January 15, 2007

Chico: Hello friends... Hope you're not a vegetarian, because today on WLTI... we promise.. BEEF!
Jason: MOOOOOOOO!
Gordon: (brings gloves, a stool and a bucket)
Jason: Get away from my udder! And your hands are cold.
Gordon: This is getting udderly silly.
Chico: Whether it's cows, meat, or celebs duking it out in peter-measuring contests, it's what's for dinner... from Somewhere in America, the first We Love to Interrupt of 2007... is.. ON!
Gordon: Yay!
Jason: Happy New Year!
Chico: Alongside Jason Block and the always...interesting...Gordon Pepper... I'm Chico Alexander.Hope you had a great 2007 so far. You guys have a great new year?
Jason: Very good. Started a new diet. Healthier eating more exercising and I feel much better. Gordon can attest to that.
Gordon: I can. I also won $120 in Atlantic City and spent $18 and all I got was a 3 inch piece of lobster. Piece. Singular. With a car key sized patch of mango.
Chico: Hey, that's good eating... Ever had lobster bisque? To DIE for.
Jason: I did. My $9 bisque is in a bread bowl, beat his $18 piece of tempura.
Chico: Ah. Right.
Jason: Too funny.
Chico: Well, we've got, as usual, a lot to cover, so let's get it on and poppin'.
Jason: I am strapped and ready
Chico: Here's a bit of a laundry list of what happened since we last convened...

1) High Stakes Poker got a copycat wannabe in "Poker After Dark".
2) No less than five TV shows of interest premiered.
3) Ryan Vickers turned 29... He made us say that :)

Jason: Of course.

4) The Double or Nothing twist on Deal or No Deal was unleashed.

Chico: and finally, the one we're going to start with...

5) Rosie and Donald's feud showed no signs of ending.

Gordon: But it sure is entertaining, isn't it?
Jason: No it isn't.
Chico: It stopped being entertaining when Star Jones got involved.
Gordon: I said entertaining. I did not say enjoyable.
Jason: Did you also know the Donald MAY appear on WWE programming. This past Monday they did a "Rosie" v. "Donald" wrestling match on WWE Raw.
Chico: Okay, am I the only person who's willing to admit that this has gone on too far for too long? I mean, the Donald-Martha fracas didn't go on as long as this. The Apprentice... it sucked. The beef.. for whatever reason.. didn't work. Let's just cut our losses and move on, shall we, Mr. Trump?
Jason: Donald Martha was publicity--this is real. Rosie isn't faultless here either, Chico.
Gordon: This is how you know that this may be a bit more than publicity stunt. This didn't go away after The Apprentice debuted. According to realitytvworld.com, The Donald claimed that Star Jones congratulated him on his attacks on The View. I think the Donald needs a better choice of friends, myself.
Chico: I'm not saying it's Rosie's fault or it's Donald's fault. If you ask me, there's plenty of blame here to go around. As my brother loves to say, "It takes two... to screw."
Jason: I totally agree. But Rosie DID fire the first shot. And with all due respect she is a bit of hypocrite too.
Chico: DO tell.
Jason: If you remember when she was on her talk show, she was appealing to the middle American housewife knowing she was gay.
Chico: Right.
Jason: When Rosie came out in her final season, her ratings tanked, then she "retired" her talk show. Conversely, Ellen Degeneres is making more money being openly gay and just being a comedian who happens to be gay than being a gay comedian. So what I am saying is that Rosie made millions of dollars representing something she wasn't. So everyone here is not clean and neat.
Chico: Okay. The question, though, if this is a full-on squabble... Did it start out that way?
Jason: No. I don't think so. Donald wanted a "Martha-Donald" squabble and Rosie took it personally. And now it's war.
Chico: I mean, you have that... and at at the same time, you have Miss USA's wild side coming out... and then there's the whole deal with Miss Nevada, same tree, branch further down.
Jason: And that is where I think Donald is full of...fecal matter.
Chico: Next question: What happened to straight out saying "Hey, you know what? I have a new season of 'the Apprentice' coming out... It's really great."
Jason: Welcome to the new viral promotion.
Gordon: Yeah, but this is negative viral promotion. This sort of promotion rarely works, and when it does, it's a 1-trick pony, which usually afterwards needs to go into the field and be shot.
Chico: And this pony, he already used. And now it seems that karma is coming back to collect. Can I share a quote?
Jason: Sure.
Chico: Here's a quote... from Marc Berman of Mediaweek.

"According to Donald Trump, the debut of The Apprentice last Sunday was NBC's highest-rated show in the 9:30-11 p.m. time period in 14 months. The Apprentice kicked-off season six with 9.10 million viewers (No. 46 overall out of 108 shows) and a 4.1 rating/10 share among adults 18-49 (tied for No. 19 with Law &Order: Criminal Intent). Recent time period occupant Sunday Night Football, however, averaged a considerably heftier 16.47 million viewers with a 6.4/16 among adults 18-49." As for The View supposedly "tanking" after Trump decides to
stop commenting on the feud, wasn't the perennial ABC daytime talker up year-to-year before the Donald/Rosie fracas?

