Will “The Real World” please stand up? Because the MTV show has little to do with reality. The show’s fifth season takes place in a million-dollar beach house in South Miami, where seven hand-picked strangers are given $50,000 to start a business. That’s not real life, that’s a gimmick.
Watching a camera crew taping every move a bunch of strangers makes is creepy. I feel like I’m peeping in someone’s bedroom window.
It might be OK if these seven could enjoy that gorgeous beach house. But they’re too busy trying to start a business under incredibly stressful circumstances: They know nothing about each other’s talents and even less about business.
Only Joe, from Brooklyn, N.Y., even has a clue. Cynthia, a spunky gal from Oakland, Calif., wants to work and earn some money, but is clueless. And the rest of the group could care less. Sarah is a talented artist, but a moody loner; Flora, the Russian from Boston, is a loser roommate; Miami Mike just wants to have fun; so does Melissa, who is thrilled to be out from under her strict father’s thumb; and Dan, the guy from Kansas, is obsessed with his hair. Are we having fun yet?
“The Real World” has always worked best when the casts’ lives appear real, not contrived. It’s real when we can relate to the failures and triumphs that occur as they follow their dreams. This gang is chasing a nearly impossible dream of starting a business. And it’s not even theirs! Their business guru shows up to keep them in line. He allegedly visits to advise the group, but I think he’s really there to make sure they’re not spending too much time enjoying the pool. No wonder these people are cranky and stressed out! It’s like giving some kid a bunch of toys and saying, “But you can’t play with them until you earn them.”
The producers of the show should be locked in a beach house “dungeon” until they come up with, like, a real idea.
