Oh, 2006. We thought you were going to be like every other Olympic year, beginning with sparkly figure skaters and ending with the horde of new fall series. What we didn’t know was that Johnny Weir dressing as a swan for his short program in ice skating would be one of the more rational moments on television during the year.

A major 2006 trend was celebrities acting batshit crazy on TV. How do you top a year that included Star Jones firing herself, Flava Flav protecting time by wearing it around his neck, Britney Spears, literally barefoot and pregnant, asking the paparazzi to leave her alone, and the seemingly never-ending game of musical news anchor chairs that, unfortunately, sometimes ended with an actual musical number (Connie Chung anyone?).

“Survivor” attempted to be groundbreaking (and I use the term loosely), dividing the cast mates into four tribes based upon their race. Not surprisingly, the ratings were “Survivor’s” lowest. As an effort to try to dispel stereotypes, it failed miserably, as Yul Kwon (part of the Asian tribe) managed to outwit, outlast and outplay everyone else (because all Asians are smart, get it?).

Not all reality television crossed the ridiculous line, however. The Tour de France was as gripping as ever — possibly even more so because the winner hadn’t already been decided upon. Granted, Floyd Landis may be a little bit insane; but even if you do not enjoy cycling, Stage 17 was poetry on wheels. Whether or not he took performance-enhancing drugs, his achievement was awe-inspiring.

“Project Runway” remained fabulous. Seasons 2 and 3 ran back-to-back in 2006, with equal amounts of verve and talented designers. Forget mystery dramas like “Law & Order”; how Tim Gunn can still remain unequivocally cool and how Heidi Klum can be as large as a whale and still look sexy are mysteries unto themselves.

Every season has to have its bigger-than-life contestants, and season 2’s Santino Rice and season 3’s Jeffrey Sebelia fit the requirements perfectly. In Santino’s case, pictures speak louder than words, so I would recommend going to his bio page on bravotv.com. Jeffrey has a full neck tattoo, need I say more? And then there is Vincent Libretti, who earned his place in the crazy hall of fame for his catchphrase, “I am so turned on by this,” in response to his fashion creations, which were often frightening.

And who can forget “American Idol,” the best reality show to ever grace the small screen? No other reality show is as ubiquitous in everyday life and pop culture, and no other show has garnered its contestants such success (Grammys, AMAs, CMAs, and Golden Globe nominations come to mind...). Not only that, but it is incredibly entertaining.

Each year it is difficult to imagine they can find better talent than the previous years, but 2006 defied the odds again. The final four of Taylor Hicks, Katherine McPhee, Chris Daughtry, and Elliot Yamin were all winning material, and each managed to cultivate his or her own distinct style. I was personally in Team Elliot, but I can respect those in the other fan camps (except Team McPhee. They claim to have the McPheever, and that is just inexcusable).

Years from now, however, I hope 2006 television is remembered as the year of the little shows that could. The creation of the CW network in September left many smaller shows on UPN and the WB in limbo, and while there were some missteps (resurrecting 7th Heaven strongly suggests there may be no actual place), overall the line-up has been a success (mostly because they renewed “Veronica Mars,” the best show on television).

While there is some merit to scripted shows, reality TV is all about coloring so far out of the lines that you wonder why there was even paper to begin with, and 2006 did not disappoint.