Keeping It "Real"
It feels kind of odd that Bravo, a channel that started out with some measure of cred among the intelligentsia, appears to be the new King of Reality TV (a dubious honor, at best).
I guess it all started with Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, a show that I've never really watched, but I would certainly consider a breakout hit in the reality landscape.
Then there was Celebrity Poker Showdown. I've never been much of a card player, and watching cards is generally about as interesting as watching someone do their taxes. But somehow, the addition of C-level celebrities (that's not an insult--it merely reflects the relative fame of the participants) around the poker table just makes this amazingly watchable. I mean, on tonight's show, I got to see Meat Loaf and Howie Mandel take on the Dads from Malcolm in the Middle and 7th Heaven and the guy who played the dwarf author Miles Finch in the movie Elf. Where else do you get to see an assemblage like that? (Incidentally, I was somewhat surprised to see that Bryan Cranston, the Dad from Malcolm was by far the most entertaining of the bunch. However, Meat Loaf was not nearly as funny as he thought he was being.)
Project Runway was an inexplicably addictive little slice of reality. What an interesting, diverse little crew of prospective designers they assembled for that one. Here's hoping the casting is just as meticulous for the sequel.
I've only seen two episodes of Situation: Comedy, but again, it seems to have a somewhat original spin, because it's the only reality show I've seen that concerns writers. And in choosing sitcoms, they found a way to make the writing/creating process interesting to watch. At least it's more interesting than watching 12 authors sit around trying to compose the best novel.
I haven't seen much of Kathy Griffin's My Life on the D-List, but it looked like a pretty good behind-the-scenes-of-celebrity sort of show.
And I haven't been able to stomach actually watching Being Bobby Brown, but some of my friends assure me that it's the ultimate in trash TV. I guess I'll just have to take their word on that one, because I'm not going near it.
But the real reason I started this whole post that quickly grew out of control is the fact that they've finally brought back the grandaddy of reality gameshows, The Battle of the Network Stars! I guess I'm showing my age a bit, but man, did I love watching those competitions as a kid! That was the annual program that I looked forward to almost as much as the yearly holiday cartoon specials. Back in those days, you almost never saw actors from different networks together, so it just seemed like a big deal to have Gabe Kaplan racing against Roger Conrad or Lynda Carter in a swim-off with Adrienne Barbeau. Anyway, ever since this big surge in reality/gameshow programs, I've always thought they should bring back this concept. I'll admit that I was a little disappointed when I found out that they were actually restricting it to the "stars" of other reality shows. I would much rather have seen them do it old school, just having five teams instead of three, so I could watch Keifer Sutherland run an obstacle course against Charlie Sheen or see Jennifer Garner and Jim Belushi in a three-legged race against Reba McEntire and Jeff Foxworthy. But no, all the teams are made up of past contestants from Survivor, Real World, Amazing Race and others. But I'm still glad that they kept the set-up and structure the same and they're even reviving old school events like the obstacle course (recreated almost exactly as they used to run it), the swimming relay, the dunk tank and everyone's favorite--Simon Sez. So anyway, I'm not really sure what my point is, but having a new The Battle of the Network Stars just strikes home with some really, really young memories of mine, which is kind of neat. I'll shut up now.
I guess it all started with Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, a show that I've never really watched, but I would certainly consider a breakout hit in the reality landscape.
Then there was Celebrity Poker Showdown. I've never been much of a card player, and watching cards is generally about as interesting as watching someone do their taxes. But somehow, the addition of C-level celebrities (that's not an insult--it merely reflects the relative fame of the participants) around the poker table just makes this amazingly watchable. I mean, on tonight's show, I got to see Meat Loaf and Howie Mandel take on the Dads from Malcolm in the Middle and 7th Heaven and the guy who played the dwarf author Miles Finch in the movie Elf. Where else do you get to see an assemblage like that? (Incidentally, I was somewhat surprised to see that Bryan Cranston, the Dad from Malcolm was by far the most entertaining of the bunch. However, Meat Loaf was not nearly as funny as he thought he was being.)
Project Runway was an inexplicably addictive little slice of reality. What an interesting, diverse little crew of prospective designers they assembled for that one. Here's hoping the casting is just as meticulous for the sequel.
I've only seen two episodes of Situation: Comedy, but again, it seems to have a somewhat original spin, because it's the only reality show I've seen that concerns writers. And in choosing sitcoms, they found a way to make the writing/creating process interesting to watch. At least it's more interesting than watching 12 authors sit around trying to compose the best novel.
I haven't seen much of Kathy Griffin's My Life on the D-List, but it looked like a pretty good behind-the-scenes-of-celebrity sort of show.
And I haven't been able to stomach actually watching Being Bobby Brown, but some of my friends assure me that it's the ultimate in trash TV. I guess I'll just have to take their word on that one, because I'm not going near it.
But the real reason I started this whole post that quickly grew out of control is the fact that they've finally brought back the grandaddy of reality gameshows, The Battle of the Network Stars! I guess I'm showing my age a bit, but man, did I love watching those competitions as a kid! That was the annual program that I looked forward to almost as much as the yearly holiday cartoon specials. Back in those days, you almost never saw actors from different networks together, so it just seemed like a big deal to have Gabe Kaplan racing against Roger Conrad or Lynda Carter in a swim-off with Adrienne Barbeau. Anyway, ever since this big surge in reality/gameshow programs, I've always thought they should bring back this concept. I'll admit that I was a little disappointed when I found out that they were actually restricting it to the "stars" of other reality shows. I would much rather have seen them do it old school, just having five teams instead of three, so I could watch Keifer Sutherland run an obstacle course against Charlie Sheen or see Jennifer Garner and Jim Belushi in a three-legged race against Reba McEntire and Jeff Foxworthy. But no, all the teams are made up of past contestants from Survivor, Real World, Amazing Race and others. But I'm still glad that they kept the set-up and structure the same and they're even reviving old school events like the obstacle course (recreated almost exactly as they used to run it), the swimming relay, the dunk tank and everyone's favorite--Simon Sez. So anyway, I'm not really sure what my point is, but having a new The Battle of the Network Stars just strikes home with some really, really young memories of mine, which is kind of neat. I'll shut up now.