Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Biggest Loser (season 12) Premiere


The Biggest Loser lives on without Jillian Michaels for at least for one more week. It was truly a worthy premiere starting with surprises and ending with an emotional weigh-in. And oh yes, a little crowd pleasing drama was sprinkled in the middle. It was a 2hr premiere, and I'm pretty new at this type of blogging...so here is my random, oversimplified, and unpolished take/recap/thoughts on the show.

The producers decided that this season would be a "Battle of the Ages"(young ones, middle ones, and older ones.) Each group races to choose their trainers. Ahhh...the trainers. Bob needs no introduction, and actually, I'm pretty much convinced that Bob could do this in his sleep. He probably snores encouraging phrases. I joke, but I do think there is some truth to this. Bob seems to do this effortlessly, but at the same time, you can see in his eyes that he is completely invested in each and everyone of his team mates success stories. It's what makes Bob...well, Bob. He pushes his team, and as always, it pays off. Enough said. 

This season welcomes two new trainers, Anna Kournikova and Dolvett Quince. Oh Anna. She wins my heart within the first 15 minutes of the show. Truly. I'm pretty sure she pulls on everyone's heart strings. If not within the first 15 then, definitely within the first 45 minutes. Watch it. iDARE you. She has a heart for what she is doing, or at the very least, that's the impression that she is giving. The $250,000 question is, "Is that enough?" I don't really know. She seemed a little out of her league next to Bob and Dolvett, but hey the camera is a tricky beast. Only time will tell. She may have gotten the short end of the stick with her team, but her team may wind up being her greatest advantage. I'm cheering for her, and hoping that her journey is less reminiscent of Kara's journey last year. Kara was a sweetheart, but not too memorable (in any sense of the word). 

Last but not least, there was...there is Dolvett. With phrases like, "No more rookie, baby." and "I'm here to show that I'm not only qualified. I'm over qualified."; he talks the talk. I laugh because he talks the talk almost too well. He looks the part almost too much. He barks at and celebrates with his team at the right time too. Oh man. I'm telling you. He seems like the real deal, and a real compliment to Bob's style. By the way, was it just me or did Bob seem to have some extra pizzazz this season? Love it. Anyhow, I'm completely rooting for Dolvett and his team, but it's too early to tell if he will live up to his own hype. His first week results were respectable, but left a bit to be desired. (Sorry, I couldn't help but wonder what his team's results would have been under the leadership of Jillian or Bob.)

I will end with saying, this cast is great. The casting directors have a real knack for choosing participants. You can always depend on the background stories of family illnesses, newly diagnosed diabetes, and etc. Diabetes is on my HATE list for personal reasons so though we have heard all of these story lines before, it still gets to me a bit. This season opens with  the epitome of tragedy...from what I know, never before has the show seen this type of situation. It's heart wrenching, and the consequential resolve is captivating. Watch it. With that being said, there's more than a LITTLE bit of the same old, same old. You have your former professional athlete, older person with knee issues, and you can easily spot the first one to go...almost as quickly as when the participant is introduced. There must be a not-so top secret Biggest loser casting formula somewhere. With that being said, it's the trainers and personalities that give the show a little extra umph that makes it even more of a success. 

I think we are in for a heck of a season. 

What are your thoughts?

No comments:

Post a Comment