2007: The Reality Television Year in Review

Here is a recap of 2007 reality:

Survivor China: There was a WWE diva, a muscled gravedigger, and a professional poker player this season, but they all were played by a slight flight attendant from Utah. The big surprise of the season was James not playing either of the two immunity idols before being voted off. Todd Herzog went on the win the million, but James won $100,000 for fan favorite.

Big Brother 8: This season, the twist was three of the housemates would have to deal with three people from their past: an estranged daughter, former BFFs, and an ex-lover. But the father and daughter duo Dick and Daniele Donato worked together to make it to the final two, with Dick winning the $500,000. There was another twist with Eric Stein being “America’s Player,” where the viewing audience told him how to vote and stuff to do unbeknownst to the other houseguests.

Amazing Race All-Stars: Season eleven was the all-stars, featuring such favorites as Uchenna and Joyce and Rob and Amber. The only exception was Eric and Danielle, who had met while on opposing teams in Season 9, but was now dating. Despite finishing first the first three legs, Ron and Amber were quickly eliminated. The final three came down to Eric and Danielle (Season 9), Dustin and Kadice (Season 10), and Charla and Mirna (Season 5). Although they never finished in first the whole season, Eric and Danielle won.

American Idol: Despite the scandals (Antonella Barba’s racy photos and Sanjaya Malakar’s questionable talent), Season 7 of AI turned out to be a bit of a snoozer. Even judge Paula Abdul says she can hardly remember any of the contestants from last season. Even though Melinda Doolittle was a judge and fan favorite, she has yet to be offered a record deal. Runner-up Blake Lewis saw moderate success with his first album, selling 231,000 copies, winner Jordin Sparks’ album only peaked at #10 and has sold only 425,000 copies.

Project Runway: Heidi, Tim, Nina, and Michael returned for a third season of the hit Bravo show and it did not disappoint the fans. Keith Michael was asked to leave for rule violations and even eventual winner Jeffrey Sebelia was questioned about whether he followed the rules by fellow contestant Laura Bennett in the finale. Despite being named the third runner-up, Michael Knight was voted the favorite designer by the fans and won $10,000.

Top Chef: Another popular Bravo reality show, Top Chef, began airing in June from Miami. Early favorite Tre Wilcox was sent home after taking on too much responsibility as the executive chef of the restaurant in episode 10. The finale was between Casey Thompson, coming on strong after wins in episode 10 and 11, Dale Levitski, also coming on strong with his only his second win in the first episode of the finale, and Hung Huynh, who had proven his talent throughout the season. Although not well loved by his fellow contestants, Hung won this season. Casey won the fan favorite vote and took home $10,000.

The Biggest Loser: Season 4 of the Biggest Loser featured a few new twists – the first ever “Black” team, led by a returning trainer Jillian Michaels and twin contestants – Bill and Jim Germanakos. Although Neil Tejwani gained 17 pounds in one episode as a play of strategy, it was the twins that were the biggest losers. Jim, although eliminated in week 5, lost the most weight of the eliminated players (186 pounds or 51.52%) to win the $100,000 prize. His brother, Bill, lost 164 pounds or 49.19% to take home the $250,000 grand prize. Neil lost more than winner Bill (211 pounds or 50.12%), but was eliminated in the 14th week.

Dancing with the Stars: This season featured stars such as Wayne Newton, Jane Seymour, and Marie Osmond. But, it was the shocking elimination of Sabrina Byyan (who won the heart of her dance partner Mark Ballas in real life), the on-air fainting spell of Marie Osmond, and the eventual win by Indy 500 racecar drive Helio Castroneves that caught much of the attention. Spice Girl Melanie Brown finished in second place and Marie Osmond finished in third place.

So You Think You Can Dance: Season 3 of SYTYCD featured many connections to Season 2. We saw Faina Savich, the sister of Season 2 top 20 finalist Stanislav Savich, make the top 20. Hokuto “Hok” Konishi, a fan favorite from Season 2 who had to drop out because he didn’t have a work visa, returned to make the final 20. And runner-up Danny Tidwell is the brother of last year’s runner-up Travis Wall. Sabra Johnson, who has only been dancing for four years, was the first female and first person of African-American descent to win the title.

America’s Got Talent: Back for Season 2, AGT had a new judge, Sharon Osbourne replacing Brandy, and a new host, Jerry Springer replacing Regis Philbin. Sharon and Piers often butted heads about the contestants, especially over Leonid the Magnificent, who was back for a second time. The final four came down to Julienne Irwin, a 14-year-old singer, Butterscotch, a beatboxer/singer, Cas Haley, a singer/guitarist, and Terry Fator, a ventriloquist. Though it was seemingly impossible, Terry Fator won the hearts of America with his incredible ventriloquist act and took home the million-dollar prize.

Last Comic Standing: This season, Last Comic Standing went international, with auditions in London, Montreal, Sydney, Los Angeles, New York, Minneapolis, San Antonio, and Tempe. Gerry Dee, who tried out for the show in Seasons 2 and 4, but didn’t make the final 10, was eliminated in third place. That left Jon Reep and Lavell Crawford in the finale. Even though Lavell had been a strong competitor throughout the competition, it was North Carolinian Jon Reep that won the $250,000, a NBC Universal contract, and a Bravo special.

The Apprentice: This season, The Apprentice was shot in Los Angeles, rather than New York City. Donald Trump’s children, Ivanka and Donald Jr. made their debuts as full-time judges. For the first time ever, candidates had to win the weekly task to be allowed to live in a Beverly Hills mansion. Those that didn’t win had to live in “Tent City.” The final three candidates were Stefani Schaeffer (a defense attorney), James Sun (an Internet company owner), and Nicole D’Ambrosio (a real estate broker). Nicole was fired in the middle of the finale and James was fired at the end, leaving Stefani as the winner.

The Bachelor: Billed as the “sexiest bachelor ever,” bar owner Brad Womack’s southern charm captivated many of the women on the show and his identical twin brother Chad helped him fool a few of them. However, it was the viewing audience that was fooled when after romancing both finalist – cheerleader Jenni Croft and realtor DeAnna Pappas – Brad chose not to propose to either one, a first for the show.

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