Marc Malkin

Frank Micelotta/Getty Images for MTV

The red carpet of the Video Music Awards was its own kind of eye-popping spectacle, but during the show I couldn't take my eyes off Britney Spears. And I wasn't the only one—she had at least two bodyguards watching over her the whole time. At one point a fan tried to approach her, but one of the guys gently told him to beat it.

Taylor Swift got better treatment, however, and just walked over to chat with Brit, who then posed for pics and gabbed with the Jonas Brothers. Britney gave a hug and kiss to her former bodyguard, Big Rob, who now works for the Jonas Brothers.

Even though Britney won her first VMA early in the show for best female video (and two more later), she seemed pretty mellow overall.

After the show, Britney took a walk through the lot to Stage 11, where the press was waiting for her. As she walked, she was like the Pied Piper...press and fans were following her like mice...and more and more people kept joining the herd behind her. It was like a fairy tale, but one that ended abruptly.

One moment she was getting touched up in a makeup mirror just outside the press area…and then she was gone, whisked into a photo-only area where no pesky questions could be asked. Who could blame her for that? (Besides me, of course.) She looked fab, kept it together and seems like she's getting her career back on the right foot.

Brava, Britney!