'Ugly Betty': Plenty of character

It's been less than a year, but look how "Betty" has grown.

What began as a simple ugly duckling yarn about a Queens girl who makes good at a fashion magazine has spun into a rich, ensemble comedy — proof that television comedy is anything but dead.

Next to smart network comedies "30 Rock," "The Office" and "Desperate Housewives," "Ugly Betty" is one happy cocktail. Three parts Saturday morning cartoon and one part family drama, the frothy concoction goes down smoothly with a satisfying glug week after week.

In Thursday's episode, the Meade family that runs fashion bible Mode magazine was coming apart at the seams. Betty's boss Daniel and his newly back-from-the-"dead"-brother-turned-sister Alexis (Rebecca Romijn) are at war. Mama Meade (Judith Light) is about to go to jail for the murder of her husband's mistress. And the magazine's scheming creative director, Wilhelmina (Vanessa Williams), is about to make a play for Mr. Meade.

It's good ol' soap opera fun. ("Betty," after all, is based on a wildly popular international telenovela format). But let's not sweat those details.

The real magic of "Ugly Betty" resides in its excellent cast — lauded leading lady America Ferrera and the invaluable supporting players. One of the best supporting players took center stage on Thursday's episode when Wilhelmina's assistant Mark (Michael Urie) attempted to convince his mom (guest star Patti LuPone) of the doubly improbable idea that he's a swinging straight man and that Betty is his girlfriend.

Much of the series' comedy comes from the deftly written snarky dialogue — at one point in the episode, Mark pleaded to Betty: "Turn that mustache upside down and come help!" — brought to life each week in especially piquant performances from Betty's family (Tony Plana as immigrant papa Ignacio, Ana Ortiz as sassy older sister Hilda and Mark Indelicato as flamboyant nephew Justin) and Mode magazine's catty fashionista Amanda (Becki Newton) and feisty wardrobe manager Christina (Ashley Jensen).

Preventing the show from tipping too much toward a strictly animated affair are the nuanced performances from the ensemble. It would be easy for Mark or Amanda to slip into Boris and Natasha territory, but on "Betty" they get to be clumsy villains with human anxieties.

When Mark finally breaks down and comes out to his mother, the moment feels genuine. He may be the most delightfully selfish and snide of Betty's colleagues, but he's also got a real flair for fashion and is fiercely protective of his surrogate Mode magazine family.

And the show never loses sight of what makes the characters so much fun in the first place. After Mark's mother rejected her son's attempts to start over, Betty was characteristically consoling. Mark responded by telling her that she will always be his "little chimichanga" but not without adding a sing-song: "Doesn't mean I like you.... "

Good thing I like everyone on "Ugly Betty."

--Denise Martin