OK, lots of things have happened since the previous edition of the Raj ratings. Idiots have gone home, random fights have taken place, and a couple of people assumed to be early cannon fodder have really done a great job. It’s actually pretty interesting to see the Celebrity version of this. I think at this point The Apprentice has a couple more seasons of Celebrity editions it can churn out, but if it ever goes back to us regular folk, they’ll need to air it a lot differently than in the past. Why? Let’s look at what is missing in the celebrity version. There are no rewards which means probably 5-7 minutes of air time that was pretty useless is now devoted to either the task or the boardroom which I think are the most watchable parts. There is no air time in the living quarters which would be necessary to flesh out characters we don’t know, but it’s been a nice change. There is no time spent on pontless showmances contrived by editing. There is an extreme lack of grandstanding by a bunch of strangers trying to intimidate/show off/preen/whatever which is really nice. Since most people know or know of their competitors and have a different motivation (charity money as opposed to personal money and the yuuuge number of future acting roles and fame), the blowups and oversized personalities are much more manageable. Heck, we also get to miss out on people obviously cast as yokels and cannon fodder since Trump is now promoting himself, his brand, and the celebrity (and Omarosa doesn’t count since it’s clear he views her on a much lower level than the famous). I think most of those are good things. Basically, if we see a regular Apprentice again, I’ll judge it improved if we skip rewards, limit the in-suite drama, devote more time to the true drivers of the show (task/boardroom), and fewer random swings of Trumpian logic. But, I prattle on too much.
The Raj Ratings
David – Who? Exactly.
Tiffany Fallon, Nadia Comaneci, Gene Simmons, Jennie Finch - All gone when I could actually keep up with the show on a timely basis.
Vincent Pastore (Italian sterotype) – He really, really, really thinks his time on the Sopranos was really a documentary of his true life. I have no doubts about this.
Nely Galan (Some TV exec with Telemundo) - She really did fall into the stereotype of “Executive driven by buzzwords and the hottest new books on management technique.” That said, I’d like the next round to have a couple more behind the scenes fame brokers because I think they bring an interesting perspective that a lot of the more conventionally famous are lacking. She was just the wrong choice.
Tito Ortiz (Ultimate Fighter) – Trump clearly has a hard on for the fighters. Tito was clearly solid, but at no point was he a star or a dynamic leader that makes you think he could win the show. He lasted this long because, while his peaks were not high, his valleys were not low. I think a steady performer probably should get about this far.
Marilu Henner (Actress) – She seemed to fall faster than Wile E. Coyote running off the edge of a cliff. She had decent business sense and decent ideas, but her slightly manic nature of working really was her biggest downfall.
Sam – Candidates that are not hated, loved, competent, sane, or normal but provide the combo of unintential comedy, limited shelf life, and way below average results.
Lennox Lewis (Boxing champ) – As I said in my previous post, I think he and Omarosa are soon to be gone. Lennox is essentially a bigger, blacker Tito Ortiz. No great moments, but no troughs either. That’s a recipe for middle management, not a winner in Trump’s eyes even when they are occluded by the cataracts of Trump’s “giant fighter man fancy.”
Omarosa – Villians and late round cannon fodder kept around solely for editors and the viewing public to mock.
Omarosa (Attention whore) – She’s had a couple of reasonable moments in the last few weeks which is somewhat shocking. But, then I realized that she has learned she can neither bully nor impress any of these people like she might have been able to do in the regular version. She has been smart to somewhat tone things done in some settings, though it’s obvious Piers can bring out her true character. That said, has she done anything that actually contributed to her team winning? No, not really. She’s pretty much Neifi Perez at this point: Somehow still hanging around even though there is no evidence that she belongs anywhere but the minor leagues.
Katrina – Hot chicks, closet wackos, and middle of the road performers.
Carol Alt (Model) – She’s better than I initially thought. I think her ceiling exists because she has limited strengths (modeling based tasks) and a personality that can be easily dominated by just about everyone else that are clearly ahead of her on the depth chart. But, she’s done well and has obviously been the best female on the show. I just happen to think 3 of the guys have had a better run.
Troy – Likeable, maybe even loveable, but you just know they have a ceiling.
Trace Adkins (Country singer) – Boy, has he been a revelation. He’s a savant at marketing tasks (which most of these are), doesn’t mince words, doesn’t cause unnecessary drama, and just does a really good job. He’s basically been on a slow and steady rise each week and seems a bit like Trump’s go to guy when looking for well-thought out reasoning in the board room. I really didn’t see this coming. The big question mark comes down to leading. I can see him getting to the final 2. Can I see him leading 3 other celebs in a massive task with lots of moving parts and random hiccups? Not right now, but he has surprised before.
Kwame – Good to great, but just can’t quite be considered the top dog. But, someone to be reckoned with.
Stephen Baldwin (2nd funniest Baldwin brother, although his is 99% driven by unintentional comdey) – If you would have ranked every contestant on a scale of 1 to 100 pre-show on your opinion of how they would perform and then ranked them again now, no one would have a bigger positive delta than Stephen. He has done quite well. Lots of ideas, wins when leads, goofily endearing for the most part, and he’s taken most of the things people would either snark on or hate and used them fairly well in the course of the show. That said, I have a hard time seeing him winning only because he really can swing and miss in glorious ways.
Bill – A diamond in a field of drooling camera hogs. Someone who, whether the team wins or loses, has the look of a finalist and likely winner.
Piers Morgan (Editor) – I think he’s been the best so far. Sure, he can come across as a pompous know-it-all. Sure, he can rub people the wrong way, especially when he’s in charge. And yes, he has failed in the midst of some really big successes. Who else on this show can you make those same statements about? Yup, Trump. Which is why I think Piers’ negatvies will be mostly overlooked and he’ll win in the end. Unless the final task ends up with him having to lead Omarosa, Stephen, and Vince in a producer mandated dramatic push. Then, all bets are off.
The Perdew/Rancic Corollary – And, I will now be the first to admit that this just might not work in the celebrity version. I think it’s mainly because most of these people thrive as larger than life personalities which lends itself to obvious mocking. But, the show also has to somewhat cater to egos and the hope of future, bigger stars which leads to minimized mocking and only the rare obviously damaging edit. That said, Omarosa (raging psycho hose beast) and Lennox (sleepy gentle giant with a vague lack of self-awareness aren’t winning. Piers, Stephen, and Carol have all had mockable moments that put them on the edge, but I don’t think enough has been shown to call them hopeless. And Trace is almost the opposite. Not mocked or edited poorly, but his good edit shows he just might not have quite enough to win it.
