REALITY SERIES BASED SHOWS - SEEMS TO BE A FIRE BURNING BRIGHT, BUT WHEN WILL IT BURN OUT?
I know this category may seem a bit inappropriate, but I couldn’t really find anything more proper than this. Please don’t judge your rating of my work by the category on this piece.
Since early 2000 we’ve been blessed with the stifling popularity of reality TV series. Now, are these shows actually displaying real world activities? Or are they just called ’reality series’ because they deal with people who aren’t stars? Now, I must admit: I’ve truly been sucked into a few of these shows. I was hooked to Temptation Island for the full length of the show, I love watching The Real World occasionally, and I never missed a Friday night in front of the TV for Making The Band. My parents particularly loved Temptation Island, and can’t get enough of Boot Camp (we’re a military family). My aunt, hardly a person to watch much television, spent more hours in front of the screen watching Survivor, Temptation Island, and The Mole than she ever has.
These shows have lasted a full year now, one after the other. Who Wants To Be a Millionare? is a show I consider reality based. They mostly deal with people who aren’t already famous. Look how quickly that show became popular in the U.S.! Survivor has even started its sequel, Survivor II. A second Temptation Island is expected to air sometime later this year. At the moment Survivor II is being watched the most, with Boot Camp not far behind. The spawning of the group O-Town, created on the show Making The Band, is three weeks into its second season, following the newly created group. There is no doubt that reality based shows are a fire burning bright, but when will they burn out?
I, myself, do not particularly enjoy Survivor, The Mole, or Boot Camp. I am getting rather tired of the constant ’’survivor skill’’ shows. These types seem to be most created. Now, here’s my take on each show. Realize that I have not watched all of them, but have most certainly heard of them and how they work (anyone who hasn’t must be living under a rock).
SURVIVOR & SURVIVOR II
I believe I’ve watched maybe two episodes of the first Survivor. It was completely boring and uninteresting to me. I do not prefer these types of survivor skill shows and the way each person is portrayed. I’d rather be sitting here writing than waste my time watching that show. I don’t believe Survivor II is quite as popular as the first was. Is this a sign that perhaps it’s fading away? Probably not. frowns
TEMPTATION ISLAND
This show is probably the 2nd most popular. They had extremely high ratings and I was just hooked to this show. I made sure not to miss any episode because I didn’t want to miss any detail of what was going on with each couple. My favorite couple was Mandy & Billy. Mandy is eccentric and I love her attitude and style. They had a very exclusive time on the island and it made for great viewing. I loved the way they were able to view each other’s dates and send videos. Of course, and I discussed this with my mother and others, it takes away from the reality of: will they do it? But needless to say, I loved the show, I’m waiting for a sequel, and it was one of my favorites.
MAKING THE BAND
Can you believe that, although many teenage girls watched this series, they had extremely low ratings and ABC dropped the show on occasion for other programs? You wouldn’t even believe my outrage when I sat down in front of my TV at 8:00 p.m. to see a program other than Making The Band airing. I was furious! Yet, without a doubt, Lou Pearlman created a 3rd most popular boy band. They are 3rd to the Backstreet Boys and Nsync. I enjoyed the drama of the show and finding out who would make the final five. But after the five were picked, the show and quality seemed to go down hill. After so long the guys lost morale and umph, deciding that since they were already picked for the group, that they didn’t need to try anymore. Then Ikaika left, leaving the rest of the group to pick Dan Miller, who, within two days, was part of the group, taking Ikaika’s place. That perturbed me, and I was relentless to believe it was actually ’reality.’ I believe Pearlman was trying to make his previous work, BSB and Nsync, look bad. I hesitate at calling the groups his ’work, ’ because I don’t think that’s right.
POPSTARS
I didn’t watch this show but I figure that it is basically a female version of Making The Band. Through Pop Stars, a girl group called Eden’s Crush was created, who are now also popular with teen girls. The way they were created seemed even more rushed than the Making The Band boys and was disgustingly more formulated. I’m glad I didn’t watch this show!
THE MOLE
Another ’survivor skills’ show that I didn’t enjoy. It was the same thing where you vote off the other players. It’s all in the strategy, people! I didn’t enjoy this show and would, again, rather be sitting here writing than watching it. It just didn’t ’hook’ me or interest me the way others had. It seemed way too similar to Survivor.
BOOT CAMP
My father is a U.S. Marine, which led our whole family to watching this series. We wanted to see if they’d actually emulate a honest to god boot camp, or if it would be a ’Hollywood Boot Camp.’ It is sort of a mixture between both. All long there are players trying to scam each other, with strategies playing in their head. How to win is all they think of. They go on missions and later vote each other off. It is interesting but it doesn’t hold my attention for long. I believe that it tilts a little towards ’Hollywood Boot Camp.’ But I can see how it can draw people in and make them try to figure out who will win in the end. Good idea for a reality show!
IN CONCLUSION
I suppose that these reality based series will continue for quite a while still. I’m hoping that, since they are taking up so much air time, they will at least create some interesting ones. I am definitely wishing for a sequel to Temptation Island, and if I ever find the time I am trying to watch the second season of Making The Band. I certainly can say goodbye to survivor type shows anytime now! This hysteria, though, will die down soon enough. When these shows reach the top, there’s only one place for them to go: down.