Fu For Thought raves about Antonio's special. Fans of Reality TV

Hey, did you watch Antonio Ballatore's first show after winning Season 4 of HGTV's Design Star earlier this month?

I did, and so did a couple of my fellow Design Star fans. Antonio says he won't deliver the typical HGTV fodder.

"It's going to be shot different. We're going to go about it a totally different way. I'm going to try to bring something new to the whole network, something different than you've ever seen before in design television," Antonio told Heather Warlick-Moore at NewsOK.

Antonio's first show — a special one-hour special where he makes over an 800-square-foot repo home he had purchased before he even made it on Design Star.

Antonio called on his buddies to help with various aspects of the four-room — five-day — challenge.

If you expected a traditional, classy host, you were probably disappointed because he's not going to aim for that.

HGTV didn't want another host like all the others. They chose a crass, sexist set designer dude who is proud of his image. Need examples?

He bought a birthday cake for one of the guys, cut it with a skill saw and served out messy portions from his hands.

The 40-year-old man has no problem saying on camera that he loves to shop for furniture because the sales clerks are usually cute and he can flirt with them.

He actually pushed up his T-shirt sleeves as he talked to the clerk to reveal more of his colorful tattoos. He showed off the bedroom as the place where the magic is made.

I didn't think it was funny, but I'm sure many did. Antonio did and said the unexpected. That's what we should expect: A lot of shock TV.

Remember the infamous pink geese and ducks on the white wall in the first challenge? He hung a pink duck on the wall and mentioned the "pink duck moments" several times as he shopped and talked to the audience or his buddies.

It was one of his glory moments during the competition and he's going to milk that for all that it is worth.

As for the overall finished "Antonio Project," I have some likes and dislikes. I rarely love everything. I usually want to steal an idea or two. The same goes for this makeover.

Here's what I liked:

• The aluminum backsplash made from pieces of heavy aluminum cut up and pieced back together in up and down directions.
• A very shiny black, simply designed U-shaped kitchen that looks out to the dining/living room. Slivers of aluminum broke up the top and bottom rows of black kitchen cabinets.
• A big 17th century Spanish chair - the throne - from his father, coupled with a smaller chair from the same period for the opposite end.
• A heavy 4x8 dining room table for the big overstated chairs. However, the dainty adjustable-height bar stools (on one side of the table) didn't seem to fit proportionately.
• The fireplace fascia made from what looked liked small river pebbles and flecks of glass. The mantle was thin and understated.
• The claw-footed bathtub, the simple three-headed shower - I assume there will be some kind of curtain to contain the water.
• The lacquered painted bedroom furniture shot with metal flakes.

What I didn't like:

• The gaudy airbrushed custom headboard - a 9-foot sombrero girl - "the girl I'm going to be waking up with every morning" - with huge silver roses on each side.
• The four tiny photos of his friend's work didn't belong in the bedroom. They would have been fine in the bathroom.
• The garish art work in the dining/living room. Note: Antonio's father painted them, so I know they hold sentimental value. But they seemed to be thrown on top of the mantel with his other collectibles. At least one of them would have looked better in the bedroom.
• The tiny bar setup on a small piece of furniture on the far side of the room. That needs to be near a sink and some working space.
• The sexist approach in his "hosting."

Finally, in the "what about" category:

There's no real living room. But what do you expect for an 800-square-foot home? Antonio chose the large dining room table to highlight his father's chair. That was cool. He plans to use that table as a gathering place for entertaining or holding meetings. That's OK in my book.

Here's what one couple reported back to me after they watched the Sunday night show.

"By the way, we watched Antonio's show tonight," the woman wrote. "Bill thinks he did awesome. I am more biased, can't help it. But he did do a good job, I truly think he has a good TV personality, I just can't tolerate his design style. Bill thinks he will do good, and I think he is probably right. I just wish his (Antonio's) style wasn't so out there, but it will probably fill a niche somewhere."

She's right. We can't all love the same hosts.

I for one, still miss Johnny Carson on the late night circuits.