Reality TV

doodlebuguk · Post by **doodlebuguk** » Mon May 31, 2004 3:23 am

I was wondering, what is everyone's opinions on reality TV? It can cover a lot of things, from Big Brother and I'm a Celebrity... to talent shows like Pop Stars and Pop Idol. What do you think of them?

I wanted to start this topic as Big Brother 5 has just started airing in Britain.

The thing is, I cannot stand reality TV. I think it's cheap to make and Big Brother in particular is horribly voyeristic. I mean, this series they have added glass fronts to the toilet stalls and shower cubicles for goodness sake! The depths the producers go to make the contestants suffer is really terrible.

Please don't worry about my opinion, I really want to see what other people think of this genre.

(Oh, and those example I picked as TV shows, I'm know there are a lot more, but I think those shows have been sold around the world, so they are quite well known)

Sailorasteroid · Post by **Sailorasteroid** » Mon May 31, 2004 5:56 am

I don't like "contest" reality shows, like Survivor, where it's a bunch of people trying to win a cash prize by engaging in petty backstabbing of the fellow contestants. And I've no interest in "relationship" reality shows like Road Rules or Real World in which it's all about who hates whom, who likes whom, and who's sleeping with whom. Even worse are the "celebrity" reality shows, like The Simple Life or The Osbournes. You just know they're not going to show anything the celebs don't want you to see. (Although, if they had a show called "Let's follow the cast of PGSM trough their lives," I might watch it. ^^) And then, when you combine all three, like The Bachelor, well, we're into real dark territory.

One exception for me: I like to watch the early rounds of American Idol, but only for the way Simon Cowell insults the losers. I care not one whit about who wins, and I've never listened to the songs the winners put out. So, that's not reality, it's an insult comedy.

What I can get into, if it's done well, are "documentary" type reality shows. My case in point is "American Chopper." For those of you unaware, it's about a family business which designs and builds customized motorcycles. Sometimes it's fun to watch the family going at each other's throats (there's almost no women on the show; it's the father and his two sons, plus the non-relation employees, who are all men), but it's also nice to see the way they work with machinery and tools, and the ways they come up with incredible designs. And, (cover the eyes of the producers of Survivor, if they're reading) you might learn something.

In fact, the term "reality TV" can be a little vague. Is "Iron Chef" reality? How about "Trading Spaces"? Those deal with reality, but with parts of it other than silly people who just want to be on TV. I guess what I'm saying is I like reality TV in proportion to its reality.

Post by **Tiff** » Mon May 31, 2004 8:42 am

Yeah, I really don't care for the backstabbing-type reality shows either. I don't feel any sympathy for the people, though...hell, they exploited themselves. I just find them stupid, and I especially find the people competing stupid for selling their emotions like that.

Shows like The Swan are incredibly shallow, IMO, and disgust me.

Like SailorAsteroid, i'm okay with documentary-type shows...I like the ones on TLC, I believe it is...where the families live in older time settines, like pioneer little house on the prairie-type times. It's fun to see which families make it and which don't, and how they do it.

Cardcaptor Takato · Post by **Cardcaptor Takato** » Mon May 31, 2004 9:04 am

I've never had anything against Survivor expect I just thought it was boring. There was this one reality show that used to air on tv that I liked watching, but I can't remember it's name or if it still comes on. All I remember is that they would like, play pranks and stuff on people and make them think it's really happening and then tell them that they've been "Xed" and they're on reality tv. I also sort of like Scare Tactics, but don't watch it very much.

yamijounouchi · Post by **yamijounouchi** » Mon May 31, 2004 11:49 am

any show that features several people gathered in one house for a set amount of time=bad. the ones i hate the most are the ones found on mtv. everything just feels so damn fake, the way someone acts compassionate or over dramatic or way too out going in front of the camera is most likely not how they would act if they weren't on tv.

anything on fox=crap. it seems to me like all of fox's reality shows are the results of lost bets or something. each one is more absurd and less entertaining than the last.

than theres "the fabulous life of...", "cribs" and the like that are all just excuses for celebrities to show off how much money they can needlessly spend. it's bad enough i have to choose which is more important: electricity or car, but then i turn on the tv and am exposed to an idiot with ten cars and a house the size of half my neighborhood who's worth more than my whole family combined for singing a song or playing make-believe in front of camera.

