An story producer who works on Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team writes about learning about the show; what’s helped it endure; and how production differed this year, its 15th season.
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The Pack: Amazon’s race with dogs is only sometimes amazing
Lindsey Vonn hosts Amazon’s reality competition The Pack, which sends dogs and their humans around the world, competing in challenges and ultimately for $750,000.
We Are the Champions: Netflix’s satisfying, quick tumble through different competitions
Rainn Wilson narrates six quick trips into small competitions that take place around the world, profiling passionate and skilled people competing to be champions.
Candy Land: How did Food Network screw this up so badly?
Food Network’s Candy Land, hosted by Kristin Chenoweth, is only interested in borrowing the board game as a support, over which its producers have thrown the tasteless and overused piece of fondant that is the Food Network “Wars” franchise.
How to watch old Travel Channel reality shows, free
The early 2000s-era shows on Travel Channel have disappeared, replaced by shows ghost hunting and the paranormal. But six former shows, including two of Anthony Bourdain’s series, and one of Samantha Brown’s shows, are available to stream free.
Survivor, Big Brother, and all CBS reality will have more diverse casts. But this needs to come first.
CBS has committed to diversifying its reality show casts: they’ll cast 50 percent BIPOC starting next year. But their promises about the people who actually cast and make reality TV are less specific.
ABC’s Chase will star Ken Jennings, James Holzhauer, and Brad Rutter
ABC is bringing back The Chase, the UK game show that aired four seasons on GSN in the United States, and the Jeopardy! GOAT champions will rotate in the role as The Chaser.
Seduced is not the better NXIVM series, but it does have more information
The two NXIVM documentary reality series—HBO’s The Vow and Starz’s Seduced: Inside the NXIVM Cult—are being pitted against each other, but they offer completely different kinds of insight.
Deaf U review: Netflix’s Gallaudet U. reality show is immediately, instantly charming
Netflix’s new reality show Deaf U follows students at Gallaudet University is immediately and instantly charming.
Emergency Call: ABC’s awkward attempt at spotlighting 911 operators
Luke Wilson acts as hard as he can while hosting ABC’s Emergency Call from what appears to be an escape room. The show also uses actors to portray people calling 911, and misses an opportunity to really focus on dispatchers.
Weakest Link is definitely the weakest network game show, despite Jane Lynch’s hosting
Jane Lynch is the host of a reboot of the 2001 game show where contestants vote each other off between each round.
The Vow and Love Fraud: real-time, real-life horror
Both HBO’s The Vow and Showtime’s Love Fraud take us along in real time, and we meet people who talk about how they were defrauded and/or dehumanized—by NXIVM and Richard Scott Smith, respectively.
I Can See Your Voice and Sing On!: fun but bloated guessing games
Within one week, Netflix and Fox premiered similar shows—so similar, they even shared a contestant. But both have unnecessarily filler crowding out some really fun parts.
American Barbecue Showdown: a great cast fires up Netflix’s new BBQ competition
Netflix’s new barbecue cooking competition The American Barbecue Showdown covers well-worn territory, but it does so well—especially with its terrific cast, including judge Melissa Cookston.
Get Organized with The Home Edit: an Instagram photo turned into a Netflix reality show
Netflix’s Get Organized with The Home Edit is the spiritual opposite of Tidying Up with Marie Kondo, which was all about paring things down. The Home Edit is about buying more, and then arranging it to look Instagram perfect.