TV’s ‘Man Caves’ and ‘Man Land’
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A man’s home is often his wife’s castle, but as long as he’s got some square footage of his own. . . .
Jon Caramanica writes:
What do men want? What can men do? Really, what is a man anyway? And when you figure that out, where can you find one? In the world of design television, the man is often absent, a cipher, happy to get out of the way while his wife steers the direction of the couple’s living space. What a man might want, these shows imply, would be disruptive. A man is a mess. But since it’s not going anywhere, might as well contain it, a proposition tackled by a pair of male-oriented design shows: “Man Caves” (DIY Network, 9 p.m. Tuesdays), which began its third season last week, and “Man Land” (HGTV, 11 p.m. Sundays), which premieres tonight. Both operate from the same premise: that men are best when confined and nurtured. In that context, “caves” and “land” seem somehow too authoritative of words -- “cribs” would be more apt.
(Rainn Wilson gets in between hosts Jason Cameron, left, and Tony Siragusa of “Man Caves.” Photo credit: DIY)