Gordon: I'll say this - Trump knows how to spin
Chico: Yep.. but the truth has a funny way of making you look like an idiot. Moral of the story... Shut up and sell product, beotch =p
Jason: I need a shower. It's like two animals throwing feces at each other in the zoo. Not funny.
Gordon: It's funny for a little while, but only until the room starts to stink.
Chico: And right now.. it's stinking something fierce.
Jason: Question...how long will this last?
Chico: Hopefully not much longer. This is becoming a joke. And it's not helping ANYONE.
Gordon: No it's not. And it's turning from remotely interesting to 'Who Cares?'
Jason: What's really sad, is that both people have done huge things for New York City and their respective charities...They have raised millions for good causes. And this makes them look like idiots.
Chico: Such is life in the spotlight.
Gordon: Let's spotlight some other things - for example, the three new games on VH1.
Chico: Surreal Life Fame Games... not that interested. Sorry.
Jason: (pour bucket of water over myself to clean myself off)
Chico: I mean, it's a subtle play off of celebrity and it's supposed to be funny... but I don't see it.
Jason: I saw that working out on Thursday. That's fun. And cheesy.
Gordon: I have to agree with The Block. It's good in a cheesy way.
Jason: I like the game show element. And Robin looks so 70's in that blue tux.
Chico: I may be in the silent minority... but I'm just weary of the franchise as a whole :) We did the whole mock game show thing before with The 70s House.
Gordon: It's going to be silly, and not to be taken too seriously - except that the celebrities do, which creates the charm of it. I think it's a cute spin on the franchise. What I like the best about it is that unlike most all-star shows, they actually brought out the people we WANT to see on it, instead of the troublemakers (Omarosa, etc.)
Chico: I will give it that. This is light-hearted, not too heavy on the dramma.
Jason: By the way...who is that Andrea person?
Chico: Andrea Lowell
Gordon: Who is a Playboy Bunny. nice tail.
Jason: Oh...:) Nice. But it was ok.
Gordon: It wasn't bad - but it wasn't my favorite VH1 show of the week. Also debuting...the White Rapper Show. Thoughts?
Jason: Oh hell no.
Chico: White Rapper. A couple of them are pretty fly... for a white guy. Me, though. I will stick with Bubba Sparxxx... Lady Sovereign... and the Beastie Boys.
Jason: And Eminem. And Robbie Williams on certain songs on Rudebox :)
Chico: YES! I got the title track on my iPod... BUT more on that later.
Jason: I got that in Europe last year. Great album.
Chico: It really is.
Gordon: The show wasn't awful. There were some good talents in there, and they do take it seriously (which is what I was afraid it wouldn't do). Although it was my least favorite of the 3, it would still be something I would watch if nothing else is on.
Chico: And at least it has some street cred behind it.
Gordon: MC Serch from 3rd Base is very good Street Cred
Jason: Yes.
Gordon: Then, there's the show that got the highest ratings of any VH1 show in it's debut....I Love New York.
Chico: Gordon has more street cred than I Love New York. :) This is another vapid dating show with someone I wouldn't want to end up with even if you paid me.
Gordon: OK. I may be getting a beat down for this, but...I like this show, and it was by far my favorite show this week.
Chico: Say Wha?
Gordon: This is by far the most entertaining train wreck of a dating show I have ever seen. I think the chances of love are zero, but the 20 suitors are just so bizarre that it makes the female suitors for Flavor Flav look like MENSA.
Chico: And that's just it. These dating shows are jokes now. You're not going to find true love on TV.
Jason: ISN'T THAT THE POINT...it's A JOKE.
Gordon: Exactly, and the show, with their choices of guys, knows it. If you can take your brain and check it at the door, this show works.
Chico: The fact that it only happened at least once in so many shows ... just serves to prove the point.
Jason: Twice.
Chico: Still exceptions that prove the rule. People shouldn't find love on TV.
Gordon: Yes, and it's hysterical to see her attempt to do it.
Chico: If you asked me to rank these shows, I'd put White Rapper on top... Surreal Life in the middle... New York on the bottom.
Gordon: I'll have to go I Love New York, Surreal Life Fame Game, and then White Rapper Show.
Chico: Not to rest on their laurels, USA and CMT also launched new shows this week. Tell me what you think of... Nashville Star.
Jason: I liked the show itself, but a couple of things bothered me.
Gordon: Do tell.
Jason: First of all...no one is over 30 in the competition.
Chico: I noticed that. What's up with that?
Jason: In the first seasons, they took from the older pool. Again this maybe a style over substance thing. And song selection is key.
Chico: Which would explain Cowboy Troy. :)
Jason: Hey I like Troy.
Chico: I'm just saying is all.
Jason: Meg Allison did a version of one of the most famous country songs and nearly got eliminated for it. Jazzy and bluesy is not "Walking after Midnight" by Patsy Cline.
