Ordinarily, I wouldn't be the target viewer of Bravo's real estate reality series Million Dollar Listing, which is as much about the housing market as it is the personal vendettas between the three young would-be moguls jockeying for power and prestige in the cutthroat world of Los Angeles real estate.But the series, which returns tonight for a third season, is the television equivalent of a trainwreck that I just can't bear to look away from, no matter how much the imagery (particularly Chad's gasp-inducing hairstyle) might hurt me. While the production values haven't improved at all this season (the on-screen kyrons still drive me up the wall as opposed to the slickness of the network's own Flipping Out), the drama has been amped up, partially due to the plunging housing market which sees our feuding trio--Chad, Josh, and Madison--attempting to keep their respective businesses afloat amid some increasingly uncertain times.
Desperate times call for desperate measures, after all. And the first two episodes of Million Dollar Listing's third season find each of them faced with some mighty desperate circumstances. So when Chad is faced with a no-show for an open house on a ridiculously amazing place or the newly shorn Josh gets up on a conference room table in order to simulate the compromise necessary to reach a vital deal, the tension (and head-scratching stupidity) is palpable.
Once again, despite his slightly shady polymorphous status, Madison proves to be the most capable of the three and the one you'd want handling your real estate transaction. He's honest, he's dependable, he has an office and an assistant, and he seems to place most of his energies onto his business rather than petty rivalries. Well, yet, anyway.
Million Dollar Listing might not teach you anything about the housing market or real estate agenting, but if you're looking for a reality series to give you a belly-laugh or five, this is the home for you.
Season Three of Million Dollar Listing premieres tonight at 11 pm ET/PT on Bravo, before it relocates to its normal timeslot next week at 10 pm ET/PT.
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