en-us Copyright 2008 - All Rights Reserved. Mon, 23 Nov 2009 07:50:20 GMT 15 By Nick Foley
Never before have we had the chance to witness such beauty. A freshly-minted transsexual, a prickly gay guy, a closeted Mormon and a former lesbian have all united in Brooklyn to film the new season of The Real World. Thank you, Jesus. Then again, Jesus probably wouldn’t be ecstatic at the sight of a transsexual pole-dancing in the middle of a family restaurant. But however colorful they may be, these new faces are stirring up reality television. Let’s start with the most complex character of all: Katelynn, who was born as a man. She underwent a sex change operation two months before filming started, so almost every episode revolves around her adjusting to her newfound womanliness. She agonizes over deciding when to come out to her roommates, who have already figured it out anyway. It’s… entertaining. Yet none of this is as mystifying as Sarah’s sexuality, which she claims has fluctuated over the years, though she’s now settled on being "heterosexual." After being molested by a man as a child, she became a lesbian. She is now dating a man, which, apparently, automatically makes her straight. Then there are the actual gays: JD, who is out, and Chet, who unfortunately hasn’t realized it yet. But I have. When he sat in a sailboat singing about how he thought Scott (the bodybuilder) was "cute," he definitely signaled to America that he likes men, as much as he might try to suppress it. Believe it or not, there are actually straight people on the show as well. It’s the Real World, not the Queer World. Ryan, an Iraq war veteran who seems to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (though he refuses to admit it), is one of the most inwardly troubled people in the house. The last three roommates are the most boring and least featured: Scott is just there for eye candy, Baya is hardly ever seen and Devyn’s story lines usually revolve around her chasing men (even though she already has a fiancé and a boyfriend). She’s a hot mess, and no one really cares about her problems. Just in case you’re not already wrapped up in the roommates’ lives enough (which I’m obviously not), seven of them have Facebook profiles. You can stalk all of their drunk pictures, analyze their statuses and even see if they’ve corrected their sexual orientations (see Chet Cannon). God bless these people. ]]> Wed, 18 Mar 2009 12:17:09 GMT