A bunch of Average guys are assembled for a reality show with a difference! They will do their best to woo and win the heart of Melana, a former Miss Illinois.
She has no idea that her prospective suitors are not the sexy, standard reality contestants she thinks theyll be. Once she meets them and gets over her initial shock, she has the opportunity to interact and bond with them and maybe even realise that beauty is more than skin deep.....
The premise of the first two Average Joe series was intended to be somewhat of a mockery of traditional set-up shows such as The Bachelor and Joe Millionaire in which the "reality" premise is questionable. Instead of attempting to make a "dream couple" between two extremely attractive people, Average Joe tried to get 16 ordinary men to win over the heart of a beauty queen. The men are extremely average in appearance, with many being overweight or underweight and nerdy, or awkward in their behavior and personalities.
There are two main twists:
Prior to the show's start, the beauty queen is not aware she will be dating "average" men. She is instead led to believe her show was going to feature only handsome suitors.
Halfway through the show, these handsome suitors actually appear, to compete with the average Joes.
Throughout the show the beauty goes on various dates with the men, both in groups and individually (at her choice). When the attractive suitors show up, there are also competitions between the rival groups of men. At the end of every episode the beauty votes to send a certain number of the men home. In the end, she must pick only one to go on an intimate vacation with.
The show appeared to have an implied moral subtext, namely that beauty was only skin deep, and that personality could ultimately triumph over looks. However the first season ended in a way that seemed to prove the opposite. In Average Joe, Melana Scantlin chose Jason Peoples, one of the attractive suitors, over Adam Mesh, the last remaining average Joe.