Average Joe 3: A Preview

Reality shows are a hit-or-miss genre for the networks and it isn’t enough anymore for a show to have some cobbled together premise if it hopes to keep an audience. The most successful reality franchises in most cases have the common thread of being some sort of sociology experiment. Survivor is a study of how people will react to extreme circumstances, for example. Even American Idol is in many ways a contest about how quickly amateur singers can adapt to the immense pressures of sudden fame and public criticism. Along with The Bachelor franchise, Average Joe has managed to stand the test of time and grab strong ratings every season while other dating shows have failed to reach an audience. The reason is because Average Joe, like all great reality television, is centered on sociology.

Most of us have at one time or another had well-meaning friends fix us up with a blind date. It is such a great part of our culture that the phrase ”they have a great personality” has taken on a definite meaning. Basically it means, “they’re so ugly they have to sneak up on a glass of water.”

The truth is that most people just wanted to be accepted for who they are; not what they look like. We believe that if a person would stop to look beyond the superficial appearances it would be discovered that a wonderful friend and lover could be found. Average Joe puts this to the test by taking what many would consider to be a drop-dead beauty and placing her in regular contact with a group of guys that nobody would expect to see in the pages of Blue Boy or Playgirl. Will she fall in love with someone? Will one of the men prove that beauty is indeed only skin deep?

The problem is that at the midpoint of the show, a group of studly men show up to compete against the regular looking men. At this point all of the anxieties and questions of self-image that the guys have battled against their entire lives come crashing in on them as the woman reacts to the sudden eye candy that’s been placed before her. Each season we root for one of the average guys to steal the lady’s heart and so far in the series the odds have not worked out well for the everyman hero. This season, however, there is a twist. At least one of the eliminated “Joes” will be given a total body makeover. Face-lifts, liposuction, and DaVinci Veneers, oh my! They will then return and have a second chance to win the lady’s heart.

RNO, looking for the perfect person to recap this season, found someone who was intelligent, witty, good-looking, and could really sympathize with the plight of a beautiful young woman looking for love. That person couldn’t do it, so they got me instead. I’ve been kicking around the offices of RNO/FOI for several years now and regular readers have probably gotten used to seeing my byline. For those of you who haven’t read my articles before I’ll warn you that I call them as I see them and I have a real tendency to root for the underdog. I also have a slightly different way of looking at things compared to most folks.

For example, a lot of people have been saying the “makeover” twist to this season is just a blatant attempt to grab viewers of shows like The Swan. While that may be true to some extent, I believe we will learn just how superficial or grounded this woman is by how she reacts to the suddenly studly Joe. If we’re lucky we’ll see how the man reacts emotionally to his sudden changes and if it makes him a different person. Most importantly, we’ll have to look at our own selves to see if we feel differently about the whole-new Joe.

According to most surveys, looks rank far down on the list of what people look for in a potential mate with “sense of humor” usually sitting squarely in the top 2 answers. This season Average Joe will put those results to the ultimate test. Will looks matter enough that a rejected man suddenly finds out that his new looks are what really make the difference in winning the heart of a lovely lady? Or will the woman instead fall in love with one of the other men because he makes her laugh? Will the eye candy of the muscular mid-season studs turn her head so completely that she doesn’t even notice the new Super-Joe?

This new season of Average Joe asks more questions than ever before about what we look for in our significant others. I for one cannot wait to see how the answers unfold and I hope you’ll join me each week for recaps and analysis. I also hope that you will contact me often with your own thoughts and opinions and as always I’ll include the most interesting reader comments in the articles. Let’s dig into this one together, shall we?

Tomorrow we will take a look at the woman and each of the Joes. Then watch the first episode, premiering Tuesday, June 28 at 8 PM Eastern and join us for coverage of all the fun, here on RNO!

Bruce Barker is the co-owner of Movie Boss – a free online game. He has also been writing about the entertainment industry for over 10 years with articles appearing in numerous publications including Box Office Magazine. You can contact him at bbarker57@yahoo.com.

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