Television shows...can someone explain this to me??

[mjr]

Ok, I realize that there are very likely a few things I watch (if not all of them) that others would find to be horrible.

As an example, last night I watched the NHRA GatorNationals. I get that a lot of people don't care for drag racing. A couple of weeks back, I watched bowling on TV. I get that a lot of people would rather do MANY other things than watch people roll a ball at some pins...

BUT...

I seriously don't get the appeal of shows like The Bachelor/ette, Dancing with the Stars, So You Think You Can Dance, ANYTHING with a Kardashian in it, and so forth.

I just don't. Can someone explain it to me?

Seriously...The Bachelor? Let's think about that. They take an attractive dude who apparently can't get attractive women for himself, get however-many attractive women who apparently can't get guys for themselves, "chum the water", and film what plays out? Gag. What's MORE sad is that the dude/women are probably "aspiring actor/actress/model" who just want the face time on TV, and aren't interested at all.

Same thing with The Bachelorette, but in reverse.

Dancing with the stars? I don't get it. I seriously don't.

From the commercials I've seen, SYTYCD is just a bunch of people jumping, gyrating, kicking, and twirling around a stage. Is that dance??

American Idol? Please. That show jumped the shark after the first season. You know most people have had enough of it when you get sites like votefortheworst.com, since American Idol's voting methods are flawed and questionable at best, anyway. To the best of my knowledge, they have no third-party validation, and so they can just pick whoever they want.

And why announce who won on CNN? I saw that one year. My thought: Outside of the people actually watching AI, "WHO GIVES A S**T WHO WON?!" It's likely a style of music I don't listen to, and the "winners" generally don't do that well anyway. Go back and look at ALL the winners, and see where they are right now...

The Kardashians -- seriously...what's the appeal of these women? Unless it's for people who actually like contrived, staged drama (or in some cases, REAL drama). Kim K basically admitted that one marriage to that basketball player dude (I forget his name) was a farce from the beginning, IIRC, just for the publicity and MONEY.

I know, I know...simple solution..."don't watch". I seriously don't watch any of the shows I'm asking about, I'm just asking about their appeal.

[Jetfire]

Some people just like to live through (the viewing) of other people. That's about all I can think of for shows like the Kardashians I guess. (I don't watch them either). I'd class Bachelor shows in that category as well.

Shows about talent, I can see the appeal of more, especially if you like the talent being tested on the show. That's where AI and the singing shows fall in. It's a chance to see new talent, to laugh at the failures and cheer on the good ones. Granted AI really peeked and went beyond its original scope by getting plastered all over the media, but now it's about the same level as all the other types of shows.

I admit, I also have my "Reality TV" vices as well. I watch Survivor, Amazing Race, Face Off, Top Chef, Masterchef, Hell's Kitchen and a lot of Cooking shows in general. But in all the cases, there are specific things I watch for, and despite what the producers seem to think it is NOT the endless talking heads and DRAH-MA!. All that I FF through as fast as I can.

For the cooking shows, I like seeing how the dishes are made, and more than one has entered my cooking repertoire after I've seen them on other shows. (Plus Alton Brown taught me how to properly hold and use a knife).

Amazing Race? I watch for the challenge and the sites, to see the slices of the world beyond my door. Ditto for Survivor (more for the challenges than the slice of the world, but especially not for the DRAH-MA!)

Face Off? Just to see creative people transform the models into the creatures of the week, and seeing the models bring those creatures to life. (And because it doesn't have as much of the DRAH-MA! that other shows have; I rarely have to FF through anything on the show).

[mjr]

I admit, I also have my "Reality TV" vices as well. I watch Survivor, Amazing Race, Face Off, Top Chef, Masterchef, Hell's Kitchen

I never watched any of those except for Top Chef and Hell's Kitchen. I quit watching those because they got somewhat predictable and a little "over the top".

Plus Alton Brown taught me how to properly hold and use a knife.

I've learned a lot from Good Eats myself. I don't consider Good Eats a "reality" show, though. I consider it "educational".

