Season's come and go, so do old favourites.

I have been waiting to blog about Big Brother for weeks, waiting to see how the show progressed. This season's big twist were the houseguests competing in duos and the return of favourite pairs. "Double Trouble" is continuing to be a battle between "The Veterans" and "The Newbies", and was, thankfully, much more exciting than last summer's season with Enzo a.k.a. "The Meow-Meow". I am rooting for the Vets, especially Jordan.

With the end of Big Brother we start to see the beginning of the new Fall shows and return of old favourites. Survivor will be back with Redemption Island and two old favourites, Ozzy Lusth and Coach Wade. I find that to be an odd combination as neither played together before, and they played very different from each other: "Ozzy is a tough competitor and, arguably, the best performer in challenges; Coach likes to think he's the best competitor" says Jeff Probst. That is a fair account.

Some old favourites from Survivor are competing on The Amazing Race: Ethan Zohn and Jenna Morasca, winners of Survivor: Africa and Survivor: Amazon. I can only hope we have a nicer but still tough Rob and Amber duo on our hands as the two race to win, but mainly I'm happy to see that Ethan is doing better after battling cancer. This makes the fourth team to have people from another reality show competing: Alison, and Jeff and Jordan from Big Brother; Rob and Amber from Survivor.

America's Next Top Model is finally catching up with the other reality television shows with an all-stars version. All-stars versions are a great way to catch up with old favourites, but could all these returning players be a sign that the major networks are trying to get old audiences to come back by featuring some of the most popular players?

As one of reality televisions most loyal and dedicated fans, I want CBS, NBC, ABC (I only saw a few episodes of Bachelor Pad, and was not impressed, but did catch up on what made Melissa crazy) and CW to keep casting new people and focus on the new strategies, rather than see Russell Hantz try to win for another time.

I'll be sure to blog more now that the new shows are out, but does anyone have any suggestions on what shows to watch this fall?

Who Do You Think You Are?

I've decided to change some stuff about this blog.

Yes, this one here.

As it was originally started as a classroom assignment, I want to change it up here at It's Real to Me with this first of hopefully many consistent posts. I put reality television on hold to revisit an old friend Sex and the City. The show provides me with topics, situations and life choices to think about when I'm sitting and waiting for my next shift at RW. Carrie's inner monologues become my inner monologues, wondering about the commonality between a popular phrase or situation to my life. She always wonders, always asks a question for her weekly column, wondering about who she is and not just her sex life. So here's what I wonder right now: who do you think you are?

Who Do You Think You Are? is a hit NBC reality TV series that explores the ancestry of celebrities, all of who try to discover a secret from their past. Sarah Jessica Parker was the first celebrity to venture her own path into her predecessors in North America. The journey took her all the way back to the Salem Witch Trials of the 1600s. When she hit the end of her journey, she discovered her the link to Esther Dutch Elwell, who was accused but never tried of being a witch. There could have been acting, but I think this was shocking to Ms. Parker (and ironic that she played a witch in Hocus Pocus).

Watching that show always gets me wondering who I really am. Where do I come from? Who are my ancestors? Were there any major events my families were a part of? I know I come from a mixture of German, Scottish and Irish backgrounds, but there is so many closer roots to other European, American, and possibly other ancestries, that it is hard to know where exactly I come from. Research had to be done to ensure the producers of the show were getting celebrities with a semi-interesting to completely fascinating histories in order to make the show watchable.

I will investigate who I am, where my family is from, and what major events have impacted the direction in which my ancestors have taken. Maybe Ancestory.com will help me with my journey, but I know that writing this blog I am leaving a bit of history for my ancestors to know me by. Hi, future family members!

Finales

What May has to offer in terms of reality television are the accumulating events that us watchers have been waiting for since the start of 2011-- Finales. The past two weeks have been filled with finales of my favourite shows, and I've been both pleased and disappointed in the results.

*****SPOILER ALERT*****

If you have not seen the Survivor, Amazing Race, Biggest Loser, Celebrity Apprentice or Dancing with the Stars finales, don't read!

Survivor: Redemption Island-- With the last four Murlonio, or Omepete standing, it was time to bring RI to an end. Matt, Mike, Grant and Andrea squared off in a final duel that would land one of them back in the game. I was surprised when Andrea outlasted the three men to gain a spot back in the game, but the twist of RI provided pointless as Andrea was just voted out after she got back (like her buddy Matt). The final three turned out to be Phillip, Natalie and Rob. For me it was a clear choice and I'm glad it was for the jury as well, Rob Mariano finally won a season of Survivor and we will hopefully not have to see him again (although I really enjoy him).

