Reality Tv: The Rise of a New Show - The Contender

Reality TV: The Rise of a New Show

"The Contender"

One of the newest shows to hit the vast majority of reality TV shows that already exist is The Contender. The Contender is a show that focuses on all the hardships, training, pain, and dilemmas that a boxer, who is preparing to fight, must endure. The Contender will be a very successful show, because it has the attributes of raw emotion that can't be found when a director is yelling Ð''action,' and Ð''cut.' By raw emotion I mean that the viewer has reason to watch the television show due to an emotional attachment, besides the mere entertainment value, or for the love of the sport of boxing. Viewers fall in love, but instead of characters, they are able to fall in love with actual people.

Reality television is something that has become a major part of the television industry. The motivation and success of these shows is based on the fact that none of the shows are ever scripted. Many critics labeled the reality television show as a fad, or as something that would not last. However, reality TV has shown to be quite the opposite. Reality TV will not go away, but instead continues to evolve and over take time slots of other scripted shows. Viewers can relate to the people who are apart of these shows because the viewers know that the people that they are beginning to enjoy, and in essence, love, are real. I do not mean that actors are essentially machines, but the characters they love are the same character on, and off the camera. Real in the sense that they are not acting as if they have feelings, but instead they are displaying their feelings in direct reaction to a situation.

The Contender is centered on a group of professional boxers who are contending for a one million dollar prize. They essentially must fight one another in single elimination five round fights. The fights are set up and the fighters are chosen by one of the two teams that win the challenge before the fight. The rules of the game are established, but this is the backdrop to what the show truly is. The show is a success due to the battle of emotion, not the battle of fists between the men in the ring. The rules for reality television shows, are just measures to evoke emotion. Other great examples are the betrayals and voting in Survivor, or the decisions in The Bachelor.

The Contender accomplishes what all of the great reality television shows accomplish. The raw emotion is brought to the viewer through a family member, loved one, or even a mentor. The Contender establishes a background story for every boxer allowing for a connection to be made between the viewer, and the contestant. The connection is what allows for the viewer to continue watching for the weeks ahead.

These men are shown training for their goal, and shown putting in the extra work to make a dream come true. However, one thing that The Contender has that is not found in many other shows, and a reason for its success, is the determination and drive of the competitors. The twist to The Contender is that all of these men have been training very early in their lives, and have strived for this goal throughout their entire careers, and not just for the three months they are on the show. As oppose to Survivor, when everyone begins to strive for the goal only when the game starts, but have not been dreaming about his or her Survivor journey since a young age.

The most difficult to watch, and most entertaining part of the show is the boxing match itself. The beauty

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