llihilloh

I've said it before and I'll say it again: 'The Amazing Race' is the best reality show on television. I've watched every season since it premiered and have loved all of them, but I was disappointed with the fourth edition for a number of reasons.

The one thing that I felt this edition was missing, not to mention the most important element, was an interesting group of teams. There are usually those teams that I love and want to win so badly, however, there weren't any this year that I really enjoyed watching. The teams, I felt, were duplicates of past ones (need I mention the Cindy and Russell coincidence?). I hate to say it because the producers are usually good at choosing contestants, but this year, there were some people who I still didn't know their name by the end of the season. That is not good. Another problem with this season was that the challenges were dull. There were some interesting ones over the course of the show, but for the most part, they were bland. I will point out that I was a little taken by surprise with some of the road blocks/detours simply because they were on the dangerous side.

Things I liked about this season? Well, the wonderful crew, of course. The camera crew, editors, sound people, and everyone else really did do a good job with putting the show together. I am always impressed with the editors especially because they really have a tough job, but they never seem to fail me.

If there was one good thing to come out of 'The Amazing Race 4', it was that my favorite team (one of two teams that I could actually stand to watch) made it not only into the top three, but won the million dollars. My other favorite team came in third. It was a bummer, though, that the finale was terrible.

While this season was by far the worst of the four, it did have some strong points along the way. I was thrilled that the show was nominated for an Emmy and then actually won, and I was even happier to find out that CBS gave the go-ahead to a fifth season. Maybe CBS does like Bruckheimer.

I caught a few episodes of the first season of 'American Idol', but it was only until the second installment came around that I actually started to like it despite that fact that it, you know, is like the cheesiest show out there.

I hate television anymore. I really do. All of the shows that I used to never miss are the ones that I refuse to watch anymore simply because television has gone so down hill it isn't even funny. I must say that I have taken a liking to the reality shows such as 'Survivor', the wonderful 'Amazing Race', which I've watched since the first season, and God help me, I even sat through the first episode of 'Joe Millionaire'. So, when the second season of 'American Idol' rolled around, I figured that I'd give it a shot. I immediately became hooked on it. Why? I have no idea. The show is so dumb, yet I couldn't stop watching it.

Okay, the premise of this show is so, uh, lifeless. It's not entirely boring, but it isn't the greatest. It is filled with nonsense for the most part. It craves ratings so badly that I almost feel bad for giving into FOX.

The judges are horrible. Randy Jackson is okay, I suppose. Paula Abdul is an absolute joke. May I just ask exactly what prompted the producers or whoever to actually hire her? She serves no purpose whatsoever. Simon Cowell is probably the judge who I like the most. He's honest and I usually agree with him, but he does put on a ridiculously huge act time after time, so he drops a few points there in my book. Oh, and Ryan Seacrest is a terrible host, but I like him. I do. He's one of the main reasons I watch this show.

'American Idol' is set up entirely wrong. The show starts off by dragging out the auditions, then becomes fairly good when there are actual performances, but then slips terribly when it stretches out week after week. Personally, this season felt like about three seasons combined. It was just so long. Also, this show is the absolute worst when it comes to wasting time, commercials, etc. So much time is wasted when it could be put to good use. I hate watching it for that reason right there.

So, to sum things up, 'American Idol' is a pathetic show where it tries its hardest to win ratings, but it is so addicting, in my opinion. Will I watch 'American Idol 3'? I'm not really sure. After the way the second season ended, I just don't know if I can bear to watch a whole other season. After all, this is the show that crowned Ruben Studdard as the winner as opposed to CLAY AIKEN. That's another story in itself, so I'll just stay away from that. I still am recovering, though.