Amazing Race-- the show aired differently with four teams racing instead of the tradition three for a finale. Zev and Justin were out fourth in Brazil after falling behind during a road block where Zev had to perform in a street parade, and then switching detours at the last minute. The race to the finish line in Florida proved hard for Gary and Mallory as they struggled once again with a bad cab drive (this is how they landed a spot on this season, having had trouble in Omen with a cab driver the year before). It was a close race between the Globetrotters, and Jen and Kiesha, but I was glad to see the sisters make it to the finish line first. This makes them the second all-girl team to win the Amazing Race.

Biggest Loser-- first I must say every looked amazing when I watched the show last night. Glad to see they took the advice seriously and we didn't see too many people gain more weight back. I was pleased to see Jay be eliminated and Irene make it to the three, but it came down to the sisters, Olivia and Hannah. What a great place for sibling rivalry, on a scale to see who lost the most weight. I can just hear them say "no you're fatter" back and forth, but they both lost well over 100 pounds. Congrats to Olivia the opera singer for winning in the end! Dear Biggest Loser producers, give the white team another chance--that was a rip-off move for bringing them back just to send them away.

Celebrity Apprentice-- this was a disappointment for me. Trump, you need to write down who YOU want to win before the show starts so that you're not swayed to appease the audiences. Marlee Matlin lost to John Rich after running a successful event and advertising campaign, and John Rich, who is a musician, announced Def Leppard 15 minutes too early and had many other mistakes. I don't like how swayed this "captain of industry" can be. This finale, as well as the other Apprentice finales, are my least favourite to watch because Trump is an idiot.

Dancing with the Stars-- again, another disappointment but overall I think Kirstie won in life. Hines and Kym won the Mirror Ball Trophy after it came down to them versus Kirstie and Maks. I think Kirstie made the biggest transformation physically and emotionally, but the audience loved Hines. As my wonderful partner has pointed out, Maks is one of several pros who have not won the Mirror Ball Trophy but consistently makes it to the end. That man deserves more than a trophy though.

I will not be watching American Idol but good luck to the final two, Lauren and Scotty. Like Linda, my money's on Scotty to win. I say that because then Lauren will have the successful career.

With every finale there's always the promise to more premieres. So You Think You Can Dance, Big Brother 13, and many other shows will be coming this summer. I'll be sure to keep up with them, and keep you up too.

Making it your own

I realize I haven't posted in 3 weeks now but I have a good excuse: I was on vacation. And what a vacation it was! It was a seven-day Caribbean cruise, visiting Cozumel, Belize, Honduras and Grand Cayman. The week away has caused me to think long and hard about my life as now I am no longer a student.

But before I get too deep into that I want to share my most recent encounter with reality TV, but it wasn't on-screen: The Amazing Cozumel Race. It's an Amazing Race-style race around Cozumel, solving clues and performing tasks to make it to the finish line. As the only team from the Carnival Legend boat, Team Canadudes, Phil and I had to represent, which meant I had to run. For those who don't know, I don't normally run. We ran from the starting point, at the post office, to the flag pole, solved clues in the Cozumel Historic Museum, ran to get a henna tattoo, snorkled in the Caribbean sea to find a sunken ship, solved another clue leading us back to the square, then mini-golf, a quick trip to a shop, then the finish line. It took us one hour and nine minutes to run three-and-a-half miles. Because of our hard work we tied for second and received a silver medal. Beat that my brothers who get all the sports awards!

What I loved about this is the organizers took the concept of the Amazing Race and made it their own, which is basically a scavenger hunt but encapsulates the whole city of Cozumel. They don't step on the toes of CBS and the producers of the Amazing Race, but I think using the name of one of the most popular reality television shows today and it continues to gain followers each year. Participating in this excursion has inspired Phil and I to start thinking about an Amazing Niagara Race or the Great Niagara Falls Adventure. Either way, taking the popularity of a television show and making it your own is a great way to combine two passions: reality television and interactive entertainment.

I'm Not Ignoring American Idol

As the title suggests I am not ignoring American Idol--I just have nothing to say about the show.

