Under A Blood Red Camera Eye
Posted on | December 14, 2005 at 9:01 pm | 5 Comments
Yes, there is one reality show I still watch, despite its present lackluster season. Last night was the finale of The Amazing Race: Family Edition (i.e. the Really Boring Edition Where Four-Person Teams Whose Individual Names/Faces You Never Really Get To Know Race Around The United States, With A Few Forays Into Nearby Foreign Countries, And Perform Exciting Challenges Like Waiting For Old Faithful To Erupt). Luckily, the disturbing. lazy, and hypocritical Weaver family did not come in first or second, despite help from a competent Canadian Christian cabbie that was provided to them by the force of their prayers (cuz everyone knows Jesus loves a winner). The easy-going Linz family came in first, and the identical blonde (except for daddy Wally) Bransen family came in second. The Weaver family even failed to win the consolation prize of a huge SUV by losing to the Bransens in a post-race “web-only challenge” that required them to actually know where it was they traveled to during the race (no, Costa Rica is not in Mexico). Not surprising for a group of people who insulted pretty much every place they visited, no matter how stunning the vista they were exposed to.
So it’s over at last. And the preview glimpses of the next cycle (which airs in February) reveal that the show is thankfully returning to its two-person team / international destinations roots. And I was personally stunned to see that the start of the next race obviously took place in Red Rocks Amphitheater, which is… y’know… my backyard. I had no idea, and I wonder when they were out here filming that. I gotta hand it to the people who are in charge of keeping the production a low profile. Didn’t see anything about it in the local media either. I anxiously await seeing what happened to the racers in our little area of the country.
Latre.
Comments
5 Responses to “Under A Blood Red Camera Eye”
December 14th, 2005 @ 9:46 pm
I believe they got caught in a mountain pass in a vicious snowstorm, and ultimately the survivors were forced into cannibalism.
December 14th, 2005 @ 10:13 pm
That’s the version they show on HBO, of course.
December 19th, 2005 @ 12:00 am
Ya know, my wife likes to watch reality TV, but when I was reading in the news about how the reality TV writers were complaining that they didn’t get paid as much as drama or sitcom writers, I suddenly realized that someone had let the cat out of the bag. Reality TV *writers*??? Then when I just happened to see a part of some show (I think it was in Australia) where the main character (a woman) was about to tearfully boot one of her suiters, and was extemporizing about how it was such a hard decision and how she wished she had her family to help her make it, and just then her mother sneeks up behind her and makes a surprise entrance, I thought “just how gullible do they think we are?”. It seems that the TV viewing public has swallowed “reality TV” as being non-scripted hook, line, and sinker. What a buisiness!
December 19th, 2005 @ 9:39 am
You’re just realizing this now? Most people who have been following the so-called reality shows have known about the writers for awhile. The question is: how much is scripted? Probably way too much.
John, this account from the Information Society guy about his experiences with VH-1 reality show Band Reunited should be interesting to you. I know it was to me. (Thanks to Dave Walker on LoudFans for the link.)
December 19th, 2005 @ 12:22 pm
I should also mention that if the show is a game show and prize money is at stake (like Amazing Race or Survivor), then the producers do have to stick to a set of rules and can’t unduly influence the outcome or they’ll get in trouble. Supposedly.