After a disappointing "Design Star" season (more about that later), Emily Henderson -- a prop stylist originally from Portland, Ore. -- was chosen Sunday night to host her own show on HGTV. But first, she'll get a special, "Secrets From a Stylist," set for 9 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 29. (Set the DVR; the Emmys air that night on NBC.)

In the special, Henderson will help Ian Brennan. co-creator and executive producer of "Glee," to "help define his style" as he decorates his new house. She'll use "Ian's preferences, such as his favorite fashions and decade," to "pinpoint her client's true style." This should be fun and potentially funny; Brennan is a quirky guy with a fashion style that once led me to compare him to a leprechaun.

Henderson was chosen over Michael Moeller because her "natural hosting skills and unconventional design approach made her stand apart from the other competitors," judge Candice Olson said. "She creates signature looks that are highly stylized, yet inviting and comfortable." Actually, the two seemed evenly matched, and both delivered watchable potential pilots in Sunday night's season finale.

The problem with the season wasn't any of the designers themselves, although very little talent got a chance to shine through. The problem was the structure of Season 5 itself, put into the hands of Mark Burnett Productions. Burnett's people opted for far too many contrived team challenges and far too few hosting tests. If this is a series about choosing a series host, tests of their hosting skills should be a more important element. Until the very end of the season, only the bottom two designers even shot on-camera segments, with the results used to eliminate one of them. I also missed having a host-mentor this season; Verne Yip, who assumed some of the host duties, is chilly and virtually personality free.

"Design Star" was never the best reality-competition series on TV, but in previous seasons, it was entertaining. Burnett's company took something that wasn't broken -- and broke it.