Viewing confessional

Somehow Beth and I got to talking about Catholicism recently, and that got me thinking that I should confess to some of my recent viewing sins. Here they are:

I watched 66 episodes of Entourage in about a week and a half. Yes, this is kind of sad. Even sadder when you learn that I had already seen every episode in question at least once. I honestly didn't plan to do this, so here is how it happened. I picked up the DVD set of season five and watched it all to prepare for the new season that began a few weeks ago (I am a huge dork and I always rewatch the previous season before a new one begins). But I really got back into it so I decided to go all the way back to the first season and then just plowed through the rest of them...all 66 episodes.

I DVRed and fully enjoyed Dating In The Dark on ABC. If you haven't seen it, it really is worth checking out. Three guys and three girls get to meet and date each other without ever seeing what the other person looks like. It's not nearly as cheesy as it sounds. Sure, there is some dark room groping going on, but it is compelling to watch these people develop feelings for each other without base physical attraction as a component. The producers have done a good job of throwing the contestants a little bone here and there: one episode had a sketch artist come in to draw what the people thought each other might look like. The following week, the guys were allowed to look through the ladies's luggage to learn about them, and vice versa. By the end of each episode, each participant picks another that they want to meet--after finally having gotten a look at them. This results in a person waiting anxiously on a balcony, hoping that the mate they have selected still digs them in the daylight. In the event that the match wants to bail, the poor sap on the balcony literally has to watch the person snub them and leave through the front door. As summer garbage programming goes, this is pretty solid.

I also eagerly recorded and watched More To Love on FOX, also known as "The Fatchelor" or "Fat Bachelor." It's exactly what it sounds like--The Bachelor, but with overweight people. Luke checks in at around 6'3" and 330 pounds, according to the on-screen measurements that they shamelessly flash very frequently. He isn't morbidly obese, just a little hefty. And there's certainly nothing wrong with that. Ahem. Anyway, he seems like a genuinely good guy. His female companions seem to have quite a weight range, from around 180 pounds up to nearly three bills. There are some that certainly don't qualify as "fat," and there are a few that are quite beefy. Naturally, all of their heights and weights are gratuitously displayed too. Judging from the first episode and the season previews, it seems like they are playing this straight, and it's simply a bigger guy that appreciates full-figured women. HOWEVER, we are talking about the FOX network here, and so I am fully expecting some sort of "shocking twist," in which they try to tempt the guy with thinner, hotter women. And if they do this, it will be completely disgusting. I feel bad enough for some of these contestants as it is. Most of the ladies clearly have major issues about their weight, and some of the poor girls admit to never having been on a date before. So I'm sure doing so in a contrived setting for the viewing pleasure of millions of people will do wonders for their confidence.

I don't know why, but watching this show makes me feel bad. And it shouldn't. I'm overweight, so that isn't it. The guy seems very genuine, and kind, so no issue there. And so far, every single one of the ladies appears to be, in dating show parlance, "there for the right reasons." But something about it just feels wrong. I can't really place my finger on it, but maybe it will become clear after a few more episodes. And yes, I will certainly be watching more.