Apparently, I’m not the only one, as evidenced by the creation of a Rachel Ray Drinking Game. Seems some need sedatives to watch her.

Still, millions of others love her, though, which proves her worth is well beyond the opinions of lesser-paid critics.

“Emeril Live,” arguably Food Network’s most popular show, was not renewed, though reruns have rolled since November. Some say host Emeril Lagasse wanted too large a contract, which could well be the case. As the head of his own restaurant and food empire, his time is surely worth a lot, and good for him if he asked for more. He will, however, continue hosting the decidedly simpler and comparably subdued “The Essence of Emeril.” Let’s hope he leaves his trademark “Bam” on the shelf with “Live.”

Mario Batali’s show, “Molto Mario,” was not renewed, nor was his contract with “Iron Chef,” the adrenaline-soaked show co-hosted by Brown. Like Lagasse, Batali has a booming restaurant empire and certainly has other things to do. Frankly, I’m sort of glad he’s gone because someone of such genius is too good for the growing number of dump-and-stir scripts given him in some episodes.