Yeah, it’s true.  Can’t try to deny it.  But I often ask myself:  why?

BB was about the trashiest ‘reality’ TV going until Jersey Shore came along (that I do not watch, although my nephew does, much to my nausea).  So, some partial answers:  why do I watch this crap?

1. It’s on three times a week, which means at least sometimes, it’s something my wife and I can do together.  (Lest she sue for libel, I must add she is less interested in it than I am.)
2. It confirms all my cherished stereotypes of Hollywood, always trying to ‘change it up’, always looking gaudy and overdone, never able to leave stuff be.
3. It does amaze me to see what people will do on camera, how they will act.
4. If I didn’t admit to a certain schadenfreude watching people (who volunteered out of avarice to) suffer, I’d be a liar.
5. Most seasons, there is at least one contestant I can root for.  This season it’s Shelley, the middle-aged outdoor company executive.
6. Julie Chen’s utter irrelevancy is pure comedy.  She tells them time’s up, they disobey her, nothing happens.  They award the prize and chaos ensues, making her look silly.

I don’t kid myself, of course, that I’m seeing much that’s real.  Past season contestants are obviously coached.  We have reason to believe the producers have influenced outcomes in the past, and one can be sure they’ll do so again.  It’s not a house; it’s a sound stage.  The rules look flexible depending on ratings.  And does anyone believe the ‘America Votes’ results are above board?

Fair’s fair, though.  Whatever’s wrong with it, they have me watching it.  Ergo, they must have something going on in my eyes, or I’d ignore the whole thing.