Guilty Pleasure

I absolutely despise reality television. I hate it. I don't want to sit around watching people "live" when I could be living my own life. I'll admit, I've occasionally glanced at "The Apprentice" and "America's Top Model", but it was usually a result of channel surfing and I paused for a few minutes. I think the idea is moronic and has gone too far.

That being said, I love the show "Cheaters"! It is hilarious to me. I don't even think of it as reality TV, because some of the individuals are completely detached from reality. The premise of this Dallas based show is priceless. If you are in a relationship (or merely believe you are in a relationship) you call the show and they basically stalk your significant other on your behalf. If you live with them, you can even authorize them to set up surveillance in your home. Words like "tryst" "philanderer" and "illicit" are used heavily on this show.

They follow the "offender" around until they've caught them in the act, usually more than once and subsequently show the poor victim whatever pictures or footage they may have. Then the victim is notified that their SO is currently with the person and given the opportunity to confront the cheater and bring them to justice! What ensues is pure comedy. The only thing missing from this domestic blitzkrieg is camoflaged personnel dropping from helicopters. Of course the cheater has NO clue what's going on, so after the initial shock and obligatory expletives, we hear the other side of the story.

I personally find it priceless when the other side of the story shows that the "cheater" didn't even know that they were dating the other person. The poor sucker went to dinner with the person a couple of times, possibly got the booty, and for whatever reason figured it to be ancient history. Then there's the unforgettable guy that told his wife "We can get past this baby...Bill did it to Hilary and she forgave him." Who can't love a show that showcases gems of this sort?

As horrible as it sounds, my favorite is when the the host jumped on this guy's boat and the guy stabbed him. He was pallid and groaning, and though I knew I SHOULDN'T have laughed, I couldn't help it. The producers had to have seen it coming? The viewing public certainly did...and I think we all laughed.

I do have one beef with the show though. It's totally filmed in Dallas. You would think that the Dallas population at large would have gotten hip to that by now. In any other circumstance, I would strongly advise the citizens of Dallas to do their cheating elsewhere. However, if I did that, what would I watch on a dateless Saturday night?