Territorial Bloggings

I’ve been ignoring the non-American Idol reality shows of late, so here’s a quick roundup of my thoughts…

Survivor: Ulong has got to be the most pathetic, inept, dysfunctional, & stupid tribe that Survivor has ever seen. 6 immunity losses in a row! Nary a lucid strategic thought to be found! I had hopes for at least Stephenie being the single intelligent member of that tribe, but I cannot understand just what she was thinking with her stupid, stupid vote in this last tribal council — she had nothing to gain from reneging on Bobby John. In the end, she voted against James anyway (rightly so, as there was no need to put herself at risk of elimination by the fabled “Purple Rock o’ Death”…), so forcing an initial tie vote did nothing but weaken her position. Stooopid! Ulong’s soon-to-be-legendary ineptitude has, rightly, kept the focus off of Koror. Soon enough, however, they’ll have to turn on themselves, and it’ll be interesting to watch unfold.

The Apprentice: Last night was a treat to watch, if only to see video proof of the fact that pride does indeed goeth before the fall. Erin deserved to be fired because she gave up on her team, and thought that she could just talk & charm her way out of any danger. I think she’s probably a great lawyer, but someone who has that high an opinion of themselves needs some seasoning before they’ll impress someone like Carolyn, George, or the Donald! At this point, with 8 folks left, I really would like to see Tana win, and I think we’ll see a Tana/Kendra final.

The Amazing Race: Ah, my favorite, saved for last… The stars of this edition of TAR are most definitely Romber (Rob & Amber) of Survivor fame. The other teams are focusing on Romber to the point of obsession, and Romber are using that antipathy to their advantage. It’s truly amazing (no pun intended) just how much Rob has been able to use Survivor-style manipulation in a more seemingly straightforward game like TAR. It’s just way too enjoyable to watch Romber yank the chains of the other teams (especially Team Birdcage, with their stereotypical flaming gay behavior). It’s also nice to see that there is such genuine affection between Rob & Amber — as much as he can antagonize the other teams, he treats her like gold, and he’s also unfailingly nice to folks who are a part of the race (e.g., drivers, guides, locals, etc…). Oddly enough, considering that I usually have 2 or 3 teams I would like to see win the race, I’d have a real hard time picking who I’d like to see win in the unfortunate event that Romber doesn’t win.

Well, there you go — a nice quick tour of my thoughts on matters of significance in our culture!

-ghp

Well, given that the only feedback to my inquiry was positive, y’all have only yourselves to blame…

TV — I watch it, and like watching it, both probably more than I should. My mind is cluttered with a plethora of useless pop-culture trivia… TV, movies, music, sports, etc. – particularly as relates to the 80′s. I must also confess that I like “reality” TV. I know it’s not “real” reality, it’s unscripted TV, where the Heisenberg Principle is fully in effect; however, when it’s well done, it can be highly entertaining without being unduly exploitative.

My wife & I started watching the genre back with what I would contend is the granddaddy of them all, The Real World. The first season (New York) was actually quite interesting, and nowhere near the cesspool that TRW has become. The 2nd (L.A.) season went downhill & wasn’t all that good, and the 3rd season (San Francisco), while beginning to show signs of the seedier side of the genre (e.g., Puck), was quite interesting. The 4th season (London), quite honestly, sucked, and we stopped watching TRW.

All was quiet, then, until Survivor arrived. I fought getting drawn into the hype, until about halfway through that first edition. After that, though, I was hooked. In many ways, that first Survivor was the best, because it was the “purest” – the participants more or less invented the game, while those since have merely refined it. The strategic & interpersonal elements of Survivor are also quite interesting to watch. It’s not high art/culture, but it is entertaining.

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