The Apprentice

I'd heard the raves for months. I couldn't ignore the hype and the ratings. And my brother swore I would like it. So tonight, I gave "The Apprentice" a chance.

Color me unimpressed.

I like the entreprenuerial aspect of the show. The assignment, to create and sell an ice cream flavor, was neat and I had some positive expectations. Watching the guys hawk their product on the street was particularly amusing.

But so much of the show was devoted to seeing the characters whine and moan and complain about each other that I just got really tired of it really fast. Meanwhile, much of the entrepreneurial discussion and brainstorming was cut out. Instead of getting the 'coping with the challenges' reality TV of "1900 House," we got a lot more of the 'this stinks and I hate so-and-so' TV of "Frontier House" (to cite two of the few reality shows I actually liked).

And frankly, I don't trust the results. The winning team earned $2700+ in profit. Taking the charitable donation and expenses into account, that means they probably brought in at least $3200 in sales. That's $400, or 80 cups of ice cream, during the average hour. That's a LOT of ice cream, especially at $5 for such a little cup. I suspect a fair amount of those sales are due to, oh, the presence of a film crew?

I also strongly disagreed with Trump's final decision. I can't help but feel that his decision was motivated partly by who will help create more drama in the coming weeks. Stacie's probably safe for weeks simply because everyone hates her.

I suppose I'll give the show another shot. Maybe this one suffered for being nearly two hours long. But my expectations are going to be somewhat lower next time.