As talent shows go, "HGTV Design Star" (along with its sister network show "Next Food Network Star") has been pretty successful. The network grabbed two solid stars in season one and two winners David Bromstad and Kim Myles, and that's a solid track record for any reality competition show.

But last season's results weren't quite so fulfilling. The overall level of competitors slumped a bit, and season three winner Jennifer Bertrand never really seemed comfortable on camera. From what I can tell, she got pregnant either during or just after the "Design Star" competition, so the network ended up airing one episode of her show in January and is burning off the other five episodes later this month.

So going into season four, the network and the show's producers seemed determined to find someone who was not just a solid designer, but someone who would *pop* on camera. Many of the challenges involved a hosting segment, and the contestant's hosting skills seemed to be a larger part of the scoring.

The judges for the show also changed, in part to reflect the increased emphasis on hosting. Experienced on-air talents Candice Olson ("Divine Design") and Genevieve Gorder ("Dear Genevieve") joined Vern Yip ("Deserving Design") at the judges table. Not only are Olson and Gorder experienced show hosts, they also know all too well the challenges of working under budget constraints and time issues.

And their presence did bring a new level to this season's judging. The comments were very task-focused, and the trio were harsh with contestants that failed to deliver projects on time or on budget. They had all faced the same problems and didn't have much patience with lame excuses from the designers.

While not every contestant this season was talented enough to host an HGTV series, "Design Star" did include four or five strong contenders, which made the season fascinating to watch. Until the very end, it wasn't clear just who the final two contestants might be.

As it turned out, the two finalists couldn't have been more different. While they were pretty evenly matched when it came to design skills, their hosting chops and attitudes were worlds apart. Portland designer Dan Vickery is more of a traditional HGTV host. He's young, clean-cut and fits in very comfortably with the network's current look. But L.A.-based Antonio Ballatore is a tall, slightly gruff designer who really embraces his New York City upbringing. His hosting segments are casual, fun and completely unlike anything that's ever been on the network.

In the finale, the duo tackled an immense last challenge, with each of them being tasked with making over multiple rooms in one house. They were given a $50,000 budget, a team of carpenters and a total of 44 hours over four days.

Since there was so much work to do, each designer ultimately spent most of the time on shopping runs and overseeing their teams. It was a bit of an ironic turn, since the men were the two contestants most comfortable this season with the carpentry work. They took very different approaches to the challenge, but when it was over and the judging was done, I had no idea who would be declared the winner.

Vickery had struggled a bit earlier in the season with his hosting, but although he remained a bit frentic, his style certainly showed off his star quality. But Antonio's presentation was absolutely unique. A combination of New York charm and a West Coast sense of humor. The judges were laughing throughout his spiel and he definately had the edge in the hosting department.

In the end, the judges picked Antonio, and I was glad to see it. He's just such a novel host, and I look forward to seeing his new show. While it won't officially premiere until January 2010, HGTV will be airing a sneak look at his style with the special "The Antonio Project" this Sunday at 10:00 pm ET/PT. In that show, he'll do a makeover of his own hoime, then reveal it to friends and family.

HGTV has to be thrilled with this season's results. The ratings broke network records and they ended up with at least one very talented host. I can't wait to see what he delivers in January.