Reality Show Challenge Episode One Part Two

During the first few episodes of reality TV, I saw dysfunctional families, 25 girls with no agenda but the same guy and one very pregnant cheerleader. Here are some of the other things I saw and the impressions that they made on me.

Bad Girl's Club

I felt like something of a bad girl for even watching this! 7 girls all competing to be the baddest? This can only end in handcuffs. This was like a prison documentary (with alpha girls and everything) except in a much fancier setting. Which somehow made it even more trashier. I don't think I've ever been so repelled and terrified of my own sex. The housewives in New Jersey are in the minor league while these guys- well they're in the big leagues. 

Characters: 3 These characters disgusted me. The language they use, the behavior they engage in- it's like I'm a scientist observing a different species in their natural habitat. I feel so so sorry for these girls. Not that I get that out of the way, I need to say a lot of them all seem the same to me. A lot of them even look the same- pouty lips, don't-mess-with-me expression and a defensive stance. And all of them talk the same! "I am the baddest (insert profanity or a stream of profanities)" The only too people I could tell apart (and I don't even remember their names) is the girl with the pink/ red hair and the girl with the blonde hair (the Botox Barbie I think her name was) I'm not picking favorites but I'm going to keep my eye on those two this season.

Authenticity: 4.5 I'm pretty sure you can't create stuff like this.
Emotional Intensity: 2.5 I worried someone was going to be pushed out the window but as for emotional intensity it wasn't really there. Maybe that's because everyone was too busy yelling and drinking to To pay attention to their feelings. Not even sure if they have them since they are continually masked by alcohol.

Conflict: 2.5 There was nothing BUT conflict. Once again too bad it wasn't over something remotely important. The hair pulling was  cool though.

Class: .5 And I'm being generous. Trust me.
Overall Rating: 16.5/25

The Biggest Loser

Until watching this episode I never understood why exactly the name of the show was "The Biggest Loser" and I wondered why anyone would want to compete to become one. But now after watching the show I understand a bit more. The struggle with weight is not one I am exactly familiar with but every time the mile run rolls around in gym I try to fall down the stairs so I can conveniently sit out. To be honest I felt tired just watching this episode! But I also felt motivated. Tomorrow I'm going to be spending a little more time on the basketball court. 

Characters: 2.5 There are fifteen contestants split into three teams. Each team is trained by one of the three trainers (there silhouettes are pictured above) Unfortunately the only trainer whose name I remember is Jillian Michaels and that's because she scares the crap out of me. The contestants joined the show for the obvious reason of losing weight and getting in better shape but there were struggles unique to each of them. One man wanted to lose the weight from his son (which was actually a common theme among the contestants who were parents) and others just wanted to do it for themselves. Whatever the reason, their struggles were inspiring. I rated the characters low though because they blurred together and alot of them felt similar. Hopefully as I watch more episodes I'll get to know the characters on a more personal level.
 Authenticity: 4 There was really no way you could fake the sweat dripping off the faces of these people. And you can't really script heavy breathing with "I want to die" mixed in. I mean you can but in this case I felt like they would have been doing it anyway.

Emotional Intensity: 3.5 These people were working so hard! Most of them lost 10-20 pounds in one week! They wanted it so badly. When the final weigh in came back and it was revealed who would go home, my heart went out to TC. Afterwards when they showed how far TC came since the show, and they showed him running around with his children...well he may have been the first to go home but he definitely was not a loser.
Conflict: 3.5 During the first work out, at least three people passed out and there was one guy routinely upchucking throughout the entire episode. Now if that isn't conflict (and a pretty messy conflict) then I don't know what is.
Class: 4 These people had it. They put it all on the line so they could improve their health and their lives. They pushed themselves to their limits and there was less whining then there was on Glee. And though they might not be as toned as the Bad Girls Club or as tanned as the Real Housewives, they have my vote for the classiest show so far.
Overall Rating: 17.5/25

Beauty and the Geek

Ahh, the  tale of a socially awkward but brainy guy and a gorgeous but clueless female. Classic combination. Apparently Season 5 works a little different because the 9 guys and the 9 girls work against each other instead of pairing up with each other. Having not seen any of the other seasons I cannot do a fair comparison but I will say that it was very entertaining (Thought slightly disturbing to learn there are people who cannot tell time) 

Characters: 4 I found the contestants to be very endearing. Geeks always have that quality- you want to protect them, take them under your wing, show them the ropes. They aren't "aliens" (as one beauty put it) but they are adorable. I'm not really sure why Tommy (my favorite Geek) was on the show at all because besides being a sweater vest enthusiast he seemed pretty normal to me. The girls were a lot harder to distinguish from each other because they all looked like they stepped straight off the pages of Vogue. Except for the Numbers Challenge (getting people's phone numbers) where they did an Make-Under (see below) to make the girls look a little less attractive. I liked that because we got to see a little bit more of their personalities although personally I didn't really think they looked all that ugly.

Authenticity: 3 I thought all the characters were authentic but I'm not really sure if the Numbers Challenge was staged or not. How did those people in the club not know they were being filmed? And don't you have to sign a waiver or something to appear on television? I am slightly skeptical (and I'm really hoping those girls were just dumbing themselves down a bit for the show)

Emotional Intensity: 2 There really wasn't any emotion although I did feel the girl's pain when they were dressed in ugly clothes and sent off into the club. Every time a guy refused to give a girl his number, I wanted to laugh because if he knew she was a really a runaway model or a Playboy girl he would change his mind fast.

Conflict: 3.5 I liked the conflict. Not too serious but enough to grab my interest. I kind of want to try a Numbers Challenge with my friends. When I'm old enough to go to a club.

Class: 3.5 These beauties were well schooled in class (and the geeks were too harmless to violate it) except for the one who was sitting on a chair eating chicken. No one looks all that beautiful when they are eating chicken. 

Overall Rating: 16/25

So this first round goes to the Real Housewives of New Jersey. We're just getting started though so be sure to check out my next post!

Leave your comments so I know your not a zombie! I love feedback be it positive or negative but constructive. Either way I hoped you enjoyed this post and please check in again for my next one.