The usually funny Ellen DeGeneres has been having an interesting fall, and not in a good way. She was just getting over the weirdness with her pet adoption fiasco when the writer’s strike hit. If the writer’s strike drags on, many talk show hosts may eventually go back and do their shows without writers, but Ellen did so almost immediately, which has made her a target for some criticism.

Tonight, however, I’ve been watching her in a different project: “Ellen’s Really Big Show,” a one-shot variety special for TBS. I’m sure it must have been taped before the strike — maybe months ago. It’s a tribute to the old variety shows (“Really Big Show” is a reference to Ed Sullivan’s old catch phrase) taped at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, with Lyle Lovett and His Large Band as the house band (!) and with guest appearances by the likes of Wayne Newton and Lance Burton, plus musical acts (including a Beatles tribute band) and various novelty acts of the type Sullivan used to feature.

It’s actually pretty entertaining; I wish the timing were a little different, and I hope the crossing-the-picket-line controversy doesn’t hurt the ratings for this special. In the days of niche demographic marketing, when everyone TiVos his own favorite shows and no one wants to sit through someone else’s favorite performer, variety shows as a phenomenon are dead. But I think as an occasional novelty, once or twice a year, something like “Really Big Show” could be successful for TBS.