TVSquad

If you tuned in to watch the first part -- day one -- of Whitney Houston's interview with Oprah Winfrey yesterday, you weren't alone. The overnight ratings were gangbusters for The Oprah Winfrey Show, the best premiere in three years, which is just what Oprah had in mind when her producers booked Whitney on her comeback trail.

And Whitney benefited, too. Her new CD debuted at number one on the Billboard chart, a fact confirmed at the end of the second half that was broadcast today. So Whitney won and Oprah won and Clive Davis was happy and smiling, probably because he had orchestrated the whole thing behind the scenes.

If part one of Whitney's interview with Oprah was like Intervention, as I wrote yesterday, today's installment veered away from the Bobby Brown drug talk, and went directly to the pulpit. There were a lot of references to spiritual power, people praying for Whitney, even the lyrics of her songs relating to her will to survive.

While I respect Whitney's belief in the power of prayer and how it transformed her, I question Oprah's rah-rah attitude in the interview. Instead of remaining detached, Oprah put herself into the story, saying that she was praying for Whitney during her dark days, and then Whitney responding that after her mother and her daughter and her family, she loved Oprah.

Oprah has always been too much of a celebrity to really qualify as a great interviewer, so it was probably a stretch to think this Whitney Houston session would be different. Part two did yield two interesting bits, though. The first was Whitney's reaction to Michael Jackson's death. Not surprisingly, she was devastated. She didn't take the bait from Oprah and say that Michael's death was a cautionary tale. Instead, Whitney just cried for the loss of a friend she'd known for years.

The other noteworthy item was the fact that Bobbi Kristina, Whitney and Bobby Brown's daughter, wants to become a singer. Whitney wasn't happy about her daughter's determination, but the kid has her own mind (which we saw on Being Bobby Brown) and seems set in her decision.

The hour included a performance by Whitney of the song "I Didn't Know My Own Strength," which was Oprah's favorite cut on the new CD. Whitney sang it like a personal anthem, and she sang it well, much better than the live appearance on Good Morning, America. So hopefully, she'll be able to live up to those lyrics and this comeback will stick. Otherwise, a few years from now, she could be back on Oprah, confessing again.