Why Is Almost Every Show Based On A "competition"?

is that the 3 part show where the followed the history of baking and modern bakers had to replicate the same methods and stuff?
that was a pretty good show.

 

Yes I am aware of the off button!!! When this genre of shows first started,it was sort of ok,as it was a new concept.I havent watched any competition style shows for quite a long time now.Just notice the previews of them,or when I happen to read the tv book.

 

i really hate those antique shows too...also pawn shops and pickers


i would much prefer if the general public didnt know which of their junk items were worth lots

 

I do not like those antique shows, either. I don't care about how much something is worth out there. Those type of shows bore me to tears. I was never into picking things because i knew they were worth alot.....In fact, I am pretty clueless.....in that area.....The dealers are a mean bunch,too...out there. I go for things that draw me in and make me smile and make me happy, and I don't care about anything else about an item....I do care if it is broken or has chips or something, if something is breakable....as i will leave those things there then.

or if it something I need for the house or want for myself , I will look for these things at these sales.......rather than pay the huge prices that is in the sores...Right now I want a grey wool peacoat for myself for next winter....Have not found one yet....and i always look for clean, unused stuffie toys for the dogs....

 

Since I travel to odd places, I usually look for an Anthony Bourdain episode that's close by. So far I have been to 4 countries he has and have actually eaten in two places that were on his shows. The only competition on his show is between he, his drinking buddy du jour and his liver.

I like Chopped when they don't go too weird with the ingredients. Who the hell uses Andouille, Jelly Beans and Water Chestnuts in a meal?

Competition shows are not a new phenomenon. I remember them in the 70s as mostly being about sports while Julia cooked alone. Soap operas were full of hard core psycho-social competition, but who can forget all day freakin game shows? Jeopardy is of course the fossil on the mantle, but still strong as we slide into Idiocracy otherwise. For a while the shows themselves competed with each other. The Munsters vs The Addams Family, Various westerns and then the rise of the Variety Show.

There was Sonny and Cher, who used to close the show by bringing their baby daughter out on stage (live TV). Then they were just Cher and a rarely watched Sonny show as we got to watch their marriage go to hell in prime time. Soon after the courtroom drama's spewed forth led by of all things Divorce Court, staffed with D list actors and college students, but a hit nonetheless. There were lots of competing Private Investigator shows.

Maybe the media pushes competition because we seek it in so many other forms of entertainment. Also, not all of us compete for a living, so this might satisfy that in some limited way (holodecks are coming folks, just wait for it). So far all of the porn competitions I have seen have been beyond stupid and no more entertaining than any other flick from the $5 bin (recycled liquor box) at the smut shop.

 

I was drawn in to Storage Wars for a few shows. Then it became obvious how badly scripted it was and how obvious some of the "unclaimed" stuff was planted. They show a guy who thinks he has a chest full of valuable shit, but it's just old National Geographics. But lo and behold there's an old tackle box behind it with a bottle cap that's worth $1600 because it was used to play checkers on Gilligan's Island or some such shit.

Pawn Stars was light hearted comedy, but Hard Core Pawn was some seriously funny shit. "You are GOING to give me MY $40 for this TV" says the crackhead shortly before being tossed out with his 80s TV (dials on the front). Another non-competition that's great is Restaurant Stakeout which has restaurants that are losing money for mysterious reasons. The mystery is solved with hidden cameras and it's all about employees gone wild. If you ever wondered why managers didn't rein in their insane employees, it's because they're not there. That is the bottom line.

The competitions for "love" are trite and tripe at the same time. They cheapen relationships which should come about organically, not with planned commercial breaks. It's like porn competitions with clothing (for the most part). Dull, D-U-L-L. With all I watch on a computer, I have no idea what real TV is like anymore. I fkin LOVE the 21st century. I can carry my TV in a shirt pocket.

 

the vinyl tape covering name brands on storage wars should have been your first clue it is all staged

 

I dont really watch any of the shows mentioned, except Anthony Bourdain but that isnt a competition show. for a while i watched Kitchen Nightmares a lot but that isnt a competition show either.

