Reality vs Reality TV

Kevin Smith and the Secret Stash team

I read this blog today and it made me think. Here it is: Nerd Trader   Please, check it out when you are done here.I am a reality TV junkie.  From Survivor to Tableop to Project Runway and everything in between, I love it.  I have some limitations.  I can not get behind what my mom calls trash TV which includes Honey Boo Boo, Teen Mom or The Real Houswives (shhh I love New Jersey-that is our secret). If it is a new show I will watch it and see.   There are too many shows to name these days but I can honestly say I have tried most if not all for at least one episode.  There are plenty that I turned off during the first episode.  What happened to Real World anyway?  They were strangers living in a house.  They all had jobs or had to get jobs.  Now is is all about hooking up...I miss the old Real World....remember Real World Road Rules Challenge?  That was cool too. (sorry went of on a tangent).

I love the standard do a project and compete with the other contestants.  Think Project Runway, Top Chef and half of what is on the Food Network these days.  Your product is judged and if it sucks the worst, you are kicked off of the show.  To me this is a great formula.  Then you have the style of Big Brother The Bachelor and Survivor where the cast themselves chose the person who is going home.  With all of these I am sure the producers are in the ears of those doing the kicking off, trying to push their own agendas or what they think will make for better TV.  But, other than that, there seems to be a bit of honesty in the process of kicking people off, either way it is done.  The production comes across in the background if at all.  Perhaps that is why I love them all (not this season of Big Brother though, it SUCKS so bad I quit watching a month ago). Dude, Big Brother is sooooo bad this season it leaves the horror of last season in the dust.  At least I tuned in last year to see what racist homophobic rant any one of the cast were going to dive into.  This season Allison Grodner has a very obvious crush on Frankie Grande and has rigged several phases of the show to benefit Frankie.  This is not what the game is about.  There have been questionable production interventions in the past but this is so blatant is is obnoxious and ruins the heart of the game. (sorry another tangent).

There are some shows that play to my core interests, Heroes of Cosplay, Face/Off, Toy Hunter and Comic Book Men to name a few.  I have problems with Toy Hunter and Comic Book Men.  These shows are predicated on buying and selling of goods.  While I like the casts and LOVE Kevin Smith, I do not like the whole premise of buying and selling.  Unlike the folks in Pawn Stars, American Pickers and Storage Wars, I really like the entire cast of both shows. Jordan, and The Secret Stash crew are all nice and do not come across as total greedy asshats like so many of the others. That combined with the fact that they are all so brilliant in their vast knowledge makes these shows easy to watch.  I just have problems seeing these as reality at all.  Seriously, I don't.  I mean really, how many brilliant scores can you truly have with the cameras rolling?  Not that many unless they are staged.  I get it I do, you are making a TV show and have to make it interesting.  I am not going to say a whole lot about them because they are relatively new and maybe I am just bitchy.  I hope both continue to run for several more seasons.  The casts of both are entertaining so you should check them out and see what you think. (and Kevin Smith is Hot--Jordan is not too bad either)

Jordan Hembrough 

BB First Eviction

Tonight is a night of recap for what has happened in the house over the last two weeks.  We see the Junior High drama of Caleb showing interest in Amber.  Joey showing an alternate personality in Alex and misc other drama.  In the end it was a unanimous decision to evict the first member of Team America, Joey.  In the goodbye interviews Caleb gets way cocky and tells Joey of the Bomb Squad.  The Bomb Squad is the eight member alliance that includes Amber, Caleb, Christine, Cody, Derrick, Devin, Frankie and Zach.  She was not surprised by the alliance at all but it was still an overly cocky move.

Next is the HOH comp.  The comp is divided into two.  Girls and Boys.  Each have to walk across a balance beam, grab a keg and take it back to the original post.  First to get six kegs to the start and hit the button wins.  If a keg is dropped or someone falls off of the beam, they are out of the competition.  From the balcony above, the boys are throwing frisbees at the girls.  Brittany, Christine and Amber are out to the early lead and then Brittany falls off.  Meanwhile through the entire competition, Paola only gets one keg to the other side.  Amber is the first to get all kegs to the other side with Christine not far behind. 

Next is the boys.  The first to fall off is Derrick.  Hayden, Devin and Cody all are in a race.  Cody hits the button first.  As we go to commercial Julie tells us there is a potential foul and then they show Donny opening the letter for the second invite to be a part of Team America.  When we come back from commercial Julie announces that Cody hits the button first but his foot touches the ground just before he hits the button therefore, Devin is the winner.
(commentary from watching the live feeds.  Devin is a bully and I am not a fan).
 
