Respect Authority

So much television, so little time.

Even though Ricki Lake’s Charm School premiered this week, I’ll wait until the next episode to give my official verdict (spoiler: it’s excellent), in favor of reviewing Bravo’s latest contribution to the great big world of reality TV: The Real Housewives of New Jersey.

As telling as the fact that Bravo picked the country’s armpit for its latest incarnation of the Real Housewives franchise is that the show’s debut episode aired immediately after the first half of a two-hour reunion special for The Real Housewives of New York City. That reunion, a relatively small glimpse into what was actually seven hours worth of filming, amounted to display after display of shameless self-promotion and utter lack of pride. All those pressing questions you thought the housewives would never deign to answer directly to a national audience of millions - they did! In the first hour, the women spoke fairly candidly about every headline they’ve managed to snag since the show wrapped: Kelly got teary-eyed over the “assault” charge that ruined her sterling reputation, The Countess admitted she was dumped via e-mail by her husband of 16 years, Jill said she’s single-handedly keeping the economy together by spending as much on one handbag as the rest of us pay for a car.

In any case, I understand that watching self-important rich women bicker for two hours is not for the casual TV viewer, except in the case of The View. So moving on: The Real Housewives of New Jersey. Read More ›