Term Paper 3- Reality Television
The Kardashians Vs Chopped
Reality television is one of the forms of media that I see shared online the most, whether it be fans posting their favorite clips or marketing utilized to draw in an audience. Although I am fairly experimental with what films I watch, I have always been extremely picky with what television shows I watch in my free time. Since I often see the overdramatized clips of reality TV shows circulating the internet, I don't regularly tune in myself to see what all the fuss is about. Instead, I reserve those types of shows for when I am not particularly in the mood for a complex story to pay attention to. Since I have had some extra time while on Thanksgiving break, I decided to watch a few episodes of The Kardashians and Chopped.
The Kardashians follows the lives of the popular women in the Kardashian-Jenner family as they navigate their adult lives full of guest appearances, relationship drama, and career steps. The main cast features Kim Kardashian, Khloe Kardashian, Kourtney Kardashian, Kris Jenner, Kendall Jenner, and Kylie Jenner, with guest appearances from many other celebrities such as Kanye West, Bowen Yang, and Amy Schumer. This show definitely appeals to an audience that keeps up with celebrity culture as they do not waste any time in the first few episodes to introduce the family dynamic aside from the present. With the Kardashians and Jenners each having their own individual fame, such as Kylie Jenner with Kylie Cosmetics and Kim Kardashian with SKIMS, it's no surprise that the show brought in a large audience upon its release in 2022. Many viewers are women in their 20s and 30s, which is no surprise since the Kardashian-Jenner women are all around that age range aside from their mother, Kris Jenner.
This show definitely takes a modern audience into account. Instead of airing on a regular television network the way that Keeping Up With the Kardashians did, this show instead airs on Disney+ and Hulu. There are many aspects of this show that are still similar to other reality TV series. Even within the first episode, simple conversations are often focused on and accompanied with dramatic music in order to cause the audience to believe that the interactions have extremely high stakes. Additionally, each woman is given her own time to shine in cutaway interviews throughout each episode so that she can give her commentary on the events.
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| Kim Kardashian on The Kardashians |
The Kardashians is not a show that I would normally indulge in, as the people starring in it are very difficult to relate to due to their extravagant lifestyles. However, from the episodes that I did watch, I saw an often hilarious family dynamic that definitely held my attention the entire time. The beautiful shooting locations are also extremely visually pleasing. With a mix of easy-to-follow drama and satisfying scenery, I can absolutely understand why so many adults enjoy watching this show as a break from the stress of everyday life.
Chopped has always been a staple of reality television for me, and my personal favorite show to watch on the Food Network. This show, hosted by Ted Allen, features four chefs from various restaurants each episode that compete to create appetizers, entrees, and desserts for the grand prize of $10,000. Even though the chefs invited to compete are usually extremely talented and often own their own restaurants, this show places a large amount of stress on them due to having a limited amount of time for each dish, with twenty minutes for appetizers and 30 minutes for entrees and desserts. The most unique challenge, the one that always draws me in, is the fact that each dish is accompanied by a basket with a random assortment of ingredients. Occasionally, the show will put a special twist on the baskets such as incorporating holiday foods, letting viewers select items, or allowing the contestants to bid on separate food items.
Many viewers, like myself, are not professional chefs, and as such are consistently surprised by the contestants' ability to pull together a dish that is not only edible, but looks well plated as well. The chefs have access to a full pantry and multiple fridges full of additional ingredients that they can utilize to compose the dishes that they serve to the judges. At the end of each time limit the dishes prepared by the chefs are presented to a panel of three judges who rate each dish based on flavor, presentation, and creativity.
Each contestant also records their own commentary on the dramatic events of each episode, allowing the viewers to get to know each chef before and during the competition. By the time the three chefs have been "chopped" and leave the competition, each audience member will most likely find themself rooting for a specific chef to win the prize. With over 60 seasons, Chopped does not need to use extensive marketing to draw attention to itself as it is already well known among viewers of the Food Network. Instead, many commercials run for the show among the other shows featured on the network.
If I were put in the shoes of a producer and needed to create a reality television show of my own, I would produce a series about the day-to-day lives of college students. Although no one expects reality TV to be completely accurate to how the stars really live their lives due to the commonly added "drama", many people in the modern audience, especially among Gen Z, are longing for more relatable individuals to look up to. A common trend on social media currently is "de-influencing" yourself from people who are rich enough to be able to present their own lives as organized and stress-free. To account for this, I would follow a variety of young men and women from different backgrounds as they experience their time in college. Many college experiences are drama-filled enough to be entertaining without the extensive editing that many shows feature while also being relatable to other college students that are going through the same things. Although I will most likely never produce a reality television series, it is still a very fun idea to consider.
Despite hardly ever indulging in reality TV, sitting down to watch an overdramatized show for a couple of hours was extremely fun. Both The Kardashians and Chopped have their own strengths as television series, and absolutely appeal to a large audience. There is certainly a reason why these types of series pull so many people together.
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