TV Tuesday: The Bachelor

My friend Sonia Gensler and I decided to write about TV Tuesday.  We rarely watch the same shows, but we talk about them when we're together.  Our friend Lisa Marotta is obsessed with The Bachelor.  (I think she views it more as a comedy than a reality tv show.) Although Sonia and I don't watch it, Lisa caught us up on the details, so I was rather excited to learn about the finale.

See, there's a reason I don't watch The Bachelor.  Okay, there are many reasons, but one in particular is that I was marred by a show called Married by America. I watched every single episode and was distraught that no one married in the end. Seriously, with a name like that, you'd think you'd see a wedding, right?

Since I was teaching Romeo and Juliet at the time, I thought the show was a modern take combining American Idol type voting with the ancient tradition of matchmaking. I pretended to watch the show purely to discuss Americanized matchmaking versus the way Daddy Capulet paired Juliet with Paris instead of Romeo. The kids saw through me and knew I just liked the trainwreck.  They understood what I didn't: Romeo and Juliet as well as the contestants on Married by America were doomed.


And a lot hasn't changed in reality television.  I read an article that Brad proposed to Emily on The Bachelor but that after the show, things haven't worked out. Gasp! No! He considers them still engaged, but she's just not ready to move to Texas. Really? What did she think was going to happen if she was selected?

And what do we think is going to happen when we watch these shows? Are we hopeful romantics or bloodthirsty voyeurs?