Ah, More to Love. After last episode's swimsuit session, I thought you couldn't find any more ways to embarrass these vulnerable young ladies. So, wouldn't you know they came up with a mock Prom that Luke could take all of them to?
From the stories the ladies have been telling, high school wasn't particularly kind to them. Prom was the pinnacle for most girls, so the chance to relive some painful memories makes for good television, I guess. No dates, went on a group date, had to use their friend's date to get pictures made, didn't even go to the prom because their boyfriend wouldn't even ask them.
We watch the girls struggling to get into their dresses. FOX! Can't they just get dressed in peace? The dresses are lovely and the girls look very pretty and I like watching them be so excited about recreating this memory for themselves in a more positive way. Even if it is with 12 girls sharing one guy. Maybe that is the prom most girls would dream of. In reality land, anyway.
What I don't understand about More to Love is that the show promises confident, sexy plus size ladies who love themselves, but all the girls do is complain about their size and why life hasn't given them a fair shake. What guy wants to hear all of that? Where is the joy in being a big woman? Could it be that being a plus size girl isn't all it's crcked up to be? That being the average might not be good for your heart or your mind?
During the prom, Luke has some of his buddies stop by to chose what girl is going to be Prom Queen. AGH! More judgement. His friend Chase seemed all out to chose the girl that wants to rock out with Luke- almost comically so. His friends end up chosing the very chatty Danielle, who had ended up in the pool to catch Luke's eye on the first episode Of course, all the girls were super pissed, because they don't think she was the most liked. Luke didn't have Danielle at the top of his list either, so it was interesting to watch him squirm and squiggle under her gaze.
Danielle says she has never had a second date. And we quickly find out why. She wont shut up. Seriously. Luke maybe says five sentences. We do find out that Danielle's dad was a drag queen, and what guy wouldn't want to know that? She has only had three dates and she is a virgin. Luke gets quiet and you know it is the end.
Luke then asks Heather the puker out for her alone date because sea sickness cheated her out of her first group date. They go for a horse ride, and she comments she shouldn't feel nervous about riding the horse because the horse can pull a wagon. Wow. She makes it sound like she weighs a metric ton.
Heather cries because she would never be considered for a real singer because of her size. She talks about how nice it is to be on a date with someone she can talk about her weight to. Who does that? Who talks about their weight to their date, regardless of their size?
They vote off four ladies this episode- Danielle and Christine who both had solo dates, Bonnie the tatooed pinup queen, and some girl I didn't even know was on the show. Poor little Kristiane is hanging by an emotional string. Next week's episode promises more tears than laughter. I'll be cringing- I mean watching.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
More to Love Episode 2- Losers are Winners
More Drama. More Emotion. More to Love.
Riiiiiight. Thanks Fox, for letting us know that since the girls are "more", they feel everything more.
The ladies this week are focusing on Christina, who isn't making any friends in the More to Love house because she is "a snob and thinks she is better than everyone else". Two captains were chosen to pick teams. Two teams, 15 girls- you do the math. Uneven number means one lonely lady left over. Wow. So, because the girls already have so many esteem issues, let's add to that the cattiness that accompanies a housefull of women and voila! Christina wasn't picked to be on a team. The host of the show reveals that Christina gets the first individual date with Luke because she wasn't chosen. Wee woo, ladies. That'll teach ya.
So, Team A goes on the first date with Luke on a yacht. Of course, one girl gets sea sick and they have to show her vomitting over the side of the boat. Classy! We see Heather the puker crying because she has ruined her date, and the evil not fat Malissa cackling that another girl has been gotten out of the way.
Apparently these girls feel sorry for themselves, but feel not a shred of compassion for each other. I am saddened there is no sisterhood on this show, where the girls can turn to each other for support. Instead, we see them engage in the usual dating show antics of throwing each other under the proverbial bus. Or boat, in this case.
What is the most interesting to me is that there is division amongst the girls about their weight. The girls who have always been heavy feel negatively towards the recently heavy. One girl says she has been fat all of her life and she doesn't think it's fair that a girl who gained weight after high school gets to be on this show. That is so amazing to me that people still judge each other even if they are in the same boat. So many boat metaphors. . .
Another repeating theme is that these women have never dated anyone ever who treated them nicely, as demonstrated by Christina on her alone time date with Luke in Las Vegas. She recounts her stories of woe and angst- what every guy wants to hear. They have all been cheated on, made fun of, or not asked out at all. Does being heavy render you unable to have any self esteem at all? Because one is fat, does that mean you only date whomever asks you out and allow them to treat you as poorly as possible? Or are these women using their weight as an excuse for any and all problems in their lives?
I know in my own personal life my weight fluctuates when my life feels out of control. If these women have resigned themselves to always been heavy, how many other parts of their lives are out of their control?