I have watched Jeopardy since i was a kid. My family used to "play" it every night. We would yell out answers and keep score then bet our points on final jeopardy.

 

Any of you notice that reality shows and competition shows really exploded around the time Hollywood switched from film to digital recording technology? This was the late 90s-Y2K era. The reason that is, is because 95% of what's captured on camera for those shows actually gets cut out, and the remaining 5% of what's actually shot actually makes it into the show. Imagine having to waste 95% of dozens and dozens of film reels to make 25min reality show with old school technology. If you hate reality TV, blame digital recording technology.

 

Dude111 is going to be all over this statement....

 

I remember that schlocky Queen for a Day show. Several women would whine about their life problems and the most pathetic would get prizes and be --QUEEN FOR A DAY!

I like antiques and have over the years collected various old and beautifully made objects. In the days of Art Nouveau and Art Deco, items had character and time was taken to include uniqueness and style. Analogous is the difference between older architecture as opposed to -say--big box stores.

 

I like Bourdain too!
I'm watching the show atm.

But the thing is...It's not interesting to me at all when he does these nice, orderly countries.
On the other hand, I loved Israel and Libya and Morocco so, so much.
But that's personal taste.

 

Like Nox, I tend to watch the cooking shows as I do really enjoy them. I have not watched any of the others and probably won't due to interest and time.

 

I am the exact same way, i definitely prefer the episodes where he is far off the beaten track. The israel and morocco are two of my favorites, i dont think i have seen the Libya episode

 

I think I read somewhere that you have an interest in the Middle East, which is something we share (well, that and that trashy disaster that is PLL xD).
I strongly recommend you watch the Libya episode.
When he was in Palestine that young mother was completely free to sit down and eat with men.
In Libya a woman had to sit at the children's table.
Bourdain wisely decided it's best not to comment on that.
And this was after the revolution (just shows you what way it was all heading, unfortunately).

Anyways, I googled, and it looks like he did Iran and Beirut too. I haven't seen those yet.

 

Well, it is a 3 part show.
Bakers do have to replicate a recipe (given to them either by Mary Berry or Paul Hollywood), but not in a historical way...just normal, regular baking.

But that history part reminds me...
I kind of liked this show:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorian_Farm

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9AFXK-bhMug

 

On a related note, do Americans have panel shows?

QI, Would I lie to you, Have I got news for you, 8 out of 10 cats, mock the week etc, etc.

There are hundreds of them on UK telly, they are so common that I only recently realised what an odd format it is: get 5-7 comedians (with occasional celebrities mixed in) and have them pretend to do a quiz in which no-one cares about the score at all, and the scoring system often makes no sense at all. Is this popular outside of the UK? with the exception of Whose line is it anyway, which is somewhat similar, I can't think of any US ecquivalents.

 

They're popular in the netherlands and Belgium as well. I like some of them (depending on the comedians in the panel or specific episode obviously), they can be hilarious. A format that resembles a serious quiz (indeed with a scoring system but it doesn't matter at all) all in service of cracking good jokes.

 

I'm very happy the new season of Master Chef Australia just started. By far the best iteration of the show. Those poor bastards have to cook 5 days a week for 16 weeks!
It's usually around 70+ episodes a season.
and Gordon Ramsey claims Master Chef America is the biggest competition, pffft.... yet they only have to cook once a week and the show is only 16-17 episodes.

MasterChef is interesting because it has been replicated in so many different countries and the way the show is done is very telling about aspects of the society and what is considered "entertaining"
MC Australia is very upbeat and everyone has an attitude of doing their best and supporting others. MC America and Canada are much more adversarial in that they often put contestants in opposition to one another as opposed to just cooking good.
Other countries have fallen somewhere in between. MC New Zealand is very similar to MC Australia, but does have a bit more "edge" to it similar to MC Canada.
MC South Africa is pretty much a clone of MC Australia, but scaled down considerably.
I've checked out MC Ireland, MC Romania and a few others from that part of the world. Sadly they have all taken their cues from MC UK, a show often used to induce coma's prior to major surgery.

blah, blah, blah..........as if anyone gives a crap about my social commentary on Master Chef...LOL