Without Prejudice......The Review

One can never say that writing this blog doesn't come with some perks. It's not uncommon to receive music, books, dvds and this time around I was approached by a representative from the GSN (Game Show Network) to review their latest effort, Without Prejudice. Hopefully, we will receive more tv show/movie pre-screeners (hint, hint) in the near future. I was also able to do a brief phone interview with the host of the show, Dr. Robi Ludwig a few weeks ago. Prejudice, like so many American shows is an adaptation of a successful British program that appears to meld the Rorschach inkblot test with precepts espoused in Malcolm Gladwell's bestseller, Blink. Anyone who is familiar with Blink, it's one long supposition exclaiming the virtues of decision making based on instinct.

Without Prejudice essentially does the same thing with $25,000 hanging in the balance. Five judges (who the viewing audience ironically knows nothing about) are put in the position to choose a winner among five other strangers/contestants based on limited information. In a nutshell, a winner is chosen just based on a nebulous likability factor-just for being you is the mantra. I, like so many other televison watchers have grown leery of reality based shows and despite the fact that my tv viewing time has grown quite limited, I still recognize the contestants and judges from other shows-think Pee Wee Herman on the Dating Game. And anytime reality shows need writers, I become even more suspicious. But having said all of that, I must admit that the show is entertaining. If folks were to speak more truthfully about these matters, I suspect that many of us use a certain level of instantaneous discernment when approaching strangers. Trust me.....as a New Yorker I judge people-it's the only way to travel....and survive. As a treat, I posted a full length episode. So what do you guys think? Yay or Nay for future episodes and/or another season? And remember- don't be prejudiced.