Take a middle-aged prima donna, a cabal of catty judges, and a bunch of ambitious, naïve, and eccentric contestants. Mix it all up in an artsy cable channel angling for a new lease on life and out pops—Project Runway.

Or Top Chef.

Or Shear Genius.

Or really any Bravo reality show.

Since 2003, when Queer Eye for the Straight Guy debuted on Bravo, the once fine-arts-oriented cabler has been tilling the fertile ground of what it calls "creative competitions," Bravo spokespeople deigning to use the dirty word "reality."

Nevertheless, the shows—which include this year’s debuts Make Me A Supermodel and Step It Up & Dance, and 2007’s Top Design, in addition to Runway (2004), Chef (2006), and Genius (2007)—are of a piece. There’s the judges’ panel, a few industry mainstays with the requisite expertise and, more importantly, brass-knuckled sass to debunk any outfit, meal, or runway walk presented to them.

There are the contestants, mostly middle Americans, many talented and all poignantly convinced that winning will change their careers forever. And at some point in each season, they each cry.

There’s the industry-specific prize—a spread in a fashion magazine for the aspiring designers, or a showcase at a food show for the winning chef.

At the center of it all is the fetching female host, an underemployed actress or model past modeling age, who serves as the show’s sex appeal and the bold-faced name that gets people tuning in.

Heidi Klum, the host of Runway since its debut in 2004, inaugurated Bravo’s sweet-but-stern host schtick, kissing contestants goodbye minutes after booting them from the series.