Missed your favourite shows? No problem. Primetime update gives you the rundown.
BIG BROTHER 5 – Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays – 9pm on CBS
Thirteen strangers stuck in a house. Each week the houseguests compete for groceries, luxuries, for head of household (HOH – private bedroom, privilege of nominating other houseguests for eviction), and for the power of veto. This season there are a few more twists than in the past. Project DNA. So far we’ve found out that two of the houseguests are related by blood and didn’t know it (Michael and Jennifer). In the process of getting to know one another they uncovered the secret. As well, one of the housemates has an identical twin. The two look-alikes take turns living in the house. How long will it take for the other houseguests to figure it out?
What happened this week?
At the food challenge, houseguests had to traverse a spinning piece of DNA and collect yellow balls that represent different food items. After putting together a great feast (including filet mignon and lobster tails) Lori was offered $10,000 dollars in return for making her housemates eat peanut butter and jelly all week. She took the money.
This week, Jase is HOH. He nominated Jennifer (aka Nakomis) and Mike. Behind the scenes, however, Jase is part of a four man alliance. His conspirators: Michael, Scott, and Drew. Not much has happened yet, but I’ll be sure to keep you updated on the interesting stuff.
MEET THE HOUSEGUESTS
Adria (30) – Web Designer from Birmingham, AL. Married
Diane (22) – Cocktail Waitress from Burlington, KY. Single
Drew (22) – Recent College Graduate from Urbana, OH. Single
Holly (20s) – Model from Los Angeles, CA. Single
Jase (28) – Volunteer Firefighter from Decatur, IL. Single
Jennifer (21) – Restaurant Hostess from San Antonio, TX. Single
Karen (30) – Portrait Artist from Saddle Brook, NJ. Married
Lori (26) – Yoga Instructor from Boston, MA. Single
Marvin (36) – Mortician from Conway, SC. Single
Michael (23) – Security Officer from Durant, OK. Engaged dad.
Mike (41) – Commercial Painter from Eastpointe, MI. Single dad.
Scott (26) – Sales Representative from Pittsburgh, PA. Single.
Will (26) – Registered nurse from Tupelo, MS. Single, gay.
CANADIAN IDOL – Wednesdays, Thursdays – 9pm on CTV
The judges narrowed it down to four groups of eight and Canada voted for the top two in each group. These eight finalists are entered into the top ten. Last week judges selected eight competitors from the rejected 24 to be part of the wild card show.
On Wednesday, July 14th these eight will each perform a song for the viewers who will then vote and the top two from this group will complete the top ten (revealed on a live show, July 15th). Once the top ten is complete, I’ll give ya the low down on each of them and the week by week on how they do.
CASINO – Mondays – 10 pm
When the previews came on for this show, I got really excited about the possibility of cool new reality TV show (yes, I’m a geek). I was dead wrong. This show is more like a soap opera. It seems to be filmed in advance and it’s almost like some of the characters are reading from a predetermined script.
The gist of it goes like this:
Two really rich guys (Tim and Tom) bought a Casino and the show is on how they manage it. These two schmoes encounter different types of characters each week. The first time I watched they met a young woman looking for a job in order to move to Las Vegas from out of town. She started out trying to be a cocktail waitress, then a singer, and finally ended up trying to be a personal host. This last job turned out to be more like prostitution and the chick goes home.
Also on this episode, two high rollers came into the hotel and Tim and Tom did everything they could to accommodate them. They did so well, in fact, that the gentlemen feel no need to do any gambling, and so management must lure them out of their rooms.
The second week (Monday, July 5th) we meet a black family who stop in Vegas and try to win enough money to go to Disneyland. We also meet a young black woman who wants to win enough to pay off her car. Both guests run into a psychic who gives them some lucky numbers. The psychic woman tells the father of the black family that he won’t be luck “today.” After he loses some money, they go home. The young black woman is lucky both in roulette and in music, as she gets on stage to sing with Matt.
Matt is one of two secondary characters on the show. He is a talented young singer whose boss is keeping him in the lounge rather than letting him do big shows in the rooms upstairs. The other secondary character is a blackjack dealer whose father works as a host to the high rollers of the casino. He too wants to be a host but continuously gets in crap from his current supervisor, Monique. He goes to Tom and acquires an internship with a senior host. A few days later he deals blackjack to his “girlfriend” and almost gets himself fired.
This show is not for people who want a closed-ended adventure, like someone ultimately winning, etc. I won’t be doing anymore follow up unless a reader requests it.
AMAZING RACE – Wednesdays – 9pm on CTV
Eleven teams of two. Each week they race to find different clues and go to different locations around the world. Along the way they encounter road blocks and detours (different types of activities such as going across a zip line or taking chances gambling in a casino). As well this season there’s a twist called the yield, where one team can stop the team behind them from progressing in the game for a predetermined amount of time. There will be 13 legs of the race, 8 of which are elimination points.
In the end, the first team to cross the finish lines wins a million dollars.
On the first episode, teams traveled from Santa Monica, USA to Punta Ballena, Uruguay, where they had to carry a side of beef in order to get one clue, and then choose either to take their chances gambling or maneuver a zip line between two high rise hotel towers, and then from the 18th storey down into a pool on ground level.
The teams were unprepared to make decisions about their first flight. Eight seats were available on the earliest flight, however due to layover and other such things, the later flight would actually arrive in Uruguay faster. The first three teams to arrive, however, booked tickets (which aren’t allowed to be returned) on the flight that arrived later.
Also, in the midst of scrambling off the pier at Santa Monica, Jim, the army dad, tripped and split his knee open. He endured the blood dripping down his leg on the way to the airport, but had to see a doctor and get stitches before getting on the plane (which he and Monica boarded less than two minutes before takeoff).
On the way to the pit stop (12 hour – mandatory resting point), Chip and Kim (married) and Kami and Karli missed a route marker and were forced to go back a pick it up. At the very end, Dennis showed too much gentlemanliness and let the other teams take taxis first, putting him and Erika in last place and eliminating them from the race.
Who’s left?
Alison/Donny – 23/21 – Unemployed/Student -Alison was on Big Brother 4 – Dating
Marshall/Lance – 31/26 – Restaurant Owner/Restaurant Owner – Brothers/ Restaurant Owner
Linda/Karen – 45/41 – Mother, tennis teacher / mother, homemaker – Best Friends
Bob/Joyce – 61/54 – Retired/Medical Practice Administration – Internet Dating Couple
Charla (midget)/Mirna – 27/27 – Store Manager/Lawyer – Cousins
Brandon/Nicole – 25/21 – Actor/Model – Dating
Colin/Christie – 24/26 – Cell phone store owner/pharmaceutical sales rep – Dating
Chip/Kim – 46/44 – Owner of Web Company/Owner of Recruit Company – Married parents
Kami/Karli – 26/26 – Café Manager/Student – Twins
Jim/Marsha – 53/26 – Helicopter Pilot/Law Student – Father/Daughter
ELIMINATED
Dennis/Erika – 27/25 – Mortgage broker/wedding planner – Once Engaged
If there are any other shows you want updates on, or any comments you wish to make, please email me at abaldwin@shaw.ca!