Ho-ho-hum
Let’s hope those TV execs got some bright new ideas in their stockings this year.
Hi, my name is Shayna, and I'm the reality TV junkie.
I admit, I'm a wee bit burned out on the genre right now. It could just be the result of too much holiday food and too little sleep, but more likely it's because of the tube's increasingly lackluster offerings. Did anyone even notice that there were four finales within eight days recently? I hate to sound like a Scrooge, but really who cares?
Even reality maestro Mark Burnett had to admit when interviewed by TV Guide recently that "Survivor" was suffering from the blahs thanks to the idiotic strategizing of its competitors early on. Many of the most engaging personalities got the boot from Vanuatu before the season hit its stride, which quickly turned Thursday nights from "must see" to "yeah, maybe."
Alas, we junkies have seen lulls like this before and soldiered on. I, for one, just hope that the new year brings with it some new ideas on the reality front. Better still, I'd like to see some great new ideas coming down the pike. Indeed, if 2005 can be a little more "Amazing Race" and a little less "The Littlest Groom," we may all have something to celebrate.
Reality redux
"BMOC"
Wed., 9 p.m., WB
More than a dozen perky college coeds get the chance to find the best, the brightest, I dare say the biggest man on campus in this new WB offering. The premise is promising. The setting equally so. But the proof is in the pudding, folks, and this pudding's missing a few ingredients.
Cut to the University of Central Florida. OK-looking campus. More than 40,000 students. Must be rosters full of eligible young men who deserve the BMOC crown, right? There may very well be, but the girls charged with the task of finding just one made a less than stellar effort at finding him. Among their six finalists after a campuswide search: a dude who likes to work out, period; a guy who already has a girlfriend and sees nothing wrong with continuing to search for someone better; and a self-professed "perfect guy" whose command of the English language is more Rocky Balboa than Rudyard Kipling.
I'm a romantic and a glutton for punishment so I'll continue to tune into this train wreck of a dating show. But for the record, I'm not yet sold on the girls' choice for their Big Man on Campus (Matt, the so-called "sensitive stud"). Maybe things will improve now that he's calling the shots, though. Yes, in the modern reality TV tradition, there's a twist built into the premise: Now that the girls have picked their man, he gets to pick which one of them will be crowned his campus queen. On three, everybody, sigh.
"The Amazing Race 6"
Tue., 9 p.m., ABC
Thank goodness, as always, for this show for keeping my adrenaline pumping. In spite of some real cringe-worthy contestants (does anybody else want to smack Jonathan upside the head?!) it really is a round-the-world adventure for jet-setters and couch surfers alike. The most recent episode took me from Berlin to Budapest in less than 10 minutes. Even a bullet train couldn't do that.
And finally the finales
"The Swan"
Fox
The swan song of the week's finales, this extreme makeover show's pageant caps a season of surgery, weight loss and dramatic "reveals" that can either make you want to swoon or be sick, depending on your mood. I think the program's aim of transforming its contestants from the inside out is a good one (they do receive therapy and life coaching, as well as physical training). But as anyone who has tuned in knows, the guys with the scalpels wield the most influence when all is said and done.
No matter. Clearly plenty of women are swans just waiting to be revealed, as the show isn't lacking for participants (reportedly "The Swan 3" was being cast before the second edition even aired!). Telling you who won isn't what's important here. If you care, I'm sure you watched. Telling you that nine former self-proclaimed "ugly ducklings" were willing to strut their stuff in swimwear and lingerie for a television audience (not to mention their young children, in some cases) is what really ought to make your head spin.
"The Apprentice"
NBC
Kelly, Bill, Jen, Amy what's the difference? I'm glad the Donald can tell them apart, because most of the viewing public probably can't. The show's still entertaining and the prize lofty, but the contestants on the second edition left much to be desired. NBC reports that season three will pit entrepreneurs with "street smarts" against professionals with "book smarts." At least they're finally doing away with the whole gender madness.
"America's Next Top Model"
UPN
The finalists: a haughty brat, a bratty hottie and a legally blind blonde. The winner? Eva. She's the one who defied all odds by becoming Tyra Banks' latest prodigy though she stands at only 5 feet 7 inches tall and has the kind of scrappy personality that clashes with just about everyone she meets. She was my pick, though, so woo-hoo go, Eva!
"Survivor: Vanuatu"
CBS
You already know who won the million this time: that dolt Chris. Yeah, that one. The highway repair guy who should have been kicked off after the first episode, when he cost his team immunity. Never mind all that, though. What we really care about is which Survivorette Jeff Probst is dating these days. In case you haven't been reading the tabloids, it's Julie. No, not the one with the bad knee. No, not the one who talked to much. Julie. The one with the knee socks. Geez, no wonder a fellow reality fan I know dubbed her "Julie who?"!
