TheBiggestLoser-related stories
Posted Nov 4th 2009 1:01PM by Jane Boursaw
Filed under: OpEd, The Biggest Loser
If you haven't watched
last night's Biggest Loser yet, stop reading right now. Ok? Ok.
I've never been a fan of Tracey's. I thought she was mean and stabbed plenty of backs on her journey through the emotional minefields of
The Biggest Loser. And when it came down to whether Tracey or someone else would go home in last night's episode, I was rooting for Tracey.
"Send her home!" I yelled at the TV. "Make her pay for her crimes!" I was practically lighting my torches, hypothetically speaking.
Continue reading I have new respect for The Biggest Loser's Tracey
Posted Nov 1st 2009 8:01PM by Jane Boursaw
Filed under: Video, The Biggest Loser
This season of
The Biggest Loser has to be one of the most emotional of them all. When Abby went home last week (no spoiler griping - it was last week), it was truly inspiring to see how she's been able to move ahead with her life and let people in again. If someone whose been through one of the worst tragedies you can imagine can do that, it gives you hope that anything is possible.
This week, the remaining contestants head to Washington D.C., for a fun adventure that will take them from the Lincoln Memorial to the inside of the White House kitchen. The players also learn that they'll be competing as individuals rather than teams. Their first challenge: race around the National Mall and try to bring as many people as possible back to the Washington Monument for a public workout with trainers Bob and Jillian.
Continue reading What's Hot on SlashControl: Preview of this week's Biggest Loser
Posted Oct 14th 2009 9:31AM by Jane Boursaw
Filed under: OpEd, The Biggest Loser, Watercooler Talk
Eliminations on
The Biggest Loser are always heart-wrenching. Much as the contestants hate being away from their families, they've made the decision to try out for the show, and once they're there, the last thing they want to do is go home and back to their unhealthy habits.
Many of them truly are fighting for their life, and you just know that without the motivation of laying it all out there on TV -- not to mention the grueling paces that Bob and Jillian put them through -- some of them might never gain control over their weight.
Continue reading The wrong person went home on last night's Biggest Loser
Posted Oct 14th 2009 2:31AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: OpEd, The Biggest Loser, Episode Reviews
(S08E05) It's been a lot of fun seeing Bob and Jillian working together to help everyone on the Ranch lose weight and become better people. It was a good idea to pair up these total strangers as teams of two, so that they could develop a personal support structure. Everyone was in a good and happy place, and things were moving along.
Everyone except for Tracey. It is amazing how soundly she is despised in this game by nearly everyone there.
But still ... one big happy family, right? Wrong! This week everything we thought we knew about this season was thrown out the window, and once again a single contestant was given ultimate power in how the new face of
The Biggest Loser would play out. At least until they change it again.
Continue reading The Biggest Loser: Week Five
Posted Sep 30th 2009 2:16AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, OpEd, Episode Reviews
(S08E03) Perhaps as a response to no one going home last week, or maybe it was always in the cards, but tonight saw the elimination of entire teams as opposed to the individual elimination of week one that sent Alexandra home. This meant that the stakes couldn't be higher as everyone was going to have to pull their weight to shed those pounds and keep their team safe, right?
You'd think so.
In a very interesting and revealing twist, Alison announced that this week on
The Biggest Loser Ranch, it was all about choices. As such, she set up several scenarios, challenges and temptations whereby people could make choices that could not only affect their fate in the game, but everyone else's, as well. Let me tell you, choices were made and all hell broke loose!
Continue reading The Biggest Loser: Week Three
Posted Sep 23rd 2009 3:28AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, OpEd, Episode Reviews
(S08E02) It's week two on
The Biggest Loser ranch, and you know what that means? You don't? Well, let me tell you.
Biggest Loser first week weigh-ins are notorious for ridiculously huge numbers. These people are shocking previously inactive bodies they've been filling with the worst possible foods into a sudden regimen of regular exercise and proper diet. Before their bodies can react, they dump weight. It's nothing for contestants to drop 20-30 pounds in the first week.
By the second week, their bodies go into a protective mode, hoarding carbs as they try to figure out just what the hell is going on. It's common for contestants to turn around and drop only a pound or two, or even gain weight. So why not, Alison Sweeney, come out and tell the contestants that if the 15 of them can collectively lose 150 pounds in week two, none of them will be going home. If they fail, two are out. No pressure, right?
Continue reading The Biggest Loser: Week Two
Posted Sep 16th 2009 12:48AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, OpEd, Episode Reviews
(S08E01) Last year was the first time that I got sucked into
The Biggest Loser. But I was quickly drawn in by the inspirational work these contestants were doing to transform their bodies and their lives. And, as with any reality show, I got hooked by many of their dynamic personalities.
One contestant stood out early on. Mainly because Daniel Wright was the largest contestant in the history of the show. But it was his spirit that stood out even more. I was crushed when he was cut from the show, largely because of the poor attitude his partner displayed. But, as reported earlier,
Daniel's back again this season as a part of their theme of "Second Chances."
