Reality Show Canon

Oh, the canon debate.  Since the very first director's cut of a film was released, fangirls and boys have spent oodles of time on the net arguing about what is and isn't canon to their favorite piece of pop culture.  Are deleted scenes part of the story?  Or have they been deleted for a narrative reason?  Do external forms of the work, like Buffy's "Season Eight" comics count as part of the world of the story?  Do spin offs?  And now that we are in the hyper-techno driven twitter age, do the remarks of a show runner/director/writer actor mean something if it doesn't match up to all that we have been given on the screen?  When Ryan Murphy says that Tate was bullied or when JK Rowling says that Dumbeldore was gay, is this in fact now a part of the story?  Normally, I kind of love these debates and usually tend to fall on the side that believes that every piece of information counts.  But that's fiction.  What about reality?

Until this week, I never gave reality show canon much thought.  I mean, obviously there is a TON that goes on that we don't see, but I usually take everything with a grain of salt.  I think most people do. But this week, America's Next Top Model threw us for a loop that makes me re-think the whole thing.  In the last minutes of the finale, we learned that Angelea was disqualified and that the ending was being re-done in Los Angeles months later.  A quick search of the web shows that Angelea told the world who the final three were on her Facebook page and that she was, in fact the winner.  Not only did this get her booted, but it changed the entire course of the show so that Lisa was crowned America's Next Top Model.  And poor Allison went on to lose for the third time.  Yeah, that must have been fun.

Here's the thing.  This isn't the first time that rule breaking has caused a disqualification on a reality show.  Project Runway, The Next Food Network Star and The Great Food Truck Race have all kicked off contestants for cheating/lying/not abiding by laws of the land.  But every time it has happened, it has been DURING the course of the show, not AFTER it has finished wrapping.  For a good while, Angelea was the winner of ANTM.  And then suddenly, she wasn't.  So when we look back at this season, who will we consider the victor?  Do we forget that based on the body of work, the judges did like Angelea the best?  Or do we just take what aired at face value and let it go?  What is the canon of this show?

The answer is....I don't know.  I think I'll probably always remember that Angelea was supposed to win this season.  Sure Lisa will pop up next year to tell our contestants about the newest Cover Girl product, but I won't be able to shake the fact that the judges wanted someone else.  I'm sure Angelea's parents are telling her that she's still the winner in their eyes.  And they might be right.  What makes all of this confusing is that there is no one to give us the answer.  In the land of fiction there is a head honcho, be it a show runner/director/writer who can tell us we are nuts for considering something canon.  What do we have here?  Tyra?  I'm sorry but if she tells me anything, I'm going with the opposite.  Woman is a few fries short of a happy meal. 

Ultimately, I'm viewing this as a bit of a chose your own adventure game.  If you wanted Angelea to win, she did.  If you wanted Lisa to win, she did.  And if you are like me and wanted Laura to win, this whole season is a sham and she totally took the prize.  Yup, that's what I'm going with.  Reality show canon problem solved.

Hey Now, You're An All Star

Many years ago, the grandaddy of competitive reality TV, Survivor, had the brilliant idea to have an all star season.  It seemed like a no-fail idea...the best competitors from previous years duking it out in a battle of the greats to see who really could outwit, outplay and outlast them all.  What followed though, was a serious dud of a season.  The players quickly voted out every person who had ever won the game before, and several others proved their heart wasn't into doing this a second time if they didn't get to be the grand puba of the game.  In the end, the final two were a couple who got engaged right before the winner was read, making the final verdict a moot point.  It was terrible.  And it made me hope I would never have to see an all star season of anything ever again.

But I did.  And you know what?  I was totally wrong.

Reality TV has learned a lot about how to bring back all your old favorites successfully, and I'm totally digging it.  First rule?  You can never bring back winners.  People will go after them out of jealousy and spite in addition to the fact that they are difficult to root for because they will never be considered the underdog.  Rule #2:  Bring back people who really want to do it again.  Sure there are contestants who the audience would rather see, but those people often end up being incredibly dull to watch if they are over it before they even get there.  I have changed my mind about certain people on all star seasons...just because they didn't come in with a fan base doesn't mean that they aren't coming out with one.  And finally, Rule #3: It has to be different.  It's important to acknowledge that these people have already played the game, know each other and that the public knows them.  The challenges, and sometimes the general concept of the game need to be rethought.  Survivor learned from its mistakes and when they brought back all stars, for a more aptly named "Heroes and Villains" season, it completely worked.

America's Next Top Model has been rocking the all star thing.  At first I wasn't into the whole branding, entertainment based version of the show, but they are right to recognize that these girls are there for their personalities, not to become the next great supermodel.  When they first announced the list of models returning to the competition, there were a ton I was totally bummed not to see. (No Jade?!)  But this season has really worked.  I find myself rooting for my all time favorite (GO LAURA!!!) and am enjoying seeing a slightly more grounded Lisa and a still in need of a smack down Angelea.  And now Allison, who was once only known for her big eyes and love of blood will forever be the singer-songwriter of the best/worst song to ever come out of reality TV.  Pot Ledom.....

I'm going to miss Top Model when it is over.  I really feel that this season on Top Chef, the first after its own All Star season.  I loved last year, when I knew who was good, who wasn't and who needed to be cut down to size.  I feel a little confused now.  I'm not seeing a front runner, which is kind of odd by Top Chef standards and I have a little bit of trouble telling one tatted up cheftestant from the next.  I'm sure I'll grow to love these people, but it somehow seems like a step back in quality after watching the All Stars kick some major culinary ass.  Oh well.  If it sucks, there is always that All Star version of Project Runway to look forward to. (GO MONDO!)