Akarui Kibuno · Post by **Akarui Kibuno** » Mon May 31, 2004 4:51 pm

In France, it seems like two national channels have a "Reality Show War - Who's gonna get more money from it).

The ones I'd hate less would be the music ones, if it weren't for the bad music released after the candidates have won.

The ones I hate more than anything else are the "Big Brother" type ones. Seeing someone flirting, burping, farting, doesn't make it interesting. Seeing people playing stupid games doesn't either.

Then there are some in France, that you may or may not know of, the "special community" ones. Like the Bachelor, Fear Factor, and so on. Bwah! The guy who chooses a bride among all those stupid greedy girls ? Yuck, disgusting. We also have the one... you must have that, Temptation Island or something. Separating couples for the fun on TV. They should get sued for that >.<

And "The Simple Life" (we have that too T_T )... gaah... Paris Hilton is a celebrity ? Since when ? o.O ? I didn't know sleeping around and spending your dad's money earned you celebrity. Pff. Hugh Jackman is one, the Tom series are (you know, Cruise, Hanks, Welling... any other Toms out there

? ) . We don't have real celebrities in the French version either. Plus, their are supposed to be there for associations who'll get 20,000 euros by each week spent by the celebrity, but the so-called celebrities get paid the same amount by week spent ! Yuck!

To sum it up, I hate Reality TV to an extent you wouldn't imagine. Though I do watch our edition of "The Simple Life" just cause I need something to "bitch about" every once in a while

yoshmaster5 · Post by **yoshmaster5** » Mon May 31, 2004 5:27 pm

I utterly DISPISE reality TV. to me, they are just pointless things where people can double-cross each other. ugh.

Survivor: people will just try to force other people to do their dirty work for them. AND forced to do things that will destroy your health to stay on.

Bachelor: "Oh look, let's make a guy choose a wife from women who had plastic surgery and are greedy pigs" disgusting. simply cruel.

For Love or Money: Even worse. "Lets see wether people will chose love or take the 1 million bucks for themselves! And the people are usually greedy-ass pigs!"

Who wants to marry my DAD: OMG... a boy chooses who he wants to be his MOM. GOOD LORD! WHAT HAS THIS WORLD COME TO????

The worst of them in my opinion...
Paradise Hotel: Hook up, or get out. To stay on the show, the people have to get into a RELATIONSHIP. *shudder* the people on that piece of shit definatly have some kind of STD's now.

LadyFlameSniper · Post by **LadyFlameSniper** » Mon May 31, 2004 6:06 pm

I find that most reality tv is a waste of space on tv and not worth watching. However I did enjoy and follow American Idol, America's Next Top Model, and The Apprentice.

And I watch Real World/Road Rules once in awhile to laugh at all the drama going on...

The worst one I've seen is Who Wants To Marry My Dad. Terrible idea.

Ni-ban Neko · Post by **Ni-ban Neko** » Mon May 31, 2004 6:45 pm

I like the kinds of "reality" shows that TLC, Discovery Channel, and Animal Planet show, because they're just that - they take the camera and show you what goes on in a hospital, or animal shelter, or what have you. I've learned a thing or two from those.

Scripted reality, however, is another matter altogether, and I don't like it. American Idol is all right, but the rest of those shows...ugh. No thank you.

yoshmaster5 · Post by **yoshmaster5** » Mon May 31, 2004 7:13 pm

American Idol is all right

mainly when Simon insults all the sucky people.

I think the TLC ones are good, it actually shows how people can remake their house, or how hospital life is.

"The Swan"

ugh... yes this is pointless Tiffu... "Lets take an ugly-as-heck person, give plastic surgery, and put her in a beauty pagent!"
Um... STUPID

Post by **Tiff** » Mon May 31, 2004 7:25 pm

yoshmaster5 wrote: "The Swan"

ugh... yes this is pointless Tiffu... "Lets take an ugly-as-heck person, give plastic surgery, and put her in a beauty pagent!"
Um... STUPID

Some of those women weren't even ugly-as-heck. That's what pisses me off. A lot of them were average-looking...why do they have ot be beauty queens? A lot of them were bawling and crying, saying they would never do this again, and oooh thep ain...Sorry, but I have no sympathy. They chose to change themselves, and what..did they think plastic surgery and brutal competition based entirely on looks was going to be a picnic?! Idiots.

