by Trent Rosser
A trend on television lately is reality TV. Yes, I know reality shows have been on for over 10 years. It seems as if any given night there will be a show with ordinary people competing for big bucks on national TV. Making a fool of themselves week after week.
Now these are quite different from game shows. They only last about 30 minutes and the people are different from week to week. The reality shows lately have the same people every week until they are voted out by the rest of the cast or the “special” person that they are trying to impress. It comes down to the last week with only 2 people left. Then the winner is announced, it is usually the one you least expect. So, let's go over some of the reality shows that are on right now, and then the reality show that I believe could be a hit!
"Survivor" is the grandfather of the reality shows. It is not the first, but one of the first to air on a national channel. A group of people are dropped off on a deserted island and they have to compete to win prizes and receive the immunity idol (The immunity idol guarantees them another week on the island). Once a week, they gather with the host to “Vote” off a member. The last one on the island wins the grand prize. Of course, there are other drama filled episodes and everyone usually has their favorite person that they want to win.
Next is "Big Brother." This is one that I actually would not mind doing, in fact, I would love to spend a summer there to try to win half a million dollars. The only real difference between this and Survivor is that this time it is not in an island, but inside a house. It is basically the same thing, except you are able to eat better and have beds! Same scenario, win the prizes and keep yourself from being voted out and you will be the winner.
A very popular one is called “The Bachelor” with a spin off called “The Bachelorette. This is centered on 1 person who the rest are trying to get them to fall in love. They are looking for love and each week they eliminate a person from the show. The last episode they have only 2 people to choose from. It is a very dramatic show. Of course, at the end of each episode it shows the loser taking a limo ride back to the hotel and they are still professing their love and crying.
Now to the ones that are very popular, the cooking reality shows. There are quite a few of them. The most popular are “Hell’s Kitchen” and “Masterchef”. These two are very popular in my house. The same thing every week, a group of people cook for a man named Gordon Ramsey. He is a very highly respected chef from England. He has a few high class restaurants in Las Vegas, New York, and Hollywood. The same thing happens like all the other reality show, the contestants cook for the chef or for a group of people and then the one with the worst tasting meal is sent home. The winner gets a lot of money and gets to become the head chef at one of his restaurants. Now here is where I do not understand: On these shows, they make outlandish meals, all from fresh fruit, fresh vegetables, and fresh meat. Meals that would cost about $70 dollars and not enough to fill up a fruit fly. They are judged on the looks of the meal, and the taste of the meal and of course if it is up to par for the judge.
Now here is where my reality show comes in. I call it “Redneck Roundup” The rules are simple. Instead of getting 30 minutes to go into a pantry to get fresh ingredients, you will be dropped off at Wal-Mart and will need to get everything for a full course meal for a family of 5 with only $30 to your name. You then get back to the studio and will have 45 minutes to get it cooked and put on the table. The entire time there will be distractions. Like a 3 year old child pulling on your leg wanting to play. A 12 year-old needing help with homework and a teenager that is constantly calling you so she or he could have a sleep over. Here is the kicker and how a winner is formed. The contestants will be serving the homeless with their meals, and will be judged by normal everyday families. The final 2 contestants will be cooking for their own family, but their family is informed that they will be judging another contestant. So if they try to throw the competition, it will go against them. Every week there will be a special winner and at the end of the episode, the recipe will be shown on air so normal everyday people can get the ingredients at the local store and fix the meal themselves. The overall winner will get a calendar with their picture and all their recipes. They could also win a trip somewhere for them and their family, or a personal chef to fix the meals for a week? Maybe Chef Ramsey, but then again, they just won a major contest; we don’t want to starve them!
Who knows, maybe I will be able to get on one of these crazy reality shows, win a little money and start a new reality show of my own. Maybe get a bunch of contestants to walk the dark and lonely back roads at night…. We could call it “Walking with the Rednecks.” Just hope you don’t hear banjo’s playing!
