Big BrotherReality TV: Ten
Big Brother
Reality TV: Ten strangers, three months and one network that has taken the reality TV craze one step too far. CBS'much hyped Euro import"Big Brother"debuted Wednesday night with all of the style and drama of a Publishers Clearing House Prize Patrol commercial.
S. Africa worships'Idol'
Reality TV: Kortje wins music competish — Karin Kortje, a former apple packer from the small town of Grabouw in the apple-growing region of the Western Cape, became South Africa's third Idol Sunday night in an emotional finale to the most successful"Idols"season yet for paycaster M-Net.
Cabler slates originals
Reality TV: Psychic Edward, Gucci join WE slate — WE: Women's Entertainment has greenlit six original series, including the return of psychic John Edward and docu soaps following Gucci heir Gemma Gucci and the married life of"Last Comic Standing"alumni Kerri Louise and Tom Cotter.
Ricochet bounces to Shed
Reality TV: Brit prod'n company sold for $51 mil — Ricochet, the British production company behind the hit ABC and Channel 4 show"Supernanny,"has agreed to a£30 million ($51.4 million) sale to Shed Prods., which makes"Footballers'Wives"for ITV.
Survivor: The Australian Outback (Survivor II)
Reality TV: Die-hard fans might miss Richard, Rudy and the queen of tapioca, but there are plenty of greedy and paranoid players on the prowl for $1 million in"Survivor: The Australian Outback."CBS shrewdly scheduled its money train right after the Super Bowl, and the show that earned the year's most lucrative timeslot is sure to ignite hype and water cooler chatter once more. It should — it's the original and still the best.
Temptation Island
Reality TV: A knock-off of"Survivor,"Fox's"Temptation Island"is merely a lightweight libido experiment. The network behind"Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire"continues to churn out copies, and this one is nothing but a trip into the shallow thought processes of unstable dudes and dudettes.
Bands on the Run
Reality TV: If video did indeed kill the radio star, then made-for-reality TV bands have their weapons drawn for the gussied-up video stars who fill what's left of musicvideo in music television. VH1 updates"It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World"for a trio of scruffy rock bands, adds an element of the entrepreneur contest at the heart of"Risky Business"and then gets it all on tape for"Bands on the Run."It's"Survivor Rock'n'Roll"for these bands of dubious distinction competing for fans'dollars and VH1 fame.
Survivor
Reality TV: Who wants to be a millionaire? Sixteen people who abandoned their jobs, families and remote controls to spend 39 days on a South China Sea island — that's who. CBS'much-hyped"Survivor"doesn't have a phone-a-friend option and $200 questions about cereal aren't applicable. Instead, this"Real World"-meets-"Lord of the Flies"gamer offers up snakes, rats, cash and more personality conflicts than your average workplace.