Watercooler: In Praise of Up All Night's Christina Applegate

Yes, Maya Rudolph is the one who usually gets most of the big laughs on Up All Night. And why not? She's a hoot as self-absorbed talk-show host Ava and there's very little she can't do with a song and an inappropriate line of dialogue. But attention must be paid to the sitcom's leading lady and this week's TV Guide Magazine cover girl Christina Applegate.

Now it's not like last night's episode stood out as a special showcase for her. In fact, it was more about Rudolph and guest star Jason Lee than anything. Yet even with a relatively un-flashy storyline — Reagan and Chris' near-fruitless attempt to spend a romantic overnight at the swanky Beverly Hilton — Applegate's seemingly unending source of sass, sex appeal and sweetness actually had us wishing they had toned down some of the "Ava babysits Amy" stuff to make more room for her crackling back-and-forth with costar Will Arnett. And you know someone's really good when you root for them to steal scenes away from a scene-stealer like Rudolph. Plus, if Reagan's mom-voiced take on what Amy was doing while mommy and daddy were out ("she's probably having sweet potatoes") didn't steal your heart, then you contact a cardiologist about getting a new one.

Of course, we all crushed on Christina when she was teen-tramping it up on Married...with Children and so many folks adored her short-lived run as reformed party girl on Samantha Who? But we are more head-over-heels for Applegate than ever now that she's all grown Up and playing a cool mom these days.

What about you? Loving Applegate or is her Night not on your Wednesday schedule?

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