Write to the Reality TV Junkie at tvjunkie@latimes.com.
I admit, I'm a wee bit burned out on the genre right now. It could just be the result of too much holiday food and too little sleep, but more likely it's because of the tube's increasingly lackluster offerings. Did anyone even notice that there were four finales within eight days recently? I hate to sound like a Scrooge, but really who cares?
Even reality maestro Mark Burnett had to admit when interviewed by TV Guide recently that "Survivor" was suffering from the blahs thanks to the idiotic strategizing of its competitors early on. Many of the most engaging personalities got the boot from Vanuatu before the season hit its stride, which quickly turned Thursday nights from "must see" to "yeah, maybe."
Alas, we junkies have seen lulls like this before and soldiered on. I, for one, just hope that the new year brings with it some new ideas on the reality front. Better still, I'd like to see some great new ideas coming down the pike. Indeed, if 2005 can be a little more "Amazing Race" and a little less "The Littlest Groom," we may all have something to celebrate.
Reality redux
"BMOC"
Wed., 9 p.m., WB
More than a dozen perky college coeds get the chance to find the best, the brightest, I dare say the biggest man on campus in this new WB offering. The premise is promising. The setting equally so. But the proof is in the pudding, folks, and this pudding's missing a few ingredients.
Cut to the University of Central Florida. OK-looking campus. More than 40,000 students. Must be rosters full of eligible young men who deserve the BMOC crown, right? There may very well be, but the girls charged with the task of finding just one made a less than stellar effort at finding him. Among their six finalists after a campuswide search: a dude who likes to work out, period; a guy who already has a girlfriend and sees nothing wrong with continuing to search for someone better; and a self-professed "perfect guy" whose command of the English language is more Rocky Balboa than Rudyard Kipling.
I'm a romantic and a glutton for punishment so I'll continue to tune into this train wreck of a dating show. But for the record, I'm not yet sold on the girls' choice for their Big Man on Campus (Matt, the so-called "sensitive stud"). Maybe things will improve now that he's calling the shots, though. Yes, in the modern reality TV tradition, there's a twist built into the premise: Now that the girls have picked their man, he gets to pick which one of them will be crowned his campus queen. On three, everybody, sigh.
"The Amazing Race 6"
Tue., 9 p.m., ABC
Thank goodness, as always, for this show for keeping my adrenaline pumping. In spite of some real cringe-worthy contestants (does anybody else want to smack Jonathan upside the head?!) it really is a round-the-world adventure for jet-setters and couch surfers alike. The most recent episode took me from Berlin to Budapest in less than 10 minutes. Even a bullet train couldn't do that.
And finally the finales
"The Swan"
Fox
The swan song of the week's finales, this extreme makeover show's pageant caps a season of surgery, weight loss and dramatic "reveals" that can either make you want to swoon or be sick, depending on your mood. I think the program's aim of transforming its contestants from the inside out is a good one (they do receive therapy and life coaching, as well as physical training). But as anyone who has tuned in knows, the guys with the scalpels wield the most influence when all is said and done.
No matter. Clearly plenty of women are swans just waiting to be revealed, as the show isn't lacking for participants (reportedly "The Swan 3" was being cast before the second edition even aired!). Telling you who won isn't what's important here. If you care, I'm sure you watched. Telling you that nine former self-proclaimed "ugly ducklings" were willing to strut their stuff in swimwear and lingerie for a television audience (not to mention their young children, in some cases) is what really ought to make your head spin.
"The Apprentice"
NBC
Kelly, Bill, Jen, Amy what's the difference? I'm glad the Donald can tell them apart, because most of the viewing public probably can't. The show's still entertaining and the prize lofty, but the contestants on the second edition left much to be desired. NBC reports that season three will pit entrepreneurs with "street smarts" against professionals with "book smarts." At least they're finally doing away with the whole gender madness.
"America's Next Top Model"
UPN
The finalists: a haughty brat, a bratty hottie and a legally blind blonde. The winner? Eva. She's the one who defied all odds by becoming Tyra Banks' latest prodigy though she stands at only 5 feet 7 inches tall and has the kind of scrappy personality that clashes with just about everyone she meets. She was my pick, though, so woo-hoo go, Eva!
"Survivor: Vanuatu"
CBS
You already know who won the million this time: that dolt Chris. Yeah, that one. The highway repair guy who should have been kicked off after the first episode, when he cost his team immunity. Never mind all that, though. What we really care about is which Survivorette Jeff Probst is dating these days. In case you haven't been reading the tabloids, it's Julie. No, not the one with the bad knee. No, not the one who talked to much. Julie. The one with the knee socks. Geez, no wonder a fellow reality fan I know dubbed her "Julie who?"!
Write to the Reality TV Junkie at tvjunkie@latimes.com.
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