- If you behave irrationally, your boyfriend will laugh (as will the rest of America). One of the young women, Kelly, had a total meltdown, complete with squealing histrionics, because she had to wear a pregnancy suit. The point of this show, which they all VOLUNTEERED for, is to simulate what starting a family means. An important step in that process: PREGNANCY! But Kelly complained because it made her look fat and she felt stupid. Hey, Kelly: you don't need any help in either department. Your boyfriend laughed because you made an ass out of yourself. And then HE apologized and wore the suit! Hey, boyfriend: do the initials PW mean anything to you?
- Real babies do not come with manuals. Each couple who graciously (or stupidly) donated their child also gave the young couples a binder of everything they need to do throughout the day and night. Um, I know the childbirth/child raising series What to Expect When... is good, but I am pretty sure it's not that specific.
- A nanny will not accompany the baby when you bring him/her home from the hospital. I understand the need to have a professional monitoring the situation at all times but half the time we the viewers see the nannies hovering very close by. How exactly does this teach the young couples about the difficulties of parenthood when much of it comes from the fact that they are going to on their own and responsible for a tiny human being.
- Saying "fuck" in front of a child when you know his mother is watching you on video is not a good idea. Alicea, another young contestant, was clearly frustrated with her little "baby" and it came out: the F-bomb. Well played, Alicea. Little Carson's first word should be "fuck" so that he can establish himself as the badass of the neighborhood at 2. I'm sure that's a goal all parents dream of for their kids. I was SO surpised that his mom was upset by this. Alicea, however, was enraged that the child's mother decided to call her out on it. So, Alicea just quit. This leads me to my final piece of advice.....
- You don't get to quit or take a timeout from parenthood. In fact, you can pretty much kiss at least the next 18 years goodbye. Sure, the breaks will get longer as the child gets older but beyond that, you're pretty much in it for the long haul.
The show is just wrong on so many levels that I have actually lost my will to write a scathing review. I am now considering a degree in child psychology because in a few years, I am pretty sure I know of at least 5 kids who will need some help and who knows how many more if any of these fucktarded contestants decide to breed.
5 comments:
I haven't watched the show itself, so I have no business commenting on your review of the show, but what the hell! I heard a guy on the radio commenting on it too, and he seems to have seen a half-dozen episodes. He's the proud, exhausted father of a month-old baby. and reports that the nannies are present, as are the real mothers to ensure the safety of the children.
As to the rest:
1. The What to Expect books are pretty detailed, and if you're obsessively interested in the progress of your pregnancy, you'll read many more books about it. And once the baby is born, you'll consult many more books to interpret everything little event. The girl who ONLY had to wear the suit didn't even have to experience morning sickness, heartburn, etc, all potential symptoms that come with the deal!
2. Some people (e.g. the parents who hand over their children for this show) will submit to surprisingly humiliating, dangerous and stupid things for money.
it seems to me that an awful lot of 'rents really don't care if their kids hear them swearing, and if their kids swear too. Some parents swear around their kids, but smack them if the kids cuss.
3. Some parents will clean up their language once they hear swear words coming out of their toddler's mouth. My own eldest developed an appalling potty mouth in recent years, and recently began hearing her 17 month-old boy say "shit"--KT's favorite swear word. It was, thankfully, a wake-up call.
Scene: KT in her carseat, three years old. Her father is driving her to baby school. He develops full-blown road rage in the half-mile between home and school. He's "talking" to the other drivers out loud, angrily, but not necessarily in "colorful" language.
KT asks her dad: "Is that guy an asshole Daddy?"
Does this incident lead to changed behavior on the part of the parent in question? No, it does not.
Maybe the producers should take their concept a little more seriously and choose teens who aren't such drama queens, because the experiment does have great potential to find out up front what you'll end up with if you get pregnant. Especially for teen girls, who are, of course, most often left to cope on their own.
None of this is to negate your comments on the show, because I've been really curious about it; the promos make it look great, but also Jerry Springer-ish. I can't seem to get in front of the TV when the show is on. When IS it on anyway?
The next show is Wednesday at 9:00 on NBC. To get a better feel for the show, go to:
http://www.nbc.com/The_Baby_Borrowers/
I think it's pretty creepy all the way around.
Great post! Bring it on over to WB -- you've been officially introduced. :)
Yuck! It was fun reading your take on this awful show.
When the whole reality TV thing took off, I made this prediction. We will become so desensitized to the "reality" that we will move to "hyper-reality." My example was game shows where people remove their own body parts, mutilate, or even kill themselves for entertainment. This may still happen.
"My example was game shows where people remove their own body parts, mutilate, or even kill themselves for entertainment. This may still happen."
It has come awfully close: watch the gameshows Wipeout and I Survived a Japanese Gameshow this summer. The fact that no one has died (yet, that we know of) is nothing short of incredible. The whole point of the show is to laugh at someone's pain, misery and/or embarassment. So very sad (and, I hate to admit, somewhat funny at times).
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