Television critics are sour people. Pretentious jerks who use their vocabulary to ridicule the hardworking television maker and the average viewer. At least those are the accusations I regularly get thrown at me online.
However, I am someone who always looks for bright spots. The optimist in me likes to believe that the makers of Astrid and Natalia Back To Reality sincerely want to raise awareness of poverty with their program. Just like I’m willing to assume that the two friends are nice ladies who are brimming with good intentions. So it’s a shame that I have to stop sharing the good news here.
VTM’s new reality show was made by people who are clearly more interested in entertainment than in combating poverty. Singer Natalia and reality star Astrid Coppens are going to pretend for a month that they are single mothers with a limited income. Yolo! Feigning misery may make for entertaining TV, but ethically it is walking a tightrope.
However, the makers don’t seem to care too much about that. In the first episode, for example, we see the two television faces walking around the Turnhout home that they will soon move into with their offspring. It doesn’t smell fresh, they note. And the floor is ugly. The duo clearly does not consider that many people would be overjoyed with the many bedrooms and the spacious garden.
Champagne
Furthermore, you could laugh at the unworldliness of an Astrid that cannot park without the technological support of sensors and a rear-view camera. Only poverty is not funny. The program spends exactly one introductory sentence stating that four in ten (!) Belgians find it difficult to make ends meet. And they’re not even talking about the eighteen percent who actually live in poverty and have to choose between buying bread and turning on the heating every month.
Admittedly, in the coming episodes both mothers will be doing the shitty part-time jobs that are part of the daily reality for many Belgians. It is predictable that control freak Astrid will find this stressful. But the luxury that awaits her at home makes it a bad experience.
And although I am now bringing out the cynical reviewer in myself, you still have to wonder who exactly benefits from this program. The two protagonists undoubtedly earn more than the minimum wage for their month in Cinderella land. And I’m not even talking about the revenue of the channel itself. Bring on the champagne, guys!
I kiss my polls every day because I can pay my bills without excessive stress. Moreover, I wish Natalia and Astrid their villas. But preferably not on the receiving end of other people’s chronic financial worries. It is shameful that so many people in this rich country have to scratch every month. When the two BVs are openly surprised at the fact that not all cars have air conditioning, I am overwhelmed by second-hand embarrassment.
Monday evening on VTM 2.
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2024-02-19 21:27:00
#Astrid #Natalia #Reality #poverty #game
