Review: Pretty Wicked
Ten Women Compete To Transform Themselves From Evil to Angel
In the same week that Vanity Fair named Angelina Jolie the most beautiful woman in the world, the reality show Pretty Wicked hit the air.
To win $50,000 (USD), 10 pretty, catty, and shallow women compete to prove that they're not just wicked but truly possess inner beauty. Clearly it's a challenge for most of them. By way of introduction, Amber, one of the contestants says, "I'm really selfish and I'm really lazy."
It's ironic that Pretty Wicked is set in L.A. where what you look like and the designer labels on your body are valued above all else.
Just Wicked
At first glance Pretty Wicked seems to have been cobbled together using cast-offs from other reality shows. And in fact, CariDee English, the winner of America's Next Top Model in season 7, is the pretty-though-often-blank hostess. She tells the contestants that, in order to win, they must: "change (their) wicked ways. Let go of old behaviour and strive for growth."
With that opening salvo, most of the contestants are immediately in trouble. Ana brings her dog, Yogi, that poops all over the downtown loft the contestants are housed in. She is manipulative and has anger issues. Overall, she's the biggest troublemaker. Sarah R. is a rageaholic. The quietest one is Katie. There's lots of tears, backstabbing, and lies.
Judgment Day
The judges who have the honour of kicking off a contestant every week during a "Reckoning Ceremony" are relatively unknown outside of Los Angeles. They include Beverly Hills psychotherapist Dr. Jenn Berman who has a call-in advice show on Sirius XM's Cosmo channel; comedian Kyle Cease (why he is suited to a self-help show is not immediately clear); and plus-sized model Mia Tyler, who brings a refreshing snarl to the judging panel. Think Janice Dickinson with a lot less plastic. She also happens to be the daughter of Steve Tyler of Aerosmith.
In the Reckoning Ceremony on the premiere episode, Dr. Jenn tells the women their goal should be to "leave a positive imprint on the world." Haughty Jillian says she finds that insulting and is quickly sent packing. But CariDee puts it better with the closer: "You have been burned. There is no more room in the loft for you."
Episode 2
During the second episode, which airs this weekend on STAR!, the contestants must hold an auction to benefit a homeless shelter in L.A.'s Skid Row. The catch is that they can only auction off their own possessions. One woman is teary-eyed as she parts with her $800 Louis Vuitton shoes. Of course the fake also possess the fake, and there are knock-off purses up for bid. The women only manage to raise $1600. It's surprising that the producers didn't match their earnings.
As the show progresses, one wonders, can the women really change or will they just play nice so they can parlay their participation on this show into an acting or singing career?
Angie, the Angel
If someone like Angelina Jolie, who was once the most wicked girl in Hollywood - cutting herself; drug addictions; wearing vials of blood around her neck - can become a angel, a UN Goodwill Ambassador, and raise six children, perhaps there's hope for this lot. Well, probably not.
Pretty Wicked airs on Oxygen in the U.S. and Saturday nights at 11 p.m. on STAR! in Canada.
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