Monday, March 30, 2009

Silly Fox, People Want to ESCAPE from Reality...


The moment has arrived: fat people will be on your television screen.
"For six years it's been skinny-minis and good-looking bachelors, and that's not what the dating world looks like," Fox president of alternative Mike Darnell said. "Why don't real women -- the women who watch these shows, for the most part -- have a chance to find love too?"
Not that I disagree with his claim that fat women are the biggest consumers of shitty reality TV, but his logic--not to mention Public Relations skills--leaves something to be desired. I don't care if you use the cute excuse/phrase More to Love as the title of your show--the bottom line is that fat women do not like it when you point out the fact that they are fat. And you just did. Irreparably.

Not only that, but it is important to remember that television is an escape. True reality shows would never work--who wants to sit on their couch and watch footage of somebody else sitting on their couch, eating the same microwaved pizza pocket as their three cats hiss at them from the other side of the room?

Hence the existence of 'staged reality with hot people,' and its relative success. Just as plebeians are fascinated with the day-to-day mundanity of the rich and famous, they are also obsessed with watching how sexy people lead their lives, how people treat them differently, how much more fun they have, how much more sex they have, and, yet, how many problems they still have.

The only successful show I can think of that involves fat people is The Biggest Loser, but one of the reasons that show works is because the contestants are SO FAT that they not only make regular fat people feel better about themselves but also serve as hilarious comic relief after a mind-numbing CSI / American Idol evening on the couch.

Prognosis? Cancellation.


Bonus Photo:


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2 comments:

Unknown said...

did you take that photo in Africa? do they have Serengeti-reality TV for this hefer to enjoy?

Goodtime Charlie said...

no. it popped up on the web when i typed in the word 'obese' on a google image search. i couldn't resist posting it, despite its lack of relevance.

hopefully, one day, giraffes will, indeed, be this fat and unhealthy. food scientists around the world are working tirelessly for this outcome...and i will be there to create televised content for their viewing pleasure. you want in?