A new season of Trump has come. And the hair just keeps getting better, doesn't it? Each week we'll take a look at the different tasks The Celebrity Apprentice teams are assigned, how they perform, and obviously the infighting and outcome... We'll also look at the 2 charities from that week's celebs. So, let's start!"Hi, nice to meet you... innocent of all charges... pleasure meeting you." -Rocket Rod Blagojevich
This cast certainly features some interesting characters. Last season we had the likes of Dennis Rodman, Tom Green, and Andrew "Dice" Clay. This year we have a group that's a little more tame with folks like Blago, Sharon Osbourne, and Bret Michaels. The only one I had no clue about was Selita Ebanks... I guess you can be famous for being a Victoria's Secret model... She's pretty... is she special? Meh.
I will say, I think 2 hours is a bit much for this series. Survivor or The Amazing Race would hold up so much better under this treatment... then again, CBS doesn't have the holes in its schedule to fill that NBC does, so... While it doesn't need the 2 hours, they also aren't really bogged down and boring, either.
The first task out of the gate after Trump had separated them into the classic men and women teams was to run a diner. I always enjoy the challenges where the teams have to take an existing business and try to work it their own way. Unfortunately, as is usually the case in the first celebrity challenge, it was all about fundraising, not the challenge itself. So, instead of seeing how they actually do running the diner, it's more about being on the phone calling big donors. Sure, I understand it's for charity, and I understand pulling in that money meant $100,000 for the winning charity... but it still isn't compelling tv to see which multi-millionaire has enough multi-millionaire friends to come by and drop some cash for charity on a burger.
During the challenge, some of the dynamics of these people are coming out. First, it's pretty obvious that Holly Robinson Peete is there to play. There to play, and there to win. Right from the start she's looking for the weak to pick off from the group. History shows us that this makes her a pretty good contender for the end... likeable or not.
On the flip side, there was Bret... I was really prepared to throw his participation away as a joke. I never watched his skin crawling reality show Rock of Love, and I certainly don't dig Poison... But much like Jesse James from last year, Bret Michaels is coming out of the gate looking like a contender. He's competent, thoughtful, and really has some sense regarding the business side of things. Who knew?
So, the guys brought in more money from their big donors, but they also would've won without that. They had set their pricepoint higher than the girls. Curtis, the resident chef, understood that they wouldn't have a huge amount of turnover possible, so charging outrageous prices for the celebrity interaction was the way to go. It's interesting that Ivanka trashed that ploy, but when it turned out sound, she never said a thing.
In the Boardroom, things weren't terribly interesting. By the time we got down to the nitty gritty, the writing was on the wall for Carol. Was she the worst at the game? Yup... not because of her performance during the challenge, but because she wasn't prepared for the politics of it all. That's what got her, and nothing else.
And for me, that brings me to my biggest disappointment of the episode. Look, I like Cindi Lauper as much as the next child of the '80's, but the fact is, she's in way over her head. She's a fruit loop. Keeping her was for ratings, just like keeping Rodman for so long last year was... I really hate that aspect of this show... and thus my rating.
Bret Michaels': American Diabetes Association - http://www.diabetes.org/
Cindi Lauper: True Colors Fund of Stonewall Community Foundation - http://www.truecolorsfund.org/
2.5/5 wizards
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