Continue reading The Biggest Loser: Episode 1 (season premiere)
Posted Aug 21st 2009 9:35AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, OpEd, Casting
Yesterday,
NBC revealed the cast for the new season of The Biggest Loser, and I was thrilled to see that last season's heaviest contestant Daniel Wright was among the new losers. Daniel was heavily crippled in his weight loss goals by the "Couples" format in place last season.
Dan had a great attitude and really wanted to make things work, but his partner David didn't have the drive to change, which ultimately cost them both the chance to continue beyond the fourth week. Daniel, who started at 454 pounds (the heaviest contestant ever until this season), still managed to drop to 312 pounds by the finale.
Continue reading Daniel Wright getting a second chance on The Biggest Loser
Posted Jul 27th 2009 10:33AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Industry, Programming, Celebrities, Reality-Free
Ben Silverman is leaving NBC to start a new media company.
A lot of people are going to rejoice over this news because they think that NBC hasn't been the same since he took over the entertainment department at the network. While he did bring
The Office and
The Biggest Loser to NBC, a lot of viewers have been confused by other moves at the network. Another show that Silverman had a hand in,
The Jay Leno Show, will debut in September. We'll have to see how that goes.
Continue reading Ben Silverman leaves NBC
Posted May 13th 2009 1:07PM by Joel Keller
Filed under: OpEd, Watercooler Talk
Now that the show is over, I'll finally admit it: I've been a closet fan of this season of
The Biggest Loser, at least since the early stages. I seem to take pleasure in the irony of watching it with my fiancee while we eat ice cream (low fat ice cream, but ice cream nevertheless). Anyway, the show is at once exploitative and inspiring, showing people losing cartloads of weight in order to give them back the fulfilling lives they lost as they packed on the fat. It also gives viewers a chance to decide which of the trainers -- Jillian or Bob -- is most manly.
(By the way, my money's on Jillian there. She's attractive, but she scares the living crap outta me.)
But what seems to happen between the last challenge and the live finale is that the finalists tend to go from healthily thin to scarily emaciated, all in the name of winning the grand prize. And, after taking a look at this year's winner, I have to ask: Is this healthy? And will it cause problems down the road?
Continue reading Random thought: Does The Biggest Loser finale cause eating disorders?
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
Posted Apr 18th 2009 10:04AM by Michael Pascua
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, OpEd, The Amazing Race, Survivor, Celebreality
As the numbers continue to dwindle on the competitive reality shows, tension is starting to rise and I want a front seat. The one thing I appreciate about network reality programs compared to scripted shows is that there are new episodes every week (I'm looking at you,
Grey's Anatomy).
I'm going to make a prediction that next week Coach will say something stupid, Frenchie will say something that needs subtitles, the cast of
The Biggest Loser will sweat, and Adam will regret singing "Play That Funky Music" a few weeks too early. This week's awards after the jump.
Continue reading Weekly Reality Awards
Posted Apr 12th 2009 11:52AM by Michael Pascua
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, OpEd, American Idol, Survivor, Dancing With The Stars, Celebreality
A week never starts off well without
The Amazing Race on Sundays. I hate when shows get delayed or moved to Wednesdays because of basketball.The shows were all a little off this week: there was only one vote on
The Biggest Loser, there was no vote on
Survivor, and
The Real World/Road Rules challenge ended with a cliffhanger.
Speaking of
Survivor, it has to suck to be Joe, who had to be evacuated to save his leg. Alas, his life is probably more important than a million dollars. More odd decisions after the jump.
Continue reading Weekly Reality Awards
Posted Apr 4th 2009 2:03PM by Michael Pascua
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, OpEd, The Amazing Race, American Idol, Survivor, Dancing With The Stars
This week, reality television maintained some normalcy. The outliers in
Survivor,
Dancing with the Stars, and
Hell's Kitchen went home. Although I'll lament the loss of Mel and Mike in
The Amazing Race, I believe that all the remaining teams deserve to be there.
Speaking of teams, the
Survivor Secret Alliance still has the numbers. With the merge inevitable, we'll see if one of the best alliances ever created will stick together. As long as Coach goes home, I'll be satisfied. More analysis after the jump.
Continue reading Weekly Reality Awards
Posted Mar 28th 2009 11:55AM by Michael Pascua
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, OpEd, The Amazing Race, Commercials, Celebreality
This week in reality television was eclectic.
Dancing With the Stars was happily un-complicated with the absence of Denise Richards,
America's Next Top Model's most home-sick model mysteriously was on top, and no one should have watched
Survivor because it was a waste of time.
This is one of those weeks where you realize that the show casts people with little-to-no chance of winning just so that the people they want to win don't mess up. Although
American Idol's Michael Sarver is a great example, I'm looking mostly at Celia (right) from Top Model: she's too old. On a positive note, there was a lot of weird, memorable, and funny moments to compensate this week. More analysis after the jump.
Continue reading Weekly Reality Awards - VIDEO
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