January 8, 2009
On-screen, the contestants of The Biggest Loser struggle with losing weight, partly because of the prizes at stake, but mostly because of the improvements it will bring to their lives, regardless of victory. Off-screen, their struggles primarily remain the same—and then some. One of these stories are unfolding right now.
One of the contestants of the current season of The Biggest Loser: Couples was charged with domestic violence after allegedy threw a bag of flour on a tenant's face. 30-year-old Shanon Thomas—one-half of mother-daughter team Helen and Shanon—was tagged in hurting Michael Nolden, 32, who rents an apartment in the basement of her home in Center Line, Michigan.
January 6, 2009
The Biggest Loser season 7 starts off with a bang. Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels are trading off telling us how important it is that America's obesity problem gets addressed. Evidently 300,000 people die from obesity every year. The musical swells; Bob and Jillian tell us how we can make a change. Good thing I wasn't eating ice cream while watching this. That would be almost as bad as the time I was eating McDonald's while watching Super Size Me. Not important. The season 5 preview begins.
This season, we have the oldest couple to ever appear, the biggest woman, the youngest man, and the unhealthiest group of people to date. Former models, a recovering alcoholic, an engaged couple and finally, the largest contestant thus far, 19 year-old Daniel.
All 11 couples are gathered in a hotel in Hollywood, when Alison Sweeney comes in to tell them they've all made it onto The Biggest Loser. The first couple to be introduced is the best friend pairing of Joelle, 41, and Carla, 36, whose slogan is “we're not out to destroy you, just to eliminate you.” Next we have Sione, 29, and Filipe, 27, who are cousins from the island of Tonga. The orange team is comprised of best friends David, 23, and Daniel, 19, who is the largest contestant in Biggest Loser history. The white team, otherwise known as the oldest team to date, consists of Estella, 63, and Jerry, 63. Dane and Blaine, both 28, are cousins and both fathers of three. Shannon, 29, and her mother Helen, 48 are representing pink this year. Ron, 54, and the youngest player Mike, 18 are on the brown team.
December 30, 2008
New Years is upon us and this weird thing we call a hiatus is almost behind us. Soon, shows old and new will begin to air and life will seem just a little bit better. Mid-season replacements are on the horizon and reality shows are about to kick into high gear. With so much television to choose from, we thought we'd share the top nine shows we're looking forward to in 2009.
Our list is not what you would expect. For instance, I expect a lot of flack for not having Lost or Battlestar Galactica on the list. This will infuriate a lot of people, but Lost jumped the shark a while ago and I think I gave up after all the “we've always had a plan” and the “this is not a science-fiction show” bull. Battlestar is not on the list simply because how can we really bring ourselves to look forward to the end. Essentially, denial is my number one priority.
December 24, 2008
The recipe for The Biggest Loser remains unchanged after six seasons. Overweight contestants get help from professional trainers and, even if only one wins the top prize for losing the most weight relative to his/her previous weight, everybody still leaves as the winner because their lives have been turned around. It also helps to see a little competition of sorts between Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels, seeing whose approach will produce that season's winner.
It's an enduring recipe. I t won't change, at least for now; the upcoming The Biggest Loser: Couples doesn't promise radical tweaks to the format. However, the producers have tried their best to include even more members of society, and hopefully inspire them to tackle their weight problems, too, and get healthy in the process. “I think that's what hopefully the show is about: inspiring different communities,” Mark Koops, the show's producer, told Reality TV World. “Whether that be people who are, like, ‘Oh, I'm retired. I can't do it. It's too late,' or, ‘I'm too young. I don't need to worry about it now,' or ‘my culture says it's okay.' I think we're looking to try and inspire every aspect of American society that it's not too late to make a change.”
December 19, 2008
Wait a minute. Wasn't it just this week when Michelle was named the winner of the recently-concluded season of The Biggest Loser? Well, it seems time just flies so fast, or things have just been prepared so quickly. Another season of the weight loss reality show will premiere on January 6, with a two-hour premiere from 8pm. The Biggest Loser: Couples doesn't just promise the usual—it is poised to become a season of many firsts.
Judging from the contestants for the upcoming season, it's also poised to become the biggest ever. 11 couples from different ages and stages are competing for the $250,000 prize, although of course they all win by losing the weight that's been keeping them down for the longest time. This season also marks the entry of the show's oldest players yet, with a pair of 63-year-olds taking the challenge. Oh, and the heaviest female contestant, too, weighing in at 379 lbs. Oh, and the heaviest contestant in the entire show's history ever, too, weighing in at 454 lbs. This sure should make one heck of a ride. The contestants are after the jump.
December 17, 2008
On last night's live season finale of The Biggest Loser: Families, Michelle Aguilar was crowned the winner. A member of Jillian's black team, Michelle began this season at 242 pounds and weighed in last night at just 132 pounds. Dropping 110 pounds gave her a total percentage of weight loss of 45.45% and was enough for her to walk away with the grand prize of $250,000. Today, Michelle spoke to members of the press in a conference call, where she identified the major difference between her black team and the blue team as well as her future weight loss goals.
December 17, 2008
Perhaps I was living in some fantasy world yesterday but, prior to The Biggest Loser: Families finale, I was convinced that America would respect the wishes of final four contestants Ed and Heba and vote her into the finals. Don't ask me how but somehow, Heba convinced her husband to take all of the hard work that he put in on The Biggest Loser campus and sit out of the finals so that she could be named the winner this season. Last night, they said that when one of them wants something, the other is happy to step aside so that they can achieve their goals. Of course, that's what Heba said. I wonder if Ed had asked her to sit out, if she would have been so understanding and supportive of her spouse. Their case to America didn't seem to matter much as fans, who have been fed up with Heba and her alliance partner Vicky for weeks now, decided to ignore their request and send Ed to the finals instead.
December 16, 2008
It's just about time for the live, two hour season finale of The Biggest Loser: Families. Last week, Vicky and Michelle secured their place in tonight's final weigh-in but who will be joining them as the third finalist remains to be seen. Husband and wife Ed and Heba dropped below the yellow line and all week, America has been casting their votes to put one of them in the finals and compete for $250,000. The winner will be revealed in the first few minutes of tonight's finale. The remaining contestants will then reveal their new and improved bodies and hit the scale to see who will win The Biggest Loser At Home prize of $100,000. Then, it's on to the main event, where the final three will weigh in one last time. Stick with BuddyTV for the next two hours as we cover the finale live!