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UPN’s The Player debuts tonight.

by Andy Dehnart 3 Aug. 2004 | 7:30 am

UPN’s The Player debuts tonight.
UPN debuts its first reality TV dating series tonight with The Player, which debuts at 9 p.m. ET and “follows a stunning Miami model named Dawn and her two girlfriends for eight weeks as they pit 13 self-described ‘players’ against each other in a quest to be the last one standing.” The big twist in the Miami-set series: Most of the suitors are not white. As part of its interview with Dawn, TV Guide says the series “promises just as much two-faced trashiness as other prime-time dating games … [but with] equal-opportunity degradation!” Dawn describes her attitude toward love, which also differs slightly from the typical reality dating show: “My career is the important thing in life right now. Guys are just a game to me. And I have been played. Once you’re defeated like that, you don’t want to be played anymore. You want to take that role yourself, so now you’re playing guys.” Reviews aren’t pretty: David Bianculli gives the series just a half of a star, arguing that it is “extremely good-looking” but says “when it comes to this baker’s dozen of posturing twentysomethings, even Adonis and Narcissus would have trouble projecting more smugness.” Linda Stasi says it “is so cheesy that all you need is macaroni for a complete dinner.” One more glowing review comes from Phil Rosenthal, who says, “Hate nearly everything about this ridiculous waste of time.”

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UPN will break white dating show trend, sort of, with next week’s The Player.

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about Andy Dehnart

Andy Dehnart’s writing and criticism about television, culture, and media has appeared on NPR and in The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, Pacific Standard, and other publications. He has covered reality television for more than 18 years, and created reality blurred in 2000.

A member of the Television Critics Association, Andy, 40, directs the journalism program at Stetson University in Florida, where he teaches creative nonfiction and journalism. He has an M.F.A. in nonfiction writing and literature from Bennington College. More about reality blurred and Andy.

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reality blurred is your guide to the world of reality TV and unscripted entertainment, with reality show reviews, news, and analysis. It was created in 2000 by Andy Dehnart. He's still writing and publishing it today.

reality blurred is regularly updated with highlights from the world of reality TV: news and analysis; behind-the-scenes reports; interviews with reality TV show cast members and producers; and recaps and reviews of these reality TV shows, including Survivor, Big Brother, The Great British Baking Show, Shark Tank, The Amazing Race, The Bachelor, Project Runway, Dancing with the Stars, Top Chef, and many more.

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