Dirty Work happening in real time on Big Brother

Its turning into a  Big Brother kind of summer for me apparently.  I still love my Housewives of every city they come from, loving Rivals 2 so far, Dance Moms, Bad Girls Club, Breaking Amish, Princess of Long Island, Pretty Wicked Moms, Catfish, pretty much everything but nothing has me as psychological invested as Big Brother season 15.

The idea that now we as “AMERICA” are now making decisions about eviction nominations and then watch the drama unfold 24/7 is fantastically addictive.  Perhaps it’s because the show for the most part is taking place in realtime, it opens up the voyeuristic obsession that reality tv  prays on, but there is something about being able to watch these people and even contribute to the drama that is like nothing else on television.

On Thursday night we were told that as “AMERICA” got to vote as the MVP this week.  Basically they were giving us the free rein to get rid of Aaryn since the HG couldn’t seem to do that themselves.  Apparently there are always twists in this game and we never know what will happen which is why there tag line is “expect the unexpected” which keeps fans like me following every move every day.

 

The Big Deal with Big Brother

Personally have only followed the last 2 season, this season (15) being my third so I have sort of jumped on the band wagon of Big Brother, but I completly understand why this show has been around so long. A bunch of strangers living on a CBS designed soundstage being filmed 24/7 with live feeds available unedited and uncensored also 24/7 for 3 months!

Its a social experiment with a $300k winner at the end of it. The concept is really genius though. There are live feeds going in the “house” 24/7 and for $26.99 for the entire season you can watch everything as it happens on all your media devises. You can tweet, Facebook, go to the network website, even download a free app to give you up to the second info on these “houseguests”

An edited version airs 3 times on CBS a week and this season on the TVGN (tv guide network) from 12-2am every night is the live feed called Big Brother After Dark. The narrative as a viewer so far this season has not been chronological which actually can get confusing with all the rules involved. I watched the season premiere on Thursday, then the Big Brother After Dark (BBAD) on Friday then the taped show on Sunday, then the BBAD on Monday and now watching the taped show on Wednesday. I already know who is hooking up, and who was nominated, who won the POV (power of veto) and who was the MVP, and who is officially nominated for eviction this week based on all the access available and I haven’t purchased any sort of special pass for this.

Already its exausting, but if you can look at it as a bunch of characters then you can find the escapism that we love about reality tv. There has already been a lot of controversy with this cast. RadarOnline takes on both sides of the “reality” argument with the idea of censoring up for debate. This show is supposed to be the ultimate reality competition however part of the show is censored on CBS and the rest of it is available for America to hear in all their racist, swearing and REAL glory.

My Reality TV …

“Opinions are like assholes…everyone has one” – Phaedra Parks of  The Real Housewives of Atlanta.

I love television.  I love the personal relationships I have with “my” shows.  I love the evolution of television with the option of on demand programming.  I love DVR and being able to control what shows are saved, deleted and of course recorded.  One of my most favorite genres of television is “reality tv” .  Somehow since these are “real” people it makes them more accessible for tabloids, page six, twitter, Facebook and of course bloggers.  I find reality tv shows so fascinating and I find myself sucked into the carefully edited story lines each and every week. Having recently moved back to NYC from Boston about a year ago, and looking for an entry-level position in television production, I have found myself with an abundance of opinions mostly on the genre of Reality TV.  My family and friends, while supportive, are getting quite bored with my instant observations and suggested that there are more interested people, possibly in cyberspace that would be able to function as an audience. These are my opinions and observations and they are based solely on my personal experience with the genre that is reality TV.

I recently watched the premiere of The Bachelorette on ABC, with my friend who doesn’t in fact own a television, a fact which both confuses me, and makes me love her.  As we cringed, laughed and delighted in the different men (characters) that exited the limo to meet Des, I was struck at how obviously creepy one of the guys was.  Jonathan repeatedly tried to get Des alone to “kiss her on the mouth” and as he eventually was asked to leave, did an exit interview that might have had more of an impact on me then his routine of inappropriate behavior.  He spoke about his “love tank”.  He talked about how his “love tank” was full and he has no problem keeping his “love tank” full.  I had to take a beat and make sure I heard that correctly.  That description was introduced to the reality TV viewing public by the matriarch of Reality TV, Vicki Gunvalson.  As I mentioned this to my friend she was quick to point out that this genera of reality tv has created its own language within the shows themselves.  Whether Jonathan intentionally used that phrase to give homage to Vicki or not, the connection stuck with me.  Within this genra of television these characters have taken on a life of their own, for me long after I turn the tv off.  This example of crossover was just fascinating to me, and to my friend who didn’t even know who Vicki was, it was another reason she cant keep my shows I talk about straight.

Its not just trash escapism that has gotten my attention recently in reality TV.  Boston’s Finest, narrated by Donnie Wahlberg, and produced by his own company is the original reality TV show Cops but with a modern twist.  The cameras go home with the officers and you get a full picture of the lives of the chosen characters.  One of the most attractive stories is one of Jenn Penton, who has a twin sister, who struggles with drugs and alcohol.  Its amazing to see the two of them sit together drinking coffee, where you see what could have happened had one of them ended up the way the other did.  You become invested in the future of these women and for a brief moment forget you are watching a narrated story line.  Also it was recently announce that Boston’s Finest will be back for a 2nd season so hopefully we get to continue with the same cops and follow similar story lines.