HBO is better than most regular TV, no doubt about it. But the best show on HBO isn't "Sex in the City," "Six Feet Under" or even "The Sapranos." All are good shows, but "Curb Your Enthusiasm" boarders on greatness, and I only consider two TV shows to be great: "The Simpsons" and "The Twilight Zone."

Why is "Curb" so good? Because protagonist/creator/the guy who created "Seinfeld," Larry David walks into a Starbucks and orders "a vanilla bullshit." That's funnier than all of the attempted jokes broadcast on the three major networks in the past five years combined. It also sums up the show's sense of humor pretty well: sardonic, misanthropic and disdainful. To put it another way, if Ruthless were a TV show, we like to think that it would be "Curb Your Enthusiasm."

I'll elaborate a bit. Every week Larry finds himself an escalating social crisis thanks to some faux pas on his part. Frequently, a rabble comes to see him as a villain and he escapes one way or another. Sometimes he outsmarts them, sometimes he climbs out the bathroom window. The cool part is that we always empathize with Larry and see the braying herd for what they are. The show isn't even afraid to make fun of women, often portraying them as hysterical hens. This program is ruthless to the core. I might have to get my cable turned on at some point.