[TheHuckster]

I can't stand most reality shows at all. Way back when, I used to watch The Soup which made fun of reality TV (and other stupid shows) but even that got old and boring.

There are some shows I can at least understand the appeal. The Amazing Race can be entertaining in small doses.

Face Off is really cool, but I sort of put that in a different genre. The contestants in Face Off have a very specific talent and they don't just select any random person off the street, the judges aren't overacting or over the top, and the stuff they pull off in one day or however long it is is very impressive. I think what sets Face Off apart is you're actually entertained by the objective of the competition, and not the overdone drama and mudslinging that you often find in competition shows. People face obstacles or unforeseen hurdles (the glue doesn't set all the way or they got the wrong color paint) but they don't seem as contrived and overdramatic as other shows. There are some cooking competitions that are sort of the same way, although a lot of them have really annoying judges who will say anything just to provoke a reaction for the cameras.

The reality shows I really can't stand, though, are the ones that just follow people's lives. Kardashians, Jon and Kate (back when they were a thing), and The Duggars to name just a few. And shows that feature especially dysfunctional families or people with disorders for the sake of entertainment (Toddlers and Tiaras, Hoarders, etc) are as exploitative as carnivals, IMO. It's fine if you want to do an objective documentary that informs people of what certain people's lives are like, but TLC and the ilk are promoting it as some kind of freak show and that's simply unethical.

[mjr]

And shows that feature especially dysfunctional families or people with disorders for the sake of entertainment (Toddlers and Tiaras, Hoarders, etc) are as exploitative as carnivals, IMO. It's fine if you want to do an objective documentary that informs people of what certain people's lives are like, but TLC and the ilk are promoting it as some kind of freak show and that's simply unethical.

It's like "The Biggest Loser". I guess it's supposed to be inspirational ("Look! this guy used to weigh 500 pounds! But we made him exercise and now he weighs 200!"), but to me it comes off as exploitative. Not only that, but the name of the show itself is terrible. I guess "The One Who Lost The Most Weight" or "I was a fat-ass and now I'm not" isn't marketable enough. And I say that with all due respect, as someone who probably needs to lose 30 or 40 pounds himself.

I was flipping channels the other day, and saw this one titled "My 600lb life". I didn't watch, but even that sounds horrible. There was another one about pregnant women ("My high risk pregnancy", or something like that) that seemed equally exploitative.

Heck, even look at "Honey Boo-Boo". That's a train wreck. Never seen it, but from what I've read...wow.

[gremcint]

the biggest loser is horrible to their contestants, read some of the interviews I'm surprised noone has died yet.


In regards to reality shows and similar stuff: Poor people like to watch rich people and fantasize about becoming them. Rich people like to watch poor people and be glad they aren't them. That is a summary of a lot of reality shows right there. That's the general pull at least.

[Tama]

Honey boo boo is shot now, mama june is apparently seeing her pedophile husband ex or something who molested one of her older daughters. So there won't be new versions of THAT show!

[Andara Bledin]

Seriously...The Bachelor?

Same thing with The Bachelorette, but in reverse.

This is kind of a romance novel combined with a soap opera and then given a glam makeover. And it's that audience that they're catering to.

Dancing with the stars? I don't get it. I seriously don't.

From the commercials I've seen, SYTYCD is just a bunch of people jumping, gyrating, kicking, and twirling around a stage. Is that dance??

Dancing is fun to watch, and you totally can't judge it by commercials, because they're going to be full of cuts and there will be no flow.

... besides, by your metric, drag racing is just a bunch of cars starting and stopping in a mostly straight line...

American Idol?

People want to find and root for people who can do things they wish they could. And in the cases of the worst, they can think to themselves, 'at least I'm not that bad,' and get to feel superior, too.

And why announce who won on CNN?

Last I checked, Culture was still a news section in the paper...

The Kardashians -- seriously...what's the appeal of these women?

You've got me here. I don't understand why anyone give's a rat's ass about anyone in that entire clan that wasn't independently famous. Then again, I don't know why anyone cares who the fuck Paris Hilton is that isn't a member of her family and clique, either.