Onwards with the water- Team B has a pool party date with Luke, and they have to put themselves in swimsuits on national television. C'mon FOX! Most women, regardless of size, don't enjoy being in a swimsuit. Wy are we making these vulnerable ladies parade themselves around half naked?
Of course, there is one girl, Melissa, who about has a break down, and the others have to circle the wagons and make her feel better. This works to Melissa's advantage, because Luke wants her to feel special and singles her out for some one on one time. Maybe Melissa isn't as socially awkward as everyone thinks! She got a kiss AND hand holding.
The very agressive Lauren also got a mini makeout session- this works to her advantage later on, when she bads mouth a few of the girls to Luke before elimination and they manage to get eliminated. I guess Luke isn't as strong as I thought he was.
Fox hasn't quite hit the nail on the head with More to Love. I still feel like the women are being made fun of. I wonder if they will feel the same when the show airs.
Riiiiiight. Thanks Fox, for letting us know that since the girls are "more", they feel everything more.
The ladies this week are focusing on Christina, who isn't making any friends in the More to Love house because she is "a snob and thinks she is better than everyone else". Two captains were chosen to pick teams. Two teams, 15 girls- you do the math. Uneven number means one lonely lady left over. Wow. So, because the girls already have so many esteem issues, let's add to that the cattiness that accompanies a housefull of women and voila! Christina wasn't picked to be on a team. The host of the show reveals that Christina gets the first individual date with Luke because she wasn't chosen. Wee woo, ladies. That'll teach ya.
So, Team A goes on the first date with Luke on a yacht. Of course, one girl gets sea sick and they have to show her vomitting over the side of the boat. Classy! We see Heather the puker crying because she has ruined her date, and the evil not fat Malissa cackling that another girl has been gotten out of the way.
Apparently these girls feel sorry for themselves, but feel not a shred of compassion for each other. I am saddened there is no sisterhood on this show, where the girls can turn to each other for support. Instead, we see them engage in the usual dating show antics of throwing each other under the proverbial bus. Or boat, in this case.
What is the most interesting to me is that there is division amongst the girls about their weight. The girls who have always been heavy feel negatively towards the recently heavy. One girl says she has been fat all of her life and she doesn't think it's fair that a girl who gained weight after high school gets to be on this show. That is so amazing to me that people still judge each other even if they are in the same boat. So many boat metaphors. . .
Another repeating theme is that these women have never dated anyone ever who treated them nicely, as demonstrated by Christina on her alone time date with Luke in Las Vegas. She recounts her stories of woe and angst- what every guy wants to hear. They have all been cheated on, made fun of, or not asked out at all. Does being heavy render you unable to have any self esteem at all? Because one is fat, does that mean you only date whomever asks you out and allow them to treat you as poorly as possible? Or are these women using their weight as an excuse for any and all problems in their lives?
I know in my own personal life my weight fluctuates when my life feels out of control. If these women have resigned themselves to always been heavy, how many other parts of their lives are out of their control?
Onwards with the water- Team B has a pool party date with Luke, and they have to put themselves in swimsuits on national television. C'mon FOX! Most women, regardless of size, don't enjoy being in a swimsuit. Wy are we making these vulnerable ladies parade themselves around half naked?
Of course, there is one girl, Melissa, who about has a break down, and the others have to circle the wagons and make her feel better. This works to Melissa's advantage, because Luke wants her to feel special and singles her out for some one on one time. Maybe Melissa isn't as socially awkward as everyone thinks! She got a kiss AND hand holding.
The very agressive Lauren also got a mini makeout session- this works to her advantage later on, when she bads mouth a few of the girls to Luke before elimination and they manage to get eliminated. I guess Luke isn't as strong as I thought he was.
Fox hasn't quite hit the nail on the head with More to Love. I still feel like the women are being made fun of. I wonder if they will feel the same when the show airs.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
More to Love Episode 1- "I have a huge heart and I want to make someone happy."
Fox has rolled out the latest in a line of new reality shows that focus on the overweight and their trials and tribulations called "More to Love"- or as I have taken to calling it, "Fat Bachelor". On the "Fat Bachelor", a larger bachelor chooses larger lady contestants in the quest for love.
Bachelor Luke is 26, 6'3" and a whopping 330 lbs., claiming that life is too short to count calories. In the opening montage, we see Luke running shirtless on the beach, tummy jiggling and love handles exposed, eating a big meaty sandwich, having a cookout with nary a vegetable to be found. What we don't see Luke doing is anything healthy. He is happy being of large stature, and wants to find a big lady to share his life with. He wants a larger lady because he has been hurt in love in the past because of his size and because he knows the hurt of being overweight, he thinks that finding a woman with similar baggage will make a more complete relationship.
