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The Biggest Loser: Game Or Heartwarming Makeover Program?
Commentary by RTVC Staff Writer Kathleen
March 31, 2010
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Uber-Player
Is the Biggest Loser a game or a heartwarming makeover program?
Most of us, contestants and audience alike, are often on the fence about this. Except for Melissa, the Uber Player of the decade. It’s a contest and she’s planning on winning.
Shall we analyze Biggest Loser as a game?
What is the prize? $250,000. After taxes that amount might pay your debts or it might pay or pay down your mortgage. It might make a dent in sending someone to college. It is unlikely to make the winner fancy free for more than a very short while.
How long does this contest take? On the Ranch and the DIY part at home together? You had better set aside the better part of a year.
What does it cost to enter the game? Did you have to quit your job or take an unpaid leave? Did you have to arrange for help back at home because you are not there? Remember, you have a 100% chance of incurring these costs versus a less than 5% chance of winning enough money to offset it.
What do you have to do? You have to change your whole life for about a year (unless you end up committing to the “forever” part) and you have to expose yourself, your flab, your stress induced meltdowns, and things you might normally only tell your therapist to millions of people via National TV.
So you consider yourself a serious gamer. How big a part does strategy and gamesmanship play in the contest that is Biggest Loser? Not much and then only in the short run.
Yes, the “Ronfather” worked a long-term strategy and worked it to death. And he didn’t win. And his son, the intended beneficiary of all that manipulation, didn’t win either. Zero payback on investment.
Back to Melissa. She is an educated professional. She is driven. My Lord, she is driven. I’d really like to see how she cranks herself up to that level on a daily basis. Exhausting to contemplate.
Why did Melissa pick the Biggest Loser as her stage? Her weight loss needs were not that extreme. Lance’s were more serious I will grant you, but that doesn’t explain Melissa’s quest for greatness. She’s NOT doing this for Lance. (Sorry Lance. You are deluded.)
If Melissa wanted to compete for a big prize, why not Survivor? The prize is a million bucks and it only takes six weeks. A month of coconut would have slimmed Melissa down in a way Jillian could not.
Wouldn’t it be fun to see Melissa go head to head with Russell or Rob??
Or maybe she could have tried out for one of the big prize question and answer games. Melissa is a know-it-all. She should have it in the bag.
No. I really don’t know why Melissa is making her run on the Biggest Loser. Ego? Perhaps Biggest Loser is the only one that would take her.
Shhh … don’t tell her. If they did, it was because she was part of the package with Lance. It’s his story about being too fat for his job that fits the usual Biggest Loser mold.
The only “good” part about Melissa and her quest is that she’s absolutely up front about it. It’s a game and she’s playing.
Poor little Stephanie has shared from the beginning that she’s using strategy whenever possible. This week when she gets called on it, she dives deep into denial and wonders why everyone is being mean when she’s been such a good friend. Watch the show, Steph.
And was it Sam or Koli who outted Stephanie? That’s an interesting strategy to ponder also, coming as it does from a pair who continually deny and decry gamesmanship.
Me? I’m into warm, fuzzy, aw shucks moments. I just love seeing these people get their lives back. And I am sad when they derail their own journeys by slipping into game mode.
Tuesday, enjoying warm and fuzzy transformations. Thursday, yelling at game players on a beach somewhere. Please don’t confuse the two.
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Kathleen lives in the forest in Colorado where she is pursuing a second career as an artist. Having turned on the TV for companionship she has developed a very happy addiction to a selected number of reality shows. Highly opinionated, she welcomes your input. She can be reached at: Kathleen@RealityTVCalendar.com.
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