Instant Reaction - Tough Enough Week 1
Report by Ben Tucker, PWTorch TV specialist

Overall Score - 5.0

I hate to admit the amount of reality competition television I watch. I despise it with all of my being, and yet there I am week after week, watching the same stories and tropes be used in competitions to determine the next great Iron Chef, Top Chef, Gaming Guru, or Drag Superstar. For the first (and probably only) time in my life, this previous experience has helped me figure out why the first episode of Tough Enough did not click at all. And the biggest reason has to do with the live format.

Normally, a competition show decides to be largely live (like American Idol) or taped (like Top Chef). Taped competitions give producers a creative freedom to edit each episode however they see fit, highlighting notable competitors and telling the stories that will create the most drama while also keeping the average viewer in the loop on key developments. On a show like RuPaul's Drag Race, you know which competitors are going to be on the bottom five minutes before the judges appear on screen. A live format, on the other hand, must have competitors show off their skills while directly in front of the television audience, thus giving each individual equal time to shine and a chance for viewers to connect with the hopefuls. A story arc is favored less in this format, focusing instead on each talent's capabilities.

This is where Tough Enough falters. The first half of the program is designed like Top Chef - a few stories are woven together to form a single arc that shows the highlights of the Tough Enough cast's first week of training. On its own this is a viable concept; in a live format, the viewing audience is left knowing an uneven amount of information for each contestant. ZZ, despite being portrayed as the weak link throughout the entire premiere, won the live crowd vote by a landslide because, as the judges themselves said, they didn't know anything about the other competitors. ZZ may commit unspeakable crimes on-screen; as long as he is the only contestant people know about, he is the only one they will vote for. This leaves the judges putting people up for elimination for lame reasoning and individuals being voted off simply due to a lack of screen time.

The competitors's first chance to shine in front of the Full Sail crowd, in fact, did not come until the “Tough Talk” post-show. The Miz served as a fantastic host, throwing playful jabs at each contestant while also giving them a chance to talk about themselves and reveal more of their identity. By the end of this half-hour, I finally felt as though I had a solid grasp of the personalities of each contestant. This is more than I can say for the premiere episode of Tough Enough on its own, as I could barely make out who was who by the end of the first hour.

Tough Enough Season Six is a guaranteed failure due to the shortcomings of its live/taped format. WWE can (and probably will) make whoever they want win purely based on exposure, relegating the less desirable talents to lurk in obscurity until it becomes their time to be cut. Expect some funny moments, expect some great one-liners from the judges, and expect a fun post-show, but don’t expect fair play as Tough Enough gets rolling.

Any questions or comments? Message me on Twitter @BTuckertorch!

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