We’ve taken to turning on The Learning Channel for cheap reality TV these days. Two newcomers that are worth mentioning, for different reasons:
What Not to Wear: The concept is borrowed straight from the BBC show of the same name. Two designers help a hapless target learn to dress in an attractive and even chic fashion. The BBC show is raucous and interesting, and actuallly tends to meet the challenge. The US version we watched last night … wasn’t, wasn’t, and didn’t. “Hated it.”
Faking It: Ah. This is comedy. Someone who is profession ^X gets trained to pass as someone who is a professional X. For example, in the episode we watched the other night, a Boston union carpenter, a real sit-on-the-couch-drinkin’-brewskis-watchin’-the-tube type, got to fly out to California to take a crash course as an interior decorator, including learning the trade, getting the right clothes, hairdo, glasses, some test presentations, and then, finally, being put in a competition with three other “real” decorators, judged by professional decorators. The pros, after evaluating them, were then sprung with the question: which of the four that you just evaluated have only been doing this for four weeks? It was both funny and informative, and just darned amusing to watch.
I watched the premiere episode of WNTW and I found it mean-spirited and dull. I did not find anything wrong with the “girl who loved hoodies”, in fact she seemed to be very comfortable with herself.
But no, we must insist she wear make-up and uncomfortable shoes!
You’re right, this is one show that lost something in the translation.
I think it’s possible to look good and still feel comfortable. The American version reminds me a bit of the Trading Spaces shows, where it’s not what people want, it’s what the designer things they should have.