Next Comic Idol

I am a sucker for the reality television. I hate it, but it is television. What do you expect? Any sort of quality on network television should be treated with awe and reverence. And even then, does it improve your life at all? Don't worry about that right now. What I am here to talk about is Last Comic Standing and Next Action Star, both on NBC. Back to back, these are superb examples of what reality television should be (Last Comic Standing), and what is really terrible, awful, bad, bad, bad (that other show). The comics are catty and terrible or saintly (but never real) people in front of the cameras, just like they are supposed to be. But the key is: they can’t vote each other out! We can’t vote them out! They truly have to be funny to make it the whole way. Sure, as the show goes on certain comics will get a following that will go to the voting stand up shows and vote as their heart tells them, not their gut. But that is much less of an issue than on say, American Idol, where retards get through because, “OMG, he’s soo cute, he signs like crap, AND Simon hates him!” Also the comics are the type that, because of their awareness of comedy, are much more interesting people than the usual crop of yahoos. Speaking of idiots, you can get plenty of them on Next Action Star. These are the same a-holes that fill out the cast of other reality shows. They are done up with muscles and make-up to be television beautiful, and don’t have a lick of interesting in them. These bimbos bounce about the new friends they’ve made as they sharpen the knives for their backs. And the producers love their stupid predictability. They could offer these people nothing but the airtime and they would all act the same: like novice politicians with no subtlety and ready to kill. It’s about as much fun as watching Barbie dolls practice group suicide over and over. Which, apparently, actually is fun. Millions of Bachelor/Big Brother/Survivor/Littlest Groom/Forever Eden/etc./etc. fans can’t be wrong.