... with the new TV season this week officially kicking off post Emmys (if you missed it before when I've said it ... my name is Troy, and I'm a television addict ... and yes, that makes me more Emmy than Oscar), I feel obligated to weigh in on two disturbing trends in reality television. [Note -- this will not be a dig at Honey Boo Boo as they've officially won me over; admittedly not for their level of sophistication, but due to the underlying familial love that is the undercurrent of any and all of what they display and ... um ... overshare.]
Instead, I'm speaking to the reality TV overlords. First up -- EDITORS, please cease and desist the transparent "first interview/confessional comment showed in the episode is from the contestant who's leaving that night". I want to watch all of your show, and I want to have at least a little bit of surprise in who leaves at the end of it. So I'm sick and tired of being able to predict (with high 90% probability) who's leaving when you start the show with person X saying "I feel really good about my chances" or "I'm glad I survived last week" or "I'm going to win it all", as it's all too clear that person X will be going home. Please take a class on red herring placement, stat!
Also - PROGRAMMERS, please be aware that modern viewers will likely catch your episode at a time other than when it airs firsthand. So if I'm watching a late night re-airing of The Ultimate Fighter, let's say (which, btdubs, is testing my comfortability boundaries when it comes to watching that type of girl on girl action this season), I don't want to see a commercial for the next episode during that airing that discloses what happened on the show I've not yet finished watching. Food Network -- you're even more culpable to this "crime", and it's as if I have to cable block your channel until I've had a chance to catch up on whatever Sunday night show you've got me watching at the moment. I get that maybe it's punishment for not watching the first-run episodes as they air, but that's legacy thinking about old viewership models and it's upsetting your customer, so STOP it.
Hugs and kisses from your number one consumer ...
OTHER REALITY SHOW TROPES (I.E. I'M NOT HERE TO MAKE FRIENDS):
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ImNotHereToMakeFriends
REALITY TV SHOW EDITORS, TAKE HEED OF THE HERRING!:
http://killzoneauthors.blogspot.com/2009/08/planting-red-herrings.html#.Uj2u1tK-rts
ON THE CUTTING EDGE OF GENDER EQUALITY:
http://msn.foxsports.com/watch/the-ultimate-fighter
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