We leave the house and they are all stunned and not a bit happy that Devin is one of the two new HOH's.  Good luck to both and we will be back on Sunday.

Big Brother Episode 2 Recap

Hello and happy night two of Big Brother.  After the introductions of the next eight castmates the first four in the house are Caleb, Christine, Hayden and Jocasta.  It is mentioned by the new eight that they notice the others from the first night are already aligned.  Joey takes an instant interest in Christine, Brittany and Derrick seem to bond over having kids and Frankie and Victoria are already BFF's.  This being said there was no showing of instant alliances.  Next is the second HOH.  The comp is called "Over the Coals".  There is a bar that everyone must lay on as it spins them upside down.  They go out in this order:  Victoria, Brittany, Christine, Jocasta, Zach (intentionally dropped), Derrick, Hayden and the winner of the second HOH is Caleb (to no ones surprise).

Caleb spinning on a BBQ spit

Once the cast goes back in the house, Julie explains the twist of the two HOH's and the new competition called "Battle of the Block."  The two HOHs' will each nominate two people for elimination.  These nominees will fight in the Battle of the Block and the winners will be safe-similar to veto-and the HOH that nominated them will now be back in the pool so when the actual veto comp takes place the old HOH will now be eligible to go on the block if either of the two remaining nominees comes down.  UGGGG Who is going to want to be HOH?  I guess it is competition ho's who will never throw a comp.

After the next commercial break Julie tells us about Team America and the new three person alliance that will be chosen by the viewers.  The first person chosen was Joey.  I am shocked.  I thought for sure it was a given that it would be Frankie.  It might still be and they put Joey in first,  just out of order.  I love the pick of Joey and I think she will do great representing the viewers.   This summer is going to get messy.  Great twists this time Big Brother.  Keep watching America and we will have a good summer.

Big Brother 2014 Episode 1 recap

Hello and welcome to a new summer of Big Brother!!!!!!!

Tonight the first eight house guests entered the home.  They were Amber, Cody, Devin, Donny, Frankie, Joey, Nicole and Paola.  Right off the bat the group decided that they were going to be an alliance of eight so when the new folks come in they are already on the outs.  Devin approached Donny and now they have an alliance.  Paola saw Frankie and Cody playing chess and took that to mean they are in an alliance.  She ran to the girls and created her idea of elQuatro alliance of four girls.  HAHAHAH... I already see this as doomed.  Paola has the hots for Cody and Devin thought Paola looked good.  Meanwhile Amber is all into Devin but sees him checking out Paola.  This is making for a jealous girl which means doom for this girl alliance.
Next up is the HOH comp.  Julie tells the house guests about the comp and that this season is different and so is the HOH.  Off they go to do the comp.  The comp is called "Go Fly a Kite".  Everyone is on a spinning log and holding a rope that is attached to a kite which is hovering over a sand castle.  Last one still on the log is the new HOH.  First off was Paola then Joey, Nicole, Donny, Devin, and Caleb.  Amber and Frankie were the final two with Amber stating she threw it to Frankie since she was not sure how the new HOH would work.
Shortly after the HOH comp completed Julie came on and told the house guests that there would now be two Heads of Household.  Frankie began to freak and end of the houseguests for now.  Julie tells us about America's Team.  The viewers get to vote for a secret 3 man alliance and they will have to work together throughout the season.  We will see how this goes and how long it lasts.
Tomorrow the remaining eight house guests will enter and we can assume the next HOH comp also.  Catch you tomorrow.

Big Brother Preview

Another season of Big Brother is upon us.  There are several changes to the set-up of the game for this season.  There are going to be two heads of household and then a HOH comp between the two to see who gets to do the final nominations.  Not sure how this is going to play out but we will learn more as the season premiere comes closer.  This season seems to have a lot of plants or people who have never heard of Big Brother.  There are 3 or maybe 4 out of the 15 who have seen more than the most recent two seasons in sequester.  Kind of bums me out.  But, after last season of "super fans" which was disastrous, I can understand why production went this route.  Thus far, I am not relating to this cast but as we have seen in seasons past, things change.  Here are my initial impressions after watching some of the cast introduction interviews.

Amber
Does not know BB and does not seem to have the intelligence to hook up with someone who does know what is going on and does not come across as a smart person at all.  I think she will be a floater as there are bigger threats so will not necessarily go too early.