Chico: You could probably get away with that on that other show... Not here.
Jason: And believe me, I have experts on Cline at home.
Gordon: I think she may pay dearly with it from the audience
Jason: But the male elimination was a bland version of "The Devil Went Down to Georgia". But as of the first performance. Angela Hacker is my favorite to win it all.
Gordon: As is mine - but I'm disappointed on how they are condensing the show. I remember in the early seasons, you had 20 singers and cut it to 12. Now after one episode, you're only going to have 7 people singing in the second episode.
Chico: I understand that you have to keep changing in order to stay fresh, but come the hell on, Nashville Star?
Gordon: Changing usually means to add to diversify, not to contract =P
Chico: Right.
Jason: Which will put the finale on....Feb 22 or March 1. Sweeps time and ratings.
Chico: Still, it's not a good enough reason to change THAT drastically. Some of the best shows on TV got to where they were by sticking to a tried-and-true format and not changing for the sake of change.
Jason: And also, they may be afraid of the monolith of AI.
Gordon: Hence the move to Thursdays at 10pm - away from Idol - instead of Tuesdays at 10pm, which is either right at the end of it or conflicting against it.
Chico: I see. Another Western-themed show also premiered this week.. Cowboy U Colorado. If I had to choose a recipient for the Y-Factor award (as in "Why the hell am I doing this")... It would be Katie. And the only thing Cowboy U changed is its scenery... to Colorado this time. Big Sky Country....But at its heart, it's the same show.. and you know.. that's cool.
Jason: Didn't see it.
Chico: Good stuff. Check it out if you have a chance.
Jason: I will.
Gordon: Meanwhile, let's not forget the stuff that debuted on NBC. Let's start with said Donald's show...How did you like The Apprentice?
Chico: All the things they said about it ... True. It looks like "My Big Fat Obnoxious Boss".
Gordon: Here's the sad thing about The Donald's tirade. This is actually a good show. You don't need the gimmicks and the 'loser gets penalized worse than ever before' kitsch. The drama of the show is in the Boardroom. That's what makes the show work, and that's what I want to see. Thats the compelling hook and we got a lot of it. If Burnett really wants to do something to the show, it should be limited to the first 30 minutes of task and the last 30 minutes of Boardroom (sort of like Law and Order).
Chico: But at least this season has at least one barebones business acumen-oriented task, instead of having it be a 60 minute-long commercial for the company du jour. You almost think that all the news and the stories take something away from the show. That and Donald forgot the cardinal rule of game show hosting. "The contestants are the stars."
Jason: Amen.
Chico: If he ever knew it =p
Gordon: I think it does take something away from the show. I like Ivanka and I like the Boardroom part of the show. The contestants this season seem solid as well, as the first decision was tough. Now why they are not focusing on what actually makes the show work is beyond me.
Chico: Because it goes back to that one rule that Donald forgot. He made the show less about the contestants and more about himself by being out there. And now his show is paying the price for it.
Gordon: I agree - and that's a shame, because this is an excellent show.
Chico: Which is more than what can be said for the OTHER NBC show that premiered...
Jason: Ah Yes...American Grease
Chico: Grease: You're the One that I Want... a thinly veiled copy of American Idol... And really... who needs ANOTHER one of those?
Gordon: We don't, and we don't need Billy Bush acting like Seacrest-light.
Chico: The show itself managed to attract more of a crowd than "The Apprentice" and for that it deserves props...
Gordon: You would figure that with 5 seasons worth of watching American Idol, that they would do something different with the show - maybe do some things that Idol doesn't, which is to get more of the finalists in and see what makes the show work. Unfortunately, they don't do that, and instead do exactly what Idol does, except condense it, which is even worse, because we don't have a sense of who the contestants are.
Chico: In all aspects, this is a show that's either going to grow on me or going to end up completely Hoovering the legacy of Grease.
Gordon: All I remember is a bunch of blonde females and a bunch of black-haired males, and I would have no clue who any of them are.
Chico: Hey, didn't "The One" do that in the week or two it was on the air? And here's the thing.
Gordon: Pretty much.
Chico: The thing that gets me - they're looking for a new Sandy and Danny for a new generation...2/3 to 3/4 of those who auditioned looked... like the OLD Sandy and Danny!