As for the vast majority of the reality shows that involve either drama between characters (Suvivor, Real Life), or voting (American Idol, etc), or even makeovers (Extreme Home Makeover, Pimp My ride) are full of bullshit the producers throw in to make it seem more "real" but is just scripted drek.

Nobody is going to die on Survivor if they have anything to say about it because the film crew is going to have medical staff on hand. Real Life was mostly bullshit. American Idol pre-selects their winners and voting is a sham designed to get the audience invested. Extreme Home Makeover outright lies about some details and scripts some of their 'touching moments.' Pimp My Ride uses their own cars and parks them in one of about a dozen driveways that they have paid to use for their tv show. There's very little that's real about reality tv.

[mjr]

This is kind of a romance novel combined with a soap opera and then given a glam makeover. And it's that audience that they're catering to.

But even if that's true (and I don't doubt you for a second), couldn't these "beautiful people" meet other "beautiful people" on their own?? Unless some of them are "aspiring" actors/acresses/models...

That's the only thing I can think of...

Dancing is fun to watch, and you totally can't judge it by commercials, because they're going to be full of cuts and there will be no flow.

I guess I'm one of those who just doesn't understand it. I don't know what's "good" and what's "bad" dancing. And it's something that just doesn't appeal to me.

... besides, by your metric, drag racing is just a bunch of cars starting and stopping in a mostly straight line...

True...but they're going VERY FAST in a straight line.

Oh, I fully acknowledge that there are people who don't like to watch/don't understand it...

Last I checked, Culture was still a news section in the paper...

Yes, but I didn't realize the "culture" section was about "pop culture". And it only seems to be American Idol. CNN isn't announcing the "winner" of other reality shows.

You've got me here. I don't understand why anyone give's a rat's ass about anyone in that entire clan that wasn't independently famous. Then again, I don't know why anyone cares who the fuck Paris Hilton is that isn't a member of her family and clique, either.

Preach it. Kim Kardashian is basically famous because she slept with some dude and the video got put on the Internet. "Famous for being Famous" as it's, said.

Nobody is going to die on Survivor if they have anything to say about it because the film crew is going to have medical staff on hand.

Well, I guess theoretically there could be an accidental death. But yeah, the film crew, producers, etc. are staying in hotels, most likely. So just smack the camera guy and take his food if you have to.

You really wanna do something compelling? Do Survivor: Antarctica.

[Andara Bledin]

But even if that's true (and I don't doubt you for a second), couldn't these "beautiful people" meet other "beautiful people" on their own?? Unless some of them are "aspiring" actors/acresses/models...

I could ask my boss' daughter's boyfriend his reasoning for being a Bachelor...

You really wanna do something compelling? Do Survivor: Antarctica.

I prefer The Amazing Race, instead. They show a certain level of respect for the competitors and don't play up the interpersonal drama too much, preferring to let the puzzles and the environment provide the conflict.

[HYHYBT]

A century ago, or maybe a little more, people staged literal train wrecks for public amusement.

[wolfie]

American Idol? Please. That show jumped the shark after the first season.

After the first season? Try "During the first episode".

[Hyena Dandy]

People like stories. These shows tell stories of their own. They get invested in the lives of the Kardashians because the Kardashians are people who have lives. They have stories. I think everyone is interesting, so while I'm not going to watch the Kardashians, I can at least understand. If something about the character/s appeals to people, they watch it.

[cindybubbles]

I prefer Total Drama because it's an animated parody of several reality shows; most often of Survivor and its seasons. Plus, the host is hilariously cruel!

[XCashier]

Face Off is really cool, but I sort of put that in a different genre....I think what sets Face Off apart is you're actually entertained by the objective of the competition, and not the overdone drama and mudslinging that you often find in competition shows.

I really like Face Off. I used to do stage makeup, and it's impressive to see how professional makeup artists create characters, aliens, other things. Some of these folks are amazingly talented.