LadyFlameSniper · Post by **LadyFlameSniper** » Mon May 31, 2004 7:26 pm

Yeah The Swan was dumb as a whole.. Okay I'm happy for the people who got their plastic surgery, and felt better about themselves as a whole, etc. (I think some of them looked really "fake" all over after the job but I digress) It's important to feel good about yourself, and most of those women didn't because of their looks. So whatever makes them happy. But the way the surgeons went about the surgery wit htheir comments was rather degrading. And the pageant thing was as if it was just thrown in there... so pointless and stupid.

yamijounouchi · Post by **yamijounouchi** » Mon May 31, 2004 8:32 pm

it probably was just thrown in. fox probably said it wasn't stupid enough as it was...

Starscream · Post by **Starscream** » Mon May 31, 2004 10:03 pm

Like most of you responding here, what irks me are these "sensationalism" TV shows, or rather, these things that are hyped up to be incredible, "unscripted" television where "anything goes"; when, in fact, much of the nonsense, bickering, in-fighting, and drama has been determined long ago by the writers. Among the culprits: "Survivor", "American Idol", "The Real World", "Road Trip", "Fear Factor", "For Love or Money", blah blah blah...basically, most of the crap that NBC, FOX, and MTV is showing these days.

Sailor Wind · Post by **Sailor Wind** » Tue Jun 01, 2004 12:14 am

i think reality tv shows such as big brother only makes the show look good infront of the tv viewers watching the program because viewers mainly like to see people having arguments, giving out personal details about there personal and social lives and to see how normal people act as an everyday life.

I seriously think that making reality tv shows like this is beyond stupidity but i suppose the channel/tv station who have came up with the idea has definately attracted alot of viewers watching the show. The only interesting reality tv shows would be the celebrity special ones or something similar to it since it would be interesting to see what superstars are like and what they do on an everyday basis. But watching normal people in a reality tv show is strange but somehow definately attractive to viewers.

doodlebuguk · Post by **doodlebuguk** » Tue Jun 01, 2004 2:48 am

I heard about 'The Swan' and I could not believe it. The idea of 'reality plastic surgery tv' just sounds awful. I heard about a show where a teenage mother chooses the adoptive parents she wants her child to have. That is just going WAY to far.

Another pet hate of mine is when they take a normal show, like Big Brother or Survivor or Wife Swap etc, and put the word 'Celebrity' in front of it. Those shows are awful. You get a bunch of Z-list celebrities desperate to be on TV again and they are just a big mess of overblown egos.

yamijounouchi · Post by **yamijounouchi** » Tue Jun 01, 2004 10:09 am

doodlebuguk wrote: Another pet hate of mine is when they take a normal show, like Big Brother or Survivor or Wife Swap etc, and put the word 'Celebrity' in front of it. Those shows are awful. You get a bunch of Z-list celebrities desperate to be on TV again and they are just a big mess of overblown egos.

HA! that's a good point. as if seeing carrot top eating cat extrement is going to make fear factor any more entertaining.

Sailor Wind · Post by **Sailor Wind** » Tue Jun 01, 2004 2:27 pm

in someways that just proves how dull and boring reality tv shows can be

jupiter23 · Post by **jupiter23** » Tue Jun 01, 2004 5:02 pm

I am not really a fan of this genre myself, but I did get into Mad Mad House. I only got into it because it amused me.

DreamEmpress · Post by **DreamEmpress** » Tue Jun 01, 2004 6:01 pm

Reality Tv: the end as we know it to television....

I'm not a huge fan of these shows. I don't know, maybe it's the fact that it seems more fantasy than sitcoms.

I do enjoy watching Extreme Makeover: Home Edition once and a while. Mainly because they are out there and redoing homes and trying to help people improve their living situation. Like in one episode, they put in an elevator for the oldest son who was in a wheel chair so he could finally get into the different floors of the house.

Shows like the 1900 House, those are interesting. Makes me wonder if I would have been able to live back in those different times.

The only other one I watched was The Apprentice. Aside from all the backstabbing and Omarosa being the ultimate drama queen, I did actually learn a few things about the business world and what is acceptable in an employee and what is most likely to get you fired from any job. Although seeing Troy and Kwame sticking through it and actually forming a real friendship did give me hope for the future.