I have been professing that I watch all reality television shows when that is not entirely true. My credibility may be shot, but I hate watching singing shows like American Idol. I watched the first couple seasons to see what the fuss was all about but after seeing the "idols" perform, I knew I did not idolize anyone from the show. Simon, Randy and Paula, at their peak, were hilarious and insightful; after a few years, Simon and Paula became bitter and it was not fun to watch. I will sit next to a railway track to see the trainwreck.

The success of the Idol contestants is not extremely high for a show that gets the top ratings in the United States. Besides the few that have succeed to tell their story, there are hundreds of others who are as talented that fall off the stage. Besides the regular 15 minutes each gets in the spotlight, what's the success in saying you were an American Idol contestant? Just as much success as saying you were a Canadian Idol contestant, I guess.

Right now the drama surrounding the shocking eliminations shows just how the voting system works for the show, which ruins the show. If the judges were smart, they would not have saved Casey Abrams and waited for Pia Toscano to be in danger. Look at Sanjaya Malakar: he outlasted many others to the disappointment of the judges and Seacrest, but it was America's decision.

It goes back to my bias against letting the fans vote, but talent competitions are different from adventure series. Rewarding the true victor should lead to their futher success, but if they are going to fade fast then it's the fault of the judges for selecting a dud.

Canada needs more reality TV

When I was 10 I wanted to be on the Canadian show "Uh-Oh", which (for those who don't remember) was a children's game show in which contestants spun a wheel, answered questions, played fun games, and got slime poured on them--how cool is that?!

When I was 13 I wanted to be on Survivor; at 14 I wanted to be on Big Brother; at 16 I wanted to be on The Amazing Race--do you see a pattern here? With the growth of reality television shows I want to be part of the phenomena as a contestant. It was not my 15 minutes or a guest spot on The King of Queens that pulled me into the trend, but it was the games themselves that have always intrigued me.

When I was 19 I wanted to learn to dance to be on So You Think You Can Dance or learn to cook and become a great chef to be on Top Chef. Now that these shows are offered in Canada, my talents are not honed in enough to be able to compete, but that's alright by me. I still want the chance to prove myself on one of the above shows but the producers of those shows own North American rights to the adventure shows, but only produce American content. In my eyes that's not fair, and somewhat discriminatory. Since Survivor's start in 2000 Canada has been watching carefully as the contestants outwit, outplay and outlast each other for the 13 week program, and the show always ranks in the top 10 each week. Last year's edition of Heroes vs. Villains saw the show ranking higher than the first round of the NHL playoffs-- doesn't that say something?

When Wipeout Canada was auditioning for its northern edition, I immediately applied and searched for fun things that could get me on the show. Sadly I did not make it but am excited to be watching the series, besides how tacky it is with the product placement and over-theatrics of the contestants. Top Chef Canada premieres tonight and I'll be watching the series, after each food so I don't get too hungry. But if these shows are making it to Canada it's time Mark Burnett gets off his high horse, stops picking contestants that no one likes (Fiji is all I'll say) and get some Canadians on there. Why not a Canada vs. United States battle? It'll show true patriotism on both teams and get great ratings between the two countries.

All-Stars = Celebrity

For many reality television shows my favourite seasons are usually the "all-star" versions. Past contestants come back to compete once again for the chance to be the "sole survivor," "first-place team" or "final houseguest." In all forms of competition reality television, from outdoor adventure to cooking, there are all-star seasons, if there have been enough regular seasons to collect an all-star cast. A lot of people I have talked to ask why Survivor hasn't ever had a celebrity version of itself (the U.S. version hasn't, but many other countries have had a celebrity Survivor). I think the use of celebrities is a desperate attempt to regain the audiences once have.

Survivor hasn't had a celebrity version, but has had two "all-stars" and three seasons with returning castaways. Aren't these seasons celebrity versions of Survivor? Bringing back past contestants who garner a lot of media and public attention, like Rupert, Russell, Jerri and James, will draw in the money that CBS and Mark Burnett need to make the game stay alive. But are we not celebrating those who have played before by showcasing them once again? Just like in Celebrity Apprentice, Celebrity Mole, I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here we are celebrating the characters we love from the previous seasons of the past Survivors. In the ten years of the show, the all-star seasons have gained the most media attention, in comparison to the first season. Season 20, Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains, ranks in the top five seasons of the hit series because there was a clear division of true human spirit: you either cheered for a hero or a villain. But, in all reality, you're cheering for your favourite Survivor celebrity.