JonAndKatePlusEight-related stories
Posted Nov 26th 2009 4:33PM by Danny Gallagher
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, Programming

Call it a sign of a successful show or the end of an unmitigated disaster, but the reign of
Jon & Kate is officially over and joy has replaced tyranny in the universe.
In short, TLC's newest reality hit
Cake Boss has officially taken over the coveted 9 p.m. slot on Mondays vacated by Satan's favorite show,
Jon & Kate Plus 8.
For those of you who have not left your cave in the last month,
Jon & Kate officially left the airwaves last Monday thereby stitching the hole that its pure evilness created in the annals of time and space and staving off the unholy apocalypse. And in case your wondering, no, I never liked the show.
Posted Nov 24th 2009 6:03PM by Michael Pascua
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, OpEd

Last night was the series finale of
Jon and Kate Plus 8 and the show ended as if it was any season finale. The family went on their two last adventures while Kate and Jon narrated how they will be good parents. TLC tried their best to put Jon in a negative light, but Jon's media training forced him to make diplomatic statements.
With the divorce,
Jon and Kate Plus 8 was cut short. The dynamic between the parents was something to watch, but the real focus was eight children learning about the world and each other in the process. Each started gaining true personalities and by the end, I finally was able to distinguish between Alexis and Leah.
Continue reading Will you miss Jon and Kate Plus 8?
Posted Oct 16th 2009 9:37PM by Danny Gallagher
Filed under: Other Reality Shows

Who says that justice is a forgotten concept that only exists as a hope and no longer as an important facet of a fully functional society?
Jon Gosselin is about to have his day in court. Take that, evil!
TLC is suing for the former star of
Jon & Kate Plus 8 for breach of contract, accusing accused him of violating an exclusivity and moral clause in his contract. I was shocked. Reality shows have morals? Of course it makes sense that the only morals involved in reality shows would have to be enforced by a contract.
Posted Sep 8th 2009 9:00PM by Brad Trechak

Things are getting a little heated for everyone's favorite dysfunctional family. No, not
The Simpsons. I'm referring to Jon Gosselin, the former patriarch of
Jon and Kate Plus Eight, who
declared on Good Morning America that he "despises" his ex-wife and former co-star, Kate. And here I thought "TLC" also meant "tender loving care".
People, do you remember all those "reality" programs that so many of you adore so much? They're all fake. This is the sort of reason I can't stand reality television. While there is no formal "script", the people on those shows are as much characters as those on
Battlestar Galactica, except the writing isn't as good.
As a note to anybody famous considering divorce: if you do decide to go through with it, practice some tact and don't make it the headline of every tabloid that points a microphone in your face. This entire situation is schadenfreude at its worst.
Posted Jun 23rd 2009 2:28PM by Michael Pascua
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, OpEd
Jon and Kate Gosselin have finally filed for
divorce papers, but shouldn't the two of them go through a few steps before getting there? I'm no doctor, but even I could see that getting upset at one moment and then having silence for several months is not a good basis for divorce.
Yes, there are a lot of outlying factors that TLC has not decided to show America. The portrayal of the couple in the whole fifth season shows that the two didn't communicate anymore, unless it's for the children. Shouldn't one fix the communication barrier before cutting the cord completely?
Continue reading Jon and Kate: Isn't divorce too harsh?
Posted Jun 22nd 2009 2:50PM by Joel Keller
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, OpEd

A few days ago, we mentioned that TLC was heavily
promoting tonight's episode of Jon & Kate Plus 8, pushing the fact that the couple will make a "special announcement" about their crumbling relationship. My colleague Mike Pascua speculated on what was going to happen, but the good folks at Radar Online (who I wrote for occasionally in their pre-
Enquirer-owned days) have already latched on to what the announcement is likely going to be.
And, to be honest, it's about the least surprising news you could think of. More after the jump.
Continue reading Jon and Kate's special announcement isn't a big surprise
Posted Jun 19th 2009 2:08PM by Michael Pascua
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, OpEd, Watercooler Talk

I've wasted many hours of my life watching
Jon & Kate plus Eight. We're given yet another promo about a
big announcement on the show. Since it's not until Monday, we get the weekend to make speculations.
With a reality show like
Jon and Kate plus Eight, one doesn't expect millions of plot twists like
Lost so I doubt that we're going to
flash forward five years or wake up and realize that it was
all a dream. Here is a list of sane and insane announcement ideas that Jon and Kate should announce.
Continue reading What should happen to Jon and Kate?
Posted Jun 2nd 2009 1:00PM by Michael Pascua
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, OpEd

Everyone knows that there is
drama between Jon and Kate and the episode following the
well-gawked-at season premiere totally blankets over the whole situation. Instead of having Jon and Kate face their demons, the show decided to pretend like nothing happened. The situation between Jon and Kate reminds me of the strain between Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. TLC decided to go the way of the ailing sitcom and implant celebrity guests. No more paparazzi shots and stress about the relationship; instead we'll get visits from outside forces. Yay for whitewashing.
Continue reading Jon and Kate plus guest stars!
Posted May 27th 2009 11:22AM by Joel Keller
Filed under: OpEd, Watercooler Talk, Ratings

You just
knew that the perfect storm of tabloid stories, very effective ads and promos, and a holiday where nothing else was on was going to make for
boffo ratings for the
Jon & Kate Plus 8 season premiere. But the numbers are staggering by almost any standard: 9.8 million people viewed the train wreck on Monday night, surpassing the numbers for any network -- broadcast or cable -- that night and doubling TLC's previous high water mark. What was that mark? The season four finale of
Jon & Kate, of course.
I can't cast any aspersions on the size of the audience, because I gladly flipped on TLC to see
the 73 minutes of extreme discomfort. And, boy, did I hate myself for doing it.
Continue reading Jon & Kate draw 9.8 million rubberneckers... including me
Posted Apr 25th 2009 9:00AM by Michael Pascua
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, OpEd, The Amazing Race, American Idol, The Apprentice, Survivor, Celebreality

One of the best things about reality shows for me is watching people succeed or crash in a fiery abyss. While watching
Grey's Anatomy, I caught the commercial for all the summer shows and was excited to see the return of
I Survived a Japanese Game Show. Last year was heavily underrated. All the contestants were likable, everyone learned about Japanese culture, and the biggest thing everyone came off learning something.
While I wait for summer and hope for a new season, this week started off MTV's
The Phone. I was nervous about Justin Timberlake being the executive producer, but the show surprised me. Any fan of
The Mole,
The Amazing Race,
Cha$e, or
Treasure Hunters should probably consider. Now on to the weekly awards.
Continue reading Weekly Reality Awards