America’s Next Top Model
Premise: There’s no knocking the impressive empire built by model turned media mogul Tyra Banks. The ANTM brand continues to expand along with Banks’ star power.
This Is Why It’s Hot: While the show has churned out some forgettable winners in the past, every once in a while ANTM has been able to give us an Eva Marcille, which makes it all worth it.
Run’s House
Premise: MTV’s cameras took us into the life of former Run DMC front man Rev. Run and his hilarious (and very real) family.
This Is Why It’s Hot: Not since the Huxtables have we seen a group of blacks on television portraying an intact family unit. You have to love a show that serves as the ultimate stereotype buster.
Flavor of Love
Premise: Public Enemy’s ball of energy Flavor Flav gets placed in a house with 20 women all vying to win his affection.
This Is Why It’s Hot: While the women on the show pushed the definition of the word skank to new levels, Flavor was an endearing figure, pushing his celebrity to another stratosphere.
From G’s To Gents
Premise: The consummate gentleman Fonzworth Bentley worked tirelessly to instill values into some of America’s most wayward young men.
This Is Why It’s Hot: With reality TV doing it’s best to exploit the worst in urban culture, Bentley set out on a noble mission to do the exact opposite. You’ve got to respect that.
Real Chance of Love
Premise: “I Love New York” castoffs Real and Chance get their own VH1 where they both search for love (or lust, depending on how you look at it.)
This Is Why It’s Not: Do we really have to waste time explaining why this show isn’t hot? All it takes is another look at Real and/or Chance — therein lies the answer.
T.I.’s Road To Redemption
Premise: Facing prison time, multi-platinum rapper T.I. goes on a journey to dissuade wayward youth from following in his crime riddled footsteps.
This Is Why It’s Not: While T.I. attempted to fool the public into believing that his intentions were noble, this show should have really been titled, “T.I. doing whatever he can to avoid extended jail time.” There was no redemption here … just a very clear plea agreement.
Harlem Heights
Premise: With the new president in office offering a daily dose of hope, BET kept in line with the times and created a reality show depicting aspiring twenty-somethings striving to make it in Harlem.
This Is Why It’s Not: With so lofty a premise, it was unfortunate that the same bickering trifling, and childish behavior that was commonplace on other shows reared its ugly head here. At least the other shows were honest enough to brand themselves as such.
Diary Presents: Brandy – Special Delivery
Once upon a time, R&B singer Brandy was pregnant, so MTV decided to chronicle the singer’s journey into motherhood with her “husband.”
This Is Why It’s Not: As it turns out, Brandy wasn’t married, so the entire show was a fraud. The attempt to protect her then untarnished image was a colossal failure.