The 20 ladies are all different shapes and sizes of overweight- from voluptuous breasts and bottoms, to chubbier tummies and arms. What they all share (except for Malissa, the chesty blonde waitress who likes her figure and has never considered herself fat or Kristian who claims she loves being fat and having junk in the trunk) is a universal disdain for their appearance, claiming that this television show and Luke could be their last chance to find love. All of the women are under the age of 40, most of them in their 20's. Some of them have never had a boyfriend, have never been on a date, or have been single for a long time. They all say that their weight plays a part in their lack of a love life.
The show has the usual meet and greet intro, where we the viewer get to size up (no pun intended) the competition. We see who is nice and not so nice. It has a similar feel to usual dating programs- the girls sipping glasses of champagne and wine, getting tipsy and making not as great choices like jumping into the pool and kissing him upon meeting him to make a good first impression. There are more meat skewers present than what I am used to- I've never watched a reality dating show that is catered and I wonder if the producers did that on purpose to show that larger girls need to eat.
The difference on Fat Bachelor is all the girls are worried that he won't like them because THEY are larger. No consideration at all for his size. Like he is perfect. This is worrisome. It would be nice if this was a TRUE dating competition that just happened to have larger people on it. The fact they have chosen to focus on the women's insecurities is exploitative of the overweight.
I also don't like that these women have given up on being thinner, and therefore healthier. They don't have to be "skinny bitches" (a phrase these larger women use often), but the empasis put on their love of food and anger that they should have to change their appearance in order to find love seems to go against everything that we as a weight concious Western society has been trying to work towards. We know that being fat is unhealthy. We know that it taxes our body, mind, and spirit. The amount of tears shed on this show because women are LONELY, begging for attention that they can't receive because they are overweight and don't know what to do to change people's minds about it is heartbreaking.
It would be great if Fox would parlay all that sadness into something more proactive than pinning your hopes on one man that happens to like plus size ladies. A program that teaches self worth by taking charge of your size would do so much more for the American tv watcher. I don't feel the goose bumps like when I watch "The Biggest Loser" and see people believe in themselves because they have learned to take control.
A person who is confident, regardless of their size, is ultimately more beautiful than someone who wants you because they are heavy, too.
I'll continue to watch and see what happens!
Bachelor Luke is 26, 6'3" and a whopping 330 lbs., claiming that life is too short to count calories. In the opening montage, we see Luke running shirtless on the beach, tummy jiggling and love handles exposed, eating a big meaty sandwich, having a cookout with nary a vegetable to be found. What we don't see Luke doing is anything healthy. He is happy being of large stature, and wants to find a big lady to share his life with. He wants a larger lady because he has been hurt in love in the past because of his size and because he knows the hurt of being overweight, he thinks that finding a woman with similar baggage will make a more complete relationship.
The 20 ladies are all different shapes and sizes of overweight- from voluptuous breasts and bottoms, to chubbier tummies and arms. What they all share (except for Malissa, the chesty blonde waitress who likes her figure and has never considered herself fat or Kristian who claims she loves being fat and having junk in the trunk) is a universal disdain for their appearance, claiming that this television show and Luke could be their last chance to find love. All of the women are under the age of 40, most of them in their 20's. Some of them have never had a boyfriend, have never been on a date, or have been single for a long time. They all say that their weight plays a part in their lack of a love life.
The show has the usual meet and greet intro, where we the viewer get to size up (no pun intended) the competition. We see who is nice and not so nice. It has a similar feel to usual dating programs- the girls sipping glasses of champagne and wine, getting tipsy and making not as great choices like jumping into the pool and kissing him upon meeting him to make a good first impression. There are more meat skewers present than what I am used to- I've never watched a reality dating show that is catered and I wonder if the producers did that on purpose to show that larger girls need to eat.
The difference on Fat Bachelor is all the girls are worried that he won't like them because THEY are larger. No consideration at all for his size. Like he is perfect. This is worrisome. It would be nice if this was a TRUE dating competition that just happened to have larger people on it. The fact they have chosen to focus on the women's insecurities is exploitative of the overweight.
I also don't like that these women have given up on being thinner, and therefore healthier. They don't have to be "skinny bitches" (a phrase these larger women use often), but the empasis put on their love of food and anger that they should have to change their appearance in order to find love seems to go against everything that we as a weight concious Western society has been trying to work towards. We know that being fat is unhealthy. We know that it taxes our body, mind, and spirit. The amount of tears shed on this show because women are LONELY, begging for attention that they can't receive because they are overweight and don't know what to do to change people's minds about it is heartbreaking.
It would be great if Fox would parlay all that sadness into something more proactive than pinning your hopes on one man that happens to like plus size ladies. A program that teaches self worth by taking charge of your size would do so much more for the American tv watcher. I don't feel the goose bumps like when I watch "The Biggest Loser" and see people believe in themselves because they have learned to take control.
A person who is confident, regardless of their size, is ultimately more beautiful than someone who wants you because they are heavy, too.
I'll continue to watch and see what happens!
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