Tag: Reality Television

Flashback Friday: America’s Next Top Model (2003-2018)

One of the upsides of reality television (if there are any) is that it may open the door to some industries that are closed off to most people.

This was the premise of America’s Next Top Model (2003-2018). Created and hosted by Tyra Banks, the contestants were put their paces in hopes of winning a modeling contract and jumpstarting their careers. As expected, there was drama (whether real or inflated) in an attempt to keep eyeballs on the screen.

The good thing about the show is that there was an emphasis on diversity when it came to the participants. The problem is that it added to women feeling that they had to be a certain size, and the alleged mistreatment of those who chose to get involved.

Do I recommend it? Maybe.

Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model Documentary Review

Many girls say they want to be models when they grow up.

The new Netflix documentary, Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model, was recently released. This three-part documentary introduces (or reintroduces) audiences to the early 2000s reality show, America’s Next Top Model. Among the interviewees are creator/host/mentor Tyra Banks, her fellow judges/consultants, the behind-the-scenes team, several contestants, and critics of the show.

Hindsight, it is said, is 20/20. This is the main theme of the film. Though it’s only been twenty-plus years since it hit the airwaves, certain things have changed for the better. The smartest thing that Banks (and those who worked on the program) admitted was that mistakes were made. It’s hard (specifically when they are in your face, figuratively speaking), but necessary when it comes to healing old wounds and moving on from what was.

Do I recommend it? Yes.

Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model is available for streaming on Netflix.

Flashback Friday: Naked and Afraid (2013-Present)

The appeal of reality television is that it (depending on the program) appeals to the darker sides of humanity.

Naked and Afraid has been part of the Discovery Channel since 2013. The show follows individuals as they strip down to their birthday suits and try to survive in the wilderness for three weeks with only their wits to keep them alive.

I’ve seen enough previews to know that this show is not worth watching. It is voyeurism in the worst way. Obviously, there is enough of an audience to keep it on the air for 13 years. That being said, it is not for me.

Do I recommend it? No.

Throwback Thursday: Home Town Takeover (2021-2025)

A wise person once said that one should not judge a book by its cover. However, when it comes to a neighborhood community, the physical appearance can have lasting effects both within and outside the town’s borders.

Home Town Takeover aired on HGTV from 2021-2025. A spinoff of Hometown, the show followed Ben and Erin Napier as they helped to revitalize small towns whose heydays were in the rearview mirror.

Although it is a reality show, it does tug at the heart a little. Seeing the joy of bringing these locales back to life is a reminder that there are still good people in this world who believe in giving back.

Do I recommend it? Yes.

Throwback Thursday: Farmhouse Fixer (2021-2024)

The entertainment industry is a fine thing. But for many performers, it also has an end date. For any number of reasons, some choose to create a new life outside of Hollywood.

Farmhouse Fixer was part of the HGTV schedule from 2021 to 2024. The program followed Jonathan Knight (of New Kids on the Block fame) and his design partner Kristina Crestin as they renovated homes in New England.

What I think makes this show interesting is that several of the properties that they work on are not new builds. They are hundreds of years old, older than the American Revolution. One home, specifically, was owned by John Proctor (as in the Salem Witch Trials) and is supposed to be haunted.

Do I recommend it? Yes.

Sister Wife: A Memoir of Faith, Family, and Finding Freedom Book Review

In a culture where marriage is everything, a woman choosing to walk away from an unhappy relationship does more than put herself first. Her actions allow other women to realize that there are other options beyond what is “suitable”.

Sister Wife: A Memoir of Faith, Family, and Finding Freedom, by Christine Brown Woolley, was published in September. Born into a Mormon family that practiced polygamy, the author became famous via the TLC reality show Sister Wives. Marrying Kody Brown in 1994, she became his third wife. Eventually, the family would grow to four wives and 18 children.

Through the show, Brown Woolley hoped that it would dispel the rumors about her faith and the relationships with her husband and the women she shared him with. As their lives became water-cooler conversations, she began to ask herself if this was the right path for her.

We still live in a society where a female is expected to marry and pop out a kid or two. Given the world she grew up in, it would have been far easier to stay with Kody and pretend that everything was fine. But she had the strength to know that her happiness was elsewhere and took the necessary steps to make it happen.

Do I recommend it? Yes.

Sister Wife: A Memoir of Faith, Family, and Finding Freedom is available wherever books are sold.

Anne of Avenue A Book Review

It has been said that some people come into our lives for a reason.

Anne of Avenue A, by Audrey Bellezza and Emily Harding, was published in October. It is the 3rd book in the For the Love of Austen series. Anne Elliot and Freddie Wentworth were college sweethearts. Freddie has a sense of adventure, while Anne prefers to stay closer to home. These two disparate perspectives led them in different directions.

Eight years later, the universe brings them back together. Anne is working for her parents’ television production company. Still living at home, feeling stuck, she does her best to put on a brave face. When the company shuts down, she is living on limited funds, without a job, and is soon to be homeless.

Freddie has returned to the US after spending the better part of a decade living abroad. After Anne broke his heart, he was determined to move on. What he did not expect was to move into her childhood apartment and become her upstairs neighbor. With his career in flux, he is at his own crossroads.

At this point, both Anne and Freddie want to put their relationship in the rearview mirror. But the creator has other plans.

The best thing about this book is Anne and Freddie’s character arcs. The foundation of their coupledom is solid. But before they can find their happiness, each has a lesson to learn. It will be painful and difficult at times, but neccesary.

Do I recommend it? Yes.

Anne of Avenue A is available wherever books are sold.

Meet the Cartozians Play Review

Humans, if nothing else, are predictable creatures.

Meet the Cartozians is the new play by Talene Monahon. Based on a true story, it follows an Armenian-American family set in two different periods: the 1920s and the 2020s. A century ago, the patriarch of the Cartozian clan was on the abyss of being sent back to his country of birth due to a question of being “white”. In our time, one of their descendants has become a world-famous reality star (a la Kim Kardashian). The rest continue the debate about skin color, identity, and the impact of the Armenian Genocide generations after the massacre.

It is essentially two stories in one. The first act is flawless. It is both of its era and also relevant in 2025 (which is frankly frightening). The second act is mostly unfocused and lacks a cohesive narrative. It’s not a bad thing that the ending is not neatly tied up. The questions that Monahon asks are important. But it was not a smooth landing and required another pass at the script.

The acting is fantastic. Each performer plays two completely different people in such a way that I had to question if it was the same person from the first half.

Do I recommend it? Maybe.

Meet the Cartozians is currently playing at the Second Stage, the Pershing Square Signature Center, until December 14th, 2025. Check the website for tickets and showtimes.

Real Housewives of the White House

Whomever came up with this deserves a huge medal.

Throwback Thursday: Drop the Mic (2017-2019)

There is nothing funnier than watching two people try to one-up each other via an insult.

Drop the Mic aired on TBS and then TNT from 2017 to 2019. A spinoff of a segment from The Late Late Show with James Corden, it was hosted by Method Man and Hailey Bieber. Each episode spotlighted celebrities as they battled and insulted via rap music. At the end of the contest, one is crowned a winner by the audience.

Drop the Mic is hilarious. It is one of those shows that provides a necessary laugh at the end of a very long day.

Do I recommend it? Yes.

Design a site like this with WordPress.com
Get started