Claim to Fame's return • The Mole's winner • Dr. Pol's end • BB26 AI • more!
Dear newsletter friends,
This past Monday was somehow the 24th anniversary of reality blurred going online.
As I wrote in that story, I started this site as a blog to share links I found. Sharing means with someone, though I never knew if that would be of interest, or if there were any someones out there who loved reality TV like I did.
It turns out there were quite a few, including you!
I appreciate you reading my words and the words of contributors, and contributing your own thoughts, ideas, and reviews in the comments and on social media.
So, happy anniversary to all of us, for this lovely community of thoughtful reality TV and true-crime fans!
💰 The Mole
The Mole season 2 is already over! Or at least, its final two episodes are streaming today. Definitely an improved season, and definitely the editing still needs work.
Interviews:
Mole host Ari Shapiro reveals what happened behind the scenes of his new role
Coming this weekend: My interview with the final five
Recaps:
Episode 6, 7, and 8: Do The Mole players want to win money or nah?
Episode 9 and 10: The mole, The Mole's winner, and whether any money was left
🔔 Recaps and reviews
Claim to Fame:
Below Deck Med:
Episode 8: Joe’s eyebrows ignite lust and laughter
Episode 9: Below Deck Med’s crew continues to unravel, just like the anchor
🔪 True crime
🎧 Listen to The Docket:
Road-trip listens: What makes a solid true-crime road-trip listen? What sets it apart from an errands listen, or a bedtime listen? We’ve got some ideas (and we’d love to hear yours!).
True-crime news from Sarah D. Bunting:
Gypsy Rose Blanchard — now partnered with prison pen-pal Ken Urker, whose "D" is apparently a different kind of "fire" — has announced she's pregnant with her first child.
Nancy O'Dell (Entertainment Tonight, not to mention a legendary Project Runway task) is set to host a syndicated daytime true-crime show this fall. Peter White at Deadline reports, "Crime Exposé with Nancy O’Dell, a new daily, syndicated half-hour true-crime series...will launch on September 23," telling "the story of one murder per episode."
Also of note, IMO: "Each episode will end with the Safety Spotlight, a brief informative safety-tip that follows up on each day’s story delivered by the series’ own law enforcement safety contributor." This sounds McGruff levels of corny to me, but I guess we'll see!
Chicago's Goodman Theatre has a musical adaptation of John Berendt's Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil up; Queerty's Lauren Emily Whalen isn't sure it works.
Gothamist reports that the "Courtesy, Professionalism, Respect" slogan we've all seen (read: "rolled our eyes at the false promise of") on NYPD vehicles since the late '90s is out. The new decals — which apparently cost close to $1,400 per vehicle; our tax dollars at...something — will read "Fighting crime, protecting the public." I don't know where to begin snarking on this (but Hell Gate is on it).
🗓️ Reality TV premieres
New shows and seasons coming this week include The Bachelorette, with Jenn Tran; the return of Who Wants to be a Millionaire, now with pairs of celebrities competing; more Bobby’s Triple Threat, Sugar Rush: The Baking Point, and Impractical Jokers; and The Real Housewives of Orange County and Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles
This week’s documentaries and specials include the start of Shark Week, which, you may recall, is “deeply flawed”; a special for the 50th anniversary of Family Feud; and profiles of Melissa Etheridge, Faye Dunaway, and “the world’s first-ever, fully quadriplegic e-sports team”
💬 Comments of the week
The big surprise in the reality blurred comment section this week are the nearly 400 comments in this story about the end of Dr. Pol’s reality show.
I knew he was popular, but I’m not sure if this was some misguided campaign by people who think I have some control, or just a wave of sad fans. Either way, the comments are worth a glimpse, sometimes hilariou and occasionally quite moving!
🗞️ Reality TV news
Watch the trailer for a new competition, The Anonymous, that’s like The Traitors + The Circle
Celebrity Family Feud returned this week, and its new showrunner, Myeshia Mizuno, is the first Black woman to be in charge of a prime-time game show
Top Chef alum Justin Sutherland was arrested and charged with felony threats of violence, and defended himself with an odd statement
From The Digest, reality blurred’s front page mini-blog:
Six drag queens—Alaska, BenDeLaCreme, Jinkx Monsoon, Monét X Change, Peppermint, and Willam—all former Drag Race participants, have created Drag PAC, with a goal of "protecting LGBTQ+ rights though democratic action in 2024."
In a video, the queens talk about why they created it. Right now, Drag PAC's website has information on registering to vote, checking your registration, planning to vote.
That's similar to vote.gov, where you can register or check to make sure your registration is still active and hasn't been purged, which has been happening with alarming frequency.
Shark Week starts tonight. If you watch, keep in mind what scientists found when they watched 32 years of its programs: it's largely a bunch of bullshit.
Here are three great reality TV reads for the long July 4 weekend—or any time, really:
The Swan 20 years later: Contestants reflect on makeover competition to Meredith Blake in the Los Angeles Times
The Bachelor producers acknowledge ‘vicious cycle’ of racism in the franchise, as Greg Braxton reports in the Los Angeles Times
Allow Her to Reintroduce Herself: Chef Dawn Burrell Is Back. The Top Chef alum is profiled by Brittany Britto Garley in Eater
🤩 I recommend
Claim to Fame, which is getting better and better
The Boyfriend on Netflix, which I’ll review, hopefully next week
That’s everything from me from these past two weeks. Have a fantastic weekend!
best,
Andy
🌄 This is issue 388 of reality blurred’s weekly newsletter, first sent on 12 July 2024, and it was wrong about the mole!