Hard Wired - The Benefactor
By Teri Sue
September 23, 2004
All Them B's
First, I want to thank Randall the Vandal for covering on the Bachelor premier. Yes, Randall, I did find the wire cutters and they are being finger printed as this is typed. What hurricane Ivan managed to leave in tact, you and your cutters untacted (new word for inclusion into Websters). A week without cable internet. A week of typing those teeny tiny letters on a cell phone...managing to squeak out a short note periodically before my eyeballs bulged to the point of no return. Here's what I learned though during this week filled with empty timeframes. Randall the Vandal equates to RTV. Randall the Vandal. Reality TV. The initials. Get it? Well, you had to be there when the light bulb went off to appreciate it.
What are the Bs?
Bachelor Byron, Benefactor, Bucks, Bitches. They're smokin'.
Now, that can be a good thing and a bad thing. Some of the good things are: I am glad that Byron made the cut and was crowned the Bachelor
I'm happy that Mark is giving away a million smackeroos. There are some definite classy ladies for Byron to choose from. There are a few savvy players for Mark to get to. And, anytime you mix bachelors, bitches, boobs, boo boos and bucks, its called entertainment. With that said, I'll be concentrating this commentary on The Benefactor since I'll be doing the recaps for The Bachelor and can delve into it during those times.
I'm enjoying The Benefactor thus far. As CC, the recapper for The Benefactor, has stated, the premise is a good one in that it managed to go the route of not being a copy cat. Sooo, Mark Cuban. I had no clue who he was until The Benefactor came about. We could think what a great gesture it is to give away a million. Let's not be naive though. Mark Cuban is getting something from all this too. He's getting the fame to go with his money since, as I stated, not all of us knew who Mark Cuban was till this show. If I went on and on about all the goodies, it could get boring faster than it already is; therefore, I'll concentrate on some things I'm finding annoying. We all have annoying habits/ways. Thing is I'm a writer, not a TV personality to be written about. So, my annoying habits aren't of interest; whereas, Mark's is. To keep it easy on your eyes and provide time for you to go grab a beer since you'll probably need a few of em by the time you finish reading this, I'll start a new paragraph now.
Mark keeps telling us that he doesn't have time for the fun things. This is one reason he enjoyed Team Rock Star's choice of activities when Mark divided the participants into teams during the last episode. My response is this. If Mark doesn't have time for the things he wants to do, then, he has only himself to blame. With his money, he can afford to take time off now. Personally, I think the team who used the time for the charity event to the hospital was way more worthy of value points. It shouldn't matter if Mark had been there 1000 times. Each additional time is worth every minute and penny. A luxury hummer limo is just another toy for a very wealthy person. A day spent at an amusement park can be had easily. It really isn't that difficult to find the time. So, I didn't buy into the scenario that Team Rock Star outshone the others. Nope. Just doesn't float in my mind's eye. But, hey...I'm not the one giving away a million bucks. Still, on the flip side, I am a RTV fan (take that as either Reality TV or Randall the Vandal. same difference), plus, I'm an RTV Writer. That means that Mark has the right to make the choices he does in his criteria for who gets cut, etc. just as I have the right to type out these thoughts of my take on his decision making process. It's all a part of the sphere we call reality TV. God Bless America! Alrighty, back to my thought process. Yep, that bugs me. When wealthy people say they don't have time to enjoy the money. Don't get me wrong. I am a firm believer in what a person earns is theirs to do with as they see fit. To have money and make comments of the like I have referenced is kinda dumb though. I would beg to offer up the following. Doing the series, that in itself, I would be willing to bet is fun and worth the million given as the prize.
Mark puts the cuts into the hands of 3 kids. OK. Fair enough. He might have been better to leave out his spiel about the kids' ability to see through adults though. They didn't see through the motives of Shawn. Either that or Mark and/or the Producers made the decision to keep Shawn over Mario. Maybe to keep the "bitchiness" in the series for the sake of "good TV". Who knows? That part didn't matter to me except to say that I do believe Mario should have stayed. The ultimate main point, for me personally, was that Latane remained.
I'm going to make this my final paragraph for this Hardwired Commentary. I took all this space to get one point out there. If the main participant or other participants of any RTV make comments which seem screwy, we, the writers, will pick up on it. So, when someone tries to give the impression that they don't have time to relax and enjoy their wealth, I say too friggin bad. Your own fault. I've heard the argument, well; I wouldn't have the money if I had stopped to have fun. My response. OK. That was/is your choice. Make a million or two less if that's what it takes to have the fun along the way. Still, I must give credit where credit is due. Mark Cuban, kudos! This is a really fun series to watch.
Teri Sue maintains a Yahoo Group called Hardwired Comments. You can visit by Clicking Here.
Teri Sue is a screenwriter and author who loves to write with a passion because it is a passion. Anything is food for fodder. That's the rules of engagement in writing. Reader comments/thoughts are always welcomed/appreciated. Agree/Disagree. Either/Or is great.
She can be reached at terisuecomments@yahoo.com
