Sitcoms have had a tough decade, but nowhere have the pickings been slimmer than on ABC, which has been never been able to duplicate the workplace comedies of NBC and has ceded the family comedy banner to CBS. But things may have changed with Better Off Ted, which debuted in the spring and is still offering up new episodes this summer.

Ted has received a good deal of positive notice from critics, who aren't used to finding anything to praise in late-season television, or in the ABC sitcom lineup generally. And its theme of a decent guy trying to make his way inside a huge and likely shady corporate entity has a relevance in the current environment. Of course, critical praise only gets you so far, as Ted star Portia de Rossi could tell you based on her experience with Arrested Development. This week's episode (Tuesday, 9:30) finds Ted, Veronica, and Linda forced to share a work area after the latest research mishap cuts into office space. Better Off Ted faces an uphill climb (the now-canceled Samantha Who? looked pretty strong a year ago at this time), but it is worth rooting for.

Also this week:

Monday: American Idol (Fox, 8 p.m.): Idol is never rerun, but recent events prompted Fox to make an exception. One of the better nights of this past season was the first episode of the final round, which featured the contenders performing the music of Michael Jackson. Watch it again to see if you can spot any incipient signs of greatness in Kris Allen.

Wednesday: The Philanthropist (NBC, 10 p.m.): Teddy investigates whether his company's involvement in business activities in Myanmar is tied in with the use of forced labor, and receives advice from an activist who is being kept under house arrest. Also, Teddy tries to spring a man from a labor camp so that he can be a kidney donor to his daughter.

Thursday: So You Think You Can Dance (Fox, 9 p.m.): The first three weeks of eliminations have taken place, which means we will soon be losing people who are really pretty strong. As long as they leave Kayla alone...there wasn't time for SYTYCD to properly acknowledge Michael Jackson last week, as the news was just breaking at the time of the live show, but there may be a fuller tribute this week.

Friday: The Goode Family (ABC, 8:30 p.m.): Unlike Better Off Ted, ABC did not show much patience with this series, despite the excellent track record of producer Mike Judge. Helen decides to make Bliss's community service work of removing graffiti more interesting by posting her own graffiti, and is surprised to find that she is being hailed as a revolutionary new voice in art.

Saturday: Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest (ESPN, 12 p.m.): What could be more American than watching people gorge themselves on wieners while trying not to vomit? There is more drama than usual this year, as the deposed king of gluttony, Takeru Kobayashi, tries to win back the title from Joey Chestnut. I usually pull for Americans, but darn it, it's hard not to see Kobayashi as a sentimental favorite.

Sunday: Denise Richards: It's Complicated (Sunday, 10:30 p.m.): It looks like one of the themes of the second season is going to be damage control having to do with the first season. Seeing the need to change a negative image (now where could she have gotten that idea?), Denise agrees to film a viral video for Funny or Die. And if you've seen it, you will agree that it is likely her finest moment on camera.

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