I'm a sucker for the loopy charms of CW's Beauty and the Geek, so I was curious to see how this season's well-publicized "twist" would play out and how it would throw the social experiment into upheaval.For those of you not in the know, that "twist" is the inclusion for the first time ever (or as the host emphatically put it, "in the history of Beauty and the Geek") that a female geek and a male beauty have been introduced into the game. Sure, it's not the biggest spanner in the works ever to hit a reality series, but it does cut through to the heart of the series' overaching premise: the tug of war between brains and beauties. I think it's about time that a female geek--in dire need of a makeover from the look of the socks n' shoes combo she was sporting in the season premiere--received the benefits of some social adjustments. As for the himbo they brought in as the first male beauty (who just screams stripper), it will be interesting to see how much he really gets out of this. Something tells me that he's really not going to be attracted to academic advancement, but rather towards the, er, enhancements of some of the female contestants.
For the rest of them, I already to have some favorites that I hope make it far in the competition. On the geeks' side, I can already see the potential in both 23-year-old electrical engineering student Luke, bowtie-clad medical student Tony, and 22-year-old electrical engineering and physics Master's candidate/analog circuit designer/amateur juggler John. I can honestly see them coming out of the other end of this season as more socially adjusted guys who could actually, you know, go on dates with women. And Tony is just, well, so adorably clueless as the sage Cher Horowitz would say.
On the beauties' side, I already adore 26-year-old Bettie Boop impersonator Hollie, who wowed me with her intelligence during the psychology segment (she was the only one to correctly identify "reading between the lines" and "tricycle" during the analysis), and
26-year-old bartender Shalandra (a.k.a. Shay), who is simply gorgeous but also truly a down-to-earth girl who tells it like it is.
I'm already beyond ready for space cadet Jasmine and LARPer David to hit the bricks. As for Joshua, what can I say? It's as though the producers try their damnest to find that season's Richard and they've done so with with the awkward stylings of 26-year-old grad student Joshua, who called his mother during the introductions so she could share his good qualities with the ladies. (Um, we won't touch that with a six-foot pole.)
And so another season of study books, dating advice, and extreme makeovers begins. Who are your fave beauties and geeks? Who do you think will hook up? (My money's still on Luke and Hollie.) And who will come the farthest and who will remain stuck in their little social pigeonhole? Discuss.
Next week on Beauty and the Geek ("Opposites Attract"), the male beauty and female geek move into the mansion and the couples face their first challenge: the geeks must perform homemade raps in front of Three 6 Mafia, while the beauties face a political debate.
Comments
In her place I would put Katie as my favorite girl, she's sweet, and I like that she quickly said nice things about several of the guys after the introduced themselves. Plus she kind of reminds me of Natalie from Monk.
All in all I think it will be another fun season, although I'm already missing Nate.
I got news for you, a lot of the contestants on Beauty and the Geek, from the first season on have been actors looking for some break. In fact there are a ton of aspiring actors on most reality shows.
Just because someone is an actor doesn't make the show rigged.
Tony seems like a fraud though. I don't know. There seems something off about him. And forget Richard, I mean Josh. I can't believe the beauties actually allowed him to sleep in the same bungalow the first night.
I also think the twist will backfire - seems from the promos, that all the teams hate the male beauty/female geek combo and will probably be sent packing early in the competition.
I thought it was great that Hollie did so well with the word play. And even though Shay came in last I still like her. I think she's totally stunning.
I'd be happy if airhead Jasmine and her partner David were the first to go. They're both already irritating me.
Did anyone else think it was weird that they made the geeks makeout with that creepy mannequin?
I totally agree re: Hollie. I really liked her from the second they showed her audition. I was hoping she'd be one to make it.
I also like Shay, more and more as the ep went on. I like Katie, too.
I don't think Josh is a carbon copy of Richard. Josh seems to have a helluva lot more self-awareness than Richard did. Richard seemed like a total caricature. Josh seems, to me, like a really awkward guy who is painfully aware that he wasn't blessed in the looks department.
The LARPer doesn't bother me, but he is doomed w/his partner. I am not being facetious when I say that I think they've actually found a beauty who is developmentally disabled (she says, trying to be politically correct). Seriously - there is something off about her. She has to go, and soon.
I like Tony and the MIT dude.
I think from the extended season preview that the himbo hooks up with one of the ladies, and that's annoying if and when it happens, because it's really not what this show is supposed to be about.
But I was really disappointed that Josh let Shay guilt him into partnering up with her. That's a weak pair, and I do like Josh.
Perhaps the worst part of this show is that it gives me some respect for Ashton Kuchar, the creator. I hate that.
As for the girls, there's something about Amanda's personality that tells me she will be one to watch. Like the others, Hollie is one of my favorites from just the first show. That "face-making" moment when she talked about not getting Luke kind of made me want to barf, though.
As for the geeks, Luke and Will are my favorites for now. I saw a few moments where Will seems to kind of understand people even if he doesn't know exactly how to interact with them.
Oh and THANK YOU ANONYMOUS!!! The second I saw the male beauty, I thought "I KNOW him from somewhere..."
I looked him up. Grace Under Fire. He was the "annoying" version of Quentin. I'm already set to hate him. Wow.