The weakest and worst moments on TV recently:
No Reservations
We had a lot of hopes for this show - especially with Basetsana Kumalo at the helm - but so far, its a hot mess. Awful, irrelevant guests (Jen Su on mid life crises ... seriously?), awkward and fake chemistry between the hosts, insipid questions and such an excess of product placement you keep expecting Isabel Jones to pop out and offer you a Fair Deal.
Its so bad, it makes Noeleen Maholwana-Sangqu look like Debora Patta.
Isidingo
We get it, the soapie bitch from Hell (which looks a lot like Horizon Deep) is back. We’re excited too. Who doesn’t love a crazy, hot, psychotic homicidal maniac on a soapie? And Michelle Botes’ Cherel delivers crazy like no-one else. But will SABC3 please stop with the wannabe dark and mysterious ads already?
Slender silhouette here, evil cackle there, and a final, lingering close up of heavily made up eyes. The voiceover chick goes: “Guess whose back on Isidingo?”
Gee, I wonder. Maybe if the ads were a little less obvious and not repeated as frequently as Mara Louw pisses off viewers, maybe, just maybe we’d stay excited. Also, isn’t it kinda lame to keep airing the ads WEEKS AFTER her return?
Trevor Noah
Anyone else getting sick of this oke yet? He’s meant to be funny, but so far, he’s so unfunny, he may have a career yet. At the SABC.
The supposed comedian started off strong - first by being cute, and then with stand up - but then he got greedy.
Showing up in the 1Goal ads with Shakira and other schlebs was cool, but then he was on radio, then he got his own M-Net show, then came more ads and TV appearances and an interview with The Sunday Tribune where he said: "I don't like being asked questions.” Well, stop being such a media-whore then.
Oprah’s No Phone Zone
We love Oprah here, well, mostly. I mean, if she ever invites us for a taping of her Favourite Things show, we ‘ll use the skinniest pic of her we can find. But the Chat Queen does irritate us every now and then, even when she’s doing something good.
Like the No Phone Zone thing - Oprah thinks its dangerous to use your phone in the car, and we agree, but does she have to get absolutely every guest, no matter the topic, to sign her damn petition at the end of every show? Actually, its kinda fun in a way - try a drinking game - one shot every time Oprah mentions the No Phone Zone. Hic.
e.tv’s dodgy movie ads
So the Bond flick The World is Not Enough is on e.tv. How do they advertise it? By intercutting made-up scenes of dodgy looking characters interacting with Bond. There’s a bit where a guy who looks like Pitch Black Afro’s twin, dances with some soul sisters ala a 50 Cent video.
If it sounds funny, then I’m not telling it right. At least it wasn’t as bad as the time they advertised The Lord of the Rings by using a Xhosa-speaking Gollum/Sméagol.
Instead of hiring actual actors and wasting time and money ruining good films in less than 30 seconds, why not just, you know, use the original trailers?