Brittany
Mom of 3 who was picked up to be a cast member two weeks ago.  She comes across as pretty intelligent with potential to latch onto someone who knows more about the game and learn something from them.  I think she might last awhile as she comes across as a quick learner.

Caleb
A hunter from Texas.  He sounds a bit like a jerk.  He might be the nicest person on the planet but he does not come across that way on camera.  He seems more interested in a showmance than in winning the game.  I think his bad attitude will get him out pretty early.

Christine
A BB fan and a barista from Arizona.  She seems to be a genuinely nice person.  She loves to play Settlers of Catan.  Woo hoo.  Her strategy is to get an alliance on one side of the house then become friends with some folks on the other side and keep that secret.  I pick her to go far and be in the final three.

Cody
A twenty something plant.  He comes across as likable and big into working out.  I am not sure how he will fit in.  If there is a cool kids alliance, he will definitely be a part of it.  He will probably last a bit as there are bigger characters but I do not think he will win.

Derrick
An undercover cop from Rhode Island.  He comes across as a confident gun loving kind of guy,  His plan was initially to keep his cop status a secret and then wants to teach the world to play with integrity.  LOL Integrity and Big Brother...NOT! Remember Kappy?  I think he is doomed and will not last very long at all.

Devin
He is a big buff guy.  Generally big guys are big targets.  He stated he quit baseball to be with his daughter.  Not sure I buy that or not.  He seems somewhat aware of BB so not necessarily a plant.  Very happy for a showmance.  Not usually a good road to take but he comes across likable.  I think if he can survive the BB curse of buff guys not going early.  I think he can last awhile but probably not make it to the jury.

Donny
Groundskeeper 42 who looks like he came straight from the cast of Duck Dynasty.  States he is a big fan of the show.  He reminds me more of Chicken George, fun loving and worried about being loved by America.  Comes across as a nice good guy.  I think he will make it through to the jury and possibly to the end.

Frankie
He is a crazy head of the Cool Kids Alliance.  He is a bit loud and can be perceived as obnoxious in close quarters.  He is a YouTube personality and his sister is Ariana Grande so if there is any Americas Vote then he will win it hands down.  That will be similar to last season and Elisa getting the vote from fan favorite sister Rachel's fan club.  I think seems fun and likable.  I hope America keeps out of this season and he can make it to jury.

Hayden
So Cal biker seems kind of like a hippie wannabe...surfer bro type.  Another plant from production who is does not show a lot of BB knowledge.  He reminds me of David from last season and is ready for a showmance.  I do not think he is going to be considered a big threat but more along the lines of the expendable member of an alliance.  He wants to be like Frank or Hayden from seasons past and I do not think that is necessarily the route to take.  I do not think he is going to last a long time.

Jocasta
A loud minister from Atlanta.  I think if there is a bible alliance she will do ok.  I am worried about her ministering the rest of the cast.  If she keeps away from that, maybe she can make it to jury but otherwise she will go early.

Joey
A hairdresser from Seattle.  Says her fav player is Gina Marie.  LOLOL She is another plant and my guess is she has only seen the last half of last season.  UGGG.  She seems nice and is determined to be the first nice girl to win the game.  HAHAHAHA  She appears to be a bit obnoxious but I think there will be a lot of bigger targets so she will last until jury.

Nicole
Nurse from Michigan, seems quiet I think she is a bit of a floater.  She says she is a big fan and she reminds me of Danielle with Dan and Ian and she likes Ian.  I see her not being a big threat so will last a long time. 

Paola
Otherwise known as PAO-PAO a DJ from NY.  I think she is a bit crazy.  She is not looking for a showmance and is a friend of Gina Marie....ugg.  She is charismatic but I do not think she has enough game chops to go far.  Fun to watch but I think she will annoy people too much and will get ousted too early.

Victoria
Photographer from Brooklyn.  Another recruit.  Gross.  Comes across as stuck up.  Says she will manipulate people with her smile.  EWWW I am not a fan.  I think she will become people enemy number one or at least two.  I think she will not last long.

Zach
Unemployed self described con-artist.  He is agressive and funny.  I think he is awesome.  He is all about the money and does not care who hates him.  I think he is hilarious and hope he goes far.  I think he will last until jury at least.  

These are just my opinions.  Let me know what are some of your thoughts and tune in Wednesday for the season premiere.