Has anyone heard of a certain MTV reality show called Jersey Shore? I know you all have, even if you don’t want to admit it.
Like many of you, when I first saw the tanned partiers wash up on the Shore I thought, “They’re seriously making a show about this?” And I’m the girl who wafts hours away on Saturday mornings, watching back-to-back Real Housewives of New York, New Jersey and Atlanta episodes on Slice.
Somehow, despite my shameless TV history, I still couldn’t believe a group of people would go on public TV, call themselves Guidos and Guidettes, and then admit to spending hours on blowouts and tanning beds.
Even the most pathetic of reality stars from The Real World have some sort of life skill or goal, but Snooki’s dream of “moving to Jersey, finding a nice, juiced, hot tanned guy and live my life,” fits neither bill, and plays like a continuous loop in my head of everything wrong with female reality stars.
It doesn’t stop there — the dudes on JS are the epitome of men I avoid at bars, and the gals are my complete opposite. Still, I’m hooked. As in, “don’t call me between the hours of 10 and 11 on Thursday nights, I will never say the word 'situation' with the same context again, and I’ll discuss the show for hours on end with my roommate” kind of hooked. Who isn’t?
The littlest-show-that-could flipped the reality landscape and the housemates blasted to fame overnight. Now, DJ Pauly D charges $10,000 per gig, Snooki and The Situation graced Leno’s new Tonight Show within the host’s first week back, and the entire cast has become a magazine staple, materializing on everything from In Touch to US Weekly.
When The View’s ladies asked Snooki when she knew she was really famous, the iconic haired Guidette responded, “Pretty much at birth.”
How could I not try and get myself some of this Jersey Shore love for my TVGuide.ca column? I may not have their fame but, after all, I’ve chatted with my fair share of MTV personalities. So I put in my request for an interview and received a response saying the following week I would get some time with one of the cast members. Unfortunately, my celebratory fist pumps were a little premature.
For those who check Guilty Pleasures on a regular basis, you’ve noticed I never wound up getting that interview. I was shocked that these people were simply too busy enjoying their reality fame, appearing on late-night TV and calling in to Ryan Seacrest’s radio show to talk to a lowly columnist like me. For shame!
Only in reality TV can unknown people be plucked from obscurity and think they are legitimately famous. Spencer and Heidi Pratt, Tila Tequila, the Gosselins … these are regular everyday people just like you and me, who lucked out in finding their way onto a reality show.
Sure they’re entertaining, but where do they rank in the grand scheme of things, pulling out all the stops to out-do each other with Twitter accounts, plastic surgeries and fashion lines?
But hey, I’m not bitter. I would like you all to know I’m OK with these kids skipping me on their way to Jay Leno. Who could blame them?
But when The Situation ends up on The Surreal Life Season 20, Pauly D winds up on Dr. Drew’s Celebrity Rehab and Ronnie and Sammi end up on I’m a Celebrity Get Me out of Here, maybe I won’t be here to answer their phone calls. Now that’s a situation right there.
What star do you think needs to be brought back to Earth? Let me know Oliveiraj@tvguide.ca or sound off below.
VIDEO: THE JERSEY SHORE CAST ON THE VIEW
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Janine has been a devoted cheesy TV critic ever since her inaugural Paradise Hotel episode. Five years, long hours and a considerable lack of beauty sleep later, her passion has earned her a Rolodex of useless knowledge.
Tackling shows other professionals cringe over such as Flavor of Love, The Real World and Celebrity Fit Club, Guilty Pleasures’ subtle complexity deserves more than just a snap judgment. Janine’s unique talent to celebrate a worthy “trash-show” is a launch pad for fans of cheesy TV everywhere. |
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