. He didn’t disappoint. (Though the scariest moment came when Styles flew out the ring onto both Daniels and Joe. That looked like one nasty bump for Styles.)

Styles, of course, retained the belt, which is at it should be. Styles is another TNA original who deserves some respect. The way the writing has gone, however, he’s looked like a weak champion. Speaking of that bizarre story (cough, Tomko, cough), there was no progress on that in this ppv, one of my biggest complaints. AARP member and newest TNA employee Hulk Hogan was nowhere to be seen. Where’s the build for the company?

Daniels worked like his job depended on it. At the close of the show, after the video went dark, you could still hear the fans chanting his name. Here’s hoping TNA listens. 

In news that was just inevitable, Fox has canceled “Dollhouse.” The sci-fi series starring Watertown actress Eliza Dushku is currently filming its 11th episode. The network will fulfill its 13-episode order and burn off the remaining episodes beginning in December.

With the exception of perhaps Joss Whedon’s most ardent fans (who seem to be legion, actually), viewers did not take to the show. While the premise of a secret agent assuming personalities as if they were fashion accessories looked promising on paper, the execution was lackluster. Whedon has a reputation for being a feminist writer, but he belied that here, creating a heroine with little self-awareness. And that created problems for viewers such as myself. How was I supposed to care about a heroine in the grips of a shadowy agency when she didn’t even mind? She truly was a “doll.” And now she’s going back up on her shelf.

I’ve said it many times, I like Dushku, but not in this series. Given the vampire hysteria in pop culture, one might think Whedon and Dushku would finally team for a Faith the Vampire Slayer series. I can still dream.

Over on ABC, the network canned the Kelsey Grammer comedy “Hank,” its weakest sitcom performer. I never sympathized with his downsized executive, forced to move into what looked like a mansion in a beautiful rural community. This sitcom never found the right note, and right now, it appears its remaining episodes will never air. The network is filing the time slot with specials through the holidays. May I suggest filling that time slot with “Better Off Ted”? It seems the best companion to its sitcoms.

Will you miss either “Dollhouse” or “Hank”? And which show do you think will be canceled next?

There was just only so much detail I could get into my feature on actor Scott Evans, starring on ABC’s “One Life to Live.” You can find the print piece here, but here’s more of what he had to say about the story that is pushing daytime’s frontiers for a same-sex couple – and seems to be, against the odds, winning lots of fans across the daytime spectrum.

Don’t believe me? Check in with any of the daytime boards or YouTube, where fans have created dedicated channels to the couple they call “Kish” (for Oliver Fish and Kyle).

“I expected to have the gay fans be into it, but the boards have been great,” he said, with heterosexual viewers stating, “I support and stand up for these two.”

As to what the future holds for the duo, Evans was, as you might expect, vague. “There’s some pretty exciting stuff coming up for us.” Then he added, joking, “It’s a soap. I could be straight next month.”

One question vexes some fans – the fact that Evans is on recurring and not contract status. He took the opportunity to set the record straight. “There are perks to both … I have the freeedom to look for other work and try other things Right now, this is where I’m employed right now and where I want to be. Fans shouldn’t necessarily focus on contracts and (instead) look at what’s going on. … I think everybody is putting out good work.”

And how. Look beyond Kish and you see some consistently great stories. I wouldn’t mind if some of the 14 years olds on the show dropped through a black hole, but other than that, OLTL is one of the strongest soaps on daytime and ABC’s best show by miles.

The return of villain Mitch Laurence (the great Roscoe Born) was a great reveal Monday. The guy dug up the corpse of Jessica’s husband just to terrify her. This guy has no limits. There’s some great storytelling here across the board.

If you watched “The Wanda Sykes Show” last night, you saw the debut of a late-night show with something surprising: a genuine political edge.

No mealy, middle-of-the-road, gotta-love-everyone Leno treacle here.

The comedian known for her roles on “The New Adventures of Old Christine” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm” poked the right for its attacks on Obama. Or, as she put it in her monologue, she had appointed herself “the president’s Tell-People-Where-To-Go and What-to-Kiss Czar.”

The hour didn’t start promising. In the opening bit, she inserted herself in a Larry King interview with Ann Coulter and mocked the pundit’s eyelashes. Really? That’s the best shot she had?