Gordon: I agree with you there. Here's the problem - you need chops to do a role like that, so you'll either get the young-uns who aren't good enough or the veterans who are - but they are aged. That being said, if they don't get a veteran to helm this show, it's going to be the biggest disaster on Broadway - and I don't think the hook of auditioning them on a national television show is going to be enough.
Chico: Quite true. And this is from a person who was in a high school production of it :)
Jason: And I have done community theatre so I should know.
Chico: So the ends.. Noble. Really... But the winner's going to have to knock it out of the ballpark for this to have ANY viability. And right now... I don't see it happening, because I don't know... or care... about any of these guys.
Gordon: Agreed. Do you care about Gay, Straight or Taken guys?
Chico: Nope.
Jason: Nope.
Chico: 1.6 million people do, though. We call them marks.
Gordon: This is just a mess and it makes the short lived Fake-a-date look good.
Chico: Oh but yes. I'd take "Playing it Straight" over this. At least Playing it Straight was cute about it.
Gordon: May we kindly get a synopsis of Week #1, Mr. Alexander?
Chico: Why not. Jenner needs to pick who, out of Mike, Luciano, and Chris, is single and interested.
Jason: Is it female to male?
Chico: Yep. In a decision that takes 30 minutes to make, Jenner thinks that Luciano is available. Luciano... is gay.
Jason: Whoops! :)
Chico: Mike is the single one and Chris is the taken one. If Jenner got it right, the woman and her new boy toy won a dream date for two.
Jason: Got it.
Chico: Second show, Jilina takes on Calen, Ayo, and Vic. Jilina thinks Vic is gay, Calen is taken, and Ayo is available. Vic... is Taken. Ayo... is straight. Calen is gay.
Gordon: Did Jilina win, because she got the available person right? Or does she have to get all 3 right?
Chico: She won. All you have to do is pick the straight guy.
Gordon: Whoopee.
Chico: Now you may say "Another entry into the bad reality show hall of fame"...
Gordon: Another entry into the bad reality show hall of fame?
Chico: You know what? You'd be right! 16 shows are planned. 14 too many. How was 1 vs. 100 this week, Gordon?
Gordon: It was pretty nice. We gave out the most ever on an episode. Want to know more?
Chico: Yep
Gordon: We start the episode with the continuing journey of Barry Lander, who takes home the biggest prize so far - $343,000. In doing so, he leaves 16 people. Not included in the 16 is Adam West, who gets knocked out.
Jason: Poor Batman.
Chico: Back to Quahog with him.
Gordon: The 40 Year old Virgin also gets knocked out, but he does leave with $4,000 and change from the previous show, when he eliminated a woman for $89,000. Also eliminated - Ben Ziek, but he also takes 4 G's with him.
Jason: Yay! Ben!
Gordon: Next Contestant, Kwame Horne, faced the mob with 6 child geniuses, 2 infomercial millionaires (Anthony Stewart and Matthew Lesko), 5 clowns (and a drag queen), and...Fabio. When the show ended, there are 52 people left, including 1 Child Genius, 1 Drag Queen, most of the clowns, and Stewart, The Question Guy and Fabio.
Chico: Matthew Lesko and Fabio in the same room. If that doesn't scream good television... I don't know what does. Wait. I know what does...Deal or No Deal: The Double or Nothing twist.
Gordon: Ooooh...Twiiist.
Jason: Explain please
Chico: In the Australian version, there are two big cases. One of them says "Double". The other says "Nothing". You can bet some or all of your winnings on one final case. If it says Double, you win double your bet. If it says nothing.. you lose the bet.
Jason: And in this version?
Gordon: No - this time, you have to bet ALL of it, not just a portion.
Chico: Kathy Beck deals for $99,000.
Gordon: And judging by how conservative she played the game (bailing out with 6 boxes left), there was no way she was going to risk it.
Chico: She would've chosen the left case. She would've won...DOUBLE.
Jason: $198,000--wow.
Chico: But needless to say, a pretty good addition to the show. Let's see if it'll play in Peoria, so to speak. Or... if Dr. Pepper needs to pimp it out a bit.
Gordon: I can do some pimping. We'll pimp some Brainvision for you all and see what new shows GSN has up their sleeves...after the Break.
Chico: But first! New for 2007... a little thing we like to call, "You Love to Interrupt."
Jason: Oh wow! New feature!
Chico: We'll ask you a question, and you out there get to answer. We'll tabulate the results and deliver them next week with the new You Love to Interrupt question. This week's question is...

Who do you want to see host the next season of "The Price is Right"? Rich Fields John O'Hurley Dave Price Someone else

Chico: We'll have the results for you next week.
Jason: Awesome :)
Chico: We have a break for you right now, though. this is WLTI, celebrating five years deep in gamedom... five years.

(This Break has been brought to you by the search for the next Frank-N-Furter. If you're going to bring a show back, why not The Rocky Horror Picture Show? Besides, they need campy, over the top people - a perfect reality show.)

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