Sykes was better in her stand-up. “Let me be the first person on Fox not to pick on President Obama.”

On conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh’s recent description of Obama as a little boy with a big ego, she said, “Sounds to me like the pot calling the kettle the uppity Negro.”

She was just warming up. “Bush just peed all over everything … (and) people are looking at Obama like he just zipped up his fly.”

Not every bit worked. I could have lived without the long segment in which Sykes tried to recycle her sex toys. “Can’t I please myself and go green?” she wondered. She dissected CNN footage that appeared to suggest an Obama supporter was threatening to rape him.

She was joined at “Wanda’s bar” by Mary Lynn Rajskub (“24″), Daryl “Chill” Mitchell (“Brothers”) and Phil Keoghan (“The Amazing Race”) for riffs on whether screaming is the new spanking, the folly of paying for a vacation in space and a round of “Inappropriate Games.” The latter was led by a drag queen who asked the panel to guess the birth countries of Asian celebrities.

It felt like a long hour of chatter, and now I understand why Leno, Conan, SNL, etc., toss in musical guests to liven the pace. I can’t imagine tuning in Saturday nights for the full hour, but I do plan on catching the opening monologues, if only to hear her riff on current events.

After her first commercial break, she smiled to the camera, “Haven’t been cancelled yet.” It’s too early to be celebrating that. But in a crowded late-night field, Sykes made a strong impression.

TNT has picked up NBC castoff “Southland” and will air the acclaimed John Wells cop drama in January. Sounds great, yes?

The small print troubles me. The cable network has picked up the rights to the six episodes that were already filmed for season two as well as the first season run of seven episodes.

TNT will re-air the first season and then get to the six unseen episodes. There’s no talk of filming any more shows -and “Southland” was in the middle of filming 13 episodes when NBC pulled the plug.

TNT’s run, then, will consist of work already completed.

One assumes that if the show is a hit - a major hit -  TNT will pick it up for another season -but I’m guessing the series will have to undergo some drastic cuts to fit into TNT’s lineup. This isn’t “Leverage” after all.

I guess for now we should just be grateful we’ll get to see the second season next spring.

NBC has axed “Trauma.” The show will complete its 13-episode order and the medical drama will flatline for good.

To fill the hour, the network has upped “Chuck” from 13 episodes to 19. “Chuck” was originally scheduled for a return in March. NBC’s needs, however, mean fans probably can get their groove on with the geeky superspy as early as January.

I won’t miss “Trauma.” Although Cliff Curtis made for a dynamic hero, the stories were either implausible or just a snooze.

Hulk Hogan is expected to pop up in tonight’s installment of TNA Wrestling on Spike TV, the latest aging star to find a new home in the upstart operation.

Hogan is 56 years old. To say that he’s had better days is an understatement. His signing is just another example of how TNA continually promotes past-their-prime veterans at the expense of its younger talent.

I am a huge TNA fan, but the last year has been so bad, I reached the point where I thought I would just give up. The “Main Event Mafia” coalition, featuring Kevin Nash, Booker T and Scott Steiner, brought back painful memories of WCW’s infamous crash-and-burn. These are men who can barely move in the ring and yet they were receiving pushes over more energetic performers, including the Motor City Machine Guns and Consequences Creed. TNA further gutted its talented “X Division” by cutting Petey Williams and Sonjay Dutt.

But something changed in the last couple of months (it may have had something to do with the reported sidelining of TNA founder Jeff Jarrett). The Mafia started to lose its chokehold over the promotion. Other guys started getting pushes. AJ Styles, TNA’s top talent and a guy who really lives up to the hype, was made heavyweight champion. The recent pay-per-view “Bound for Glory” was, at least, a satisfying event.

And now the promotion takes a step backward by devoting valuable dollars and air time to Hogan. I don’t begrudge Hogan for wanting a paycheck, especially given the last few years he’s suffered. (But it is looking more like Mickey Rourke’s “The Wrestler” is closer to a documentary for some.) I just doubt what he can bring to the ring.

He might surprise. Some veterans - notably Kurt Angle and the Dudley Boys - still deliver in the ring. What I really wish is that TNA concentrate on making its own stars. It will never find its own identity building on past glories.