In search of something different when it comes to your summer TV programming? While many viewers shun the tube in search of warm sun beams and cool lake waters, television producers find themselves in a sticky position. Do they add brand new shows to the roster and try to lure in audiences, or do they stick with the reruns and run the good stuff during sweeps when ratings really matter? The popular choice for both the satellite TV programming execs and the major networks is more often than not reality TV in HD for added credibility and shock. You’ve got reality TV show contests pitting sports stars and chefs, artists, dancers, survivors and wannabe rock stars against all manner of bizarre and oddly delightful and arresting challenges. Of course, not all reality series are all fluff and glitter.
Take the newcomer from NBC, called ‘The Wanted’. This program is very similar to “To Catch a Predator”, NBC’s pedophile chase series which sees unsuspecting pedophiles lured into the hands of the police via some slightly off putting and questionable journalistic maneuvering. The pedophiles are caught red handed in front of the cameras, lights and all. The show has definitely sparked some criticism, yet it has its draws. No doubt NBC took that into consideration when it came up with The Wanted. Rather than dealing with child molesters who live in quiet suburban homes, The Wanted takes up with terrorists, war criminals and all around bad seeds who’ve as yet escaped the hands of justice.
The camera follows sort of DIY A team, a crew of elite operatives, we’re told. We’ve got Adam Ciralsky, the news producer, Scott Tyler, a former Navy Seals member and Roger Carstens, a former Green Beret. The latter two are the muscle, obviously, built like football sports heroes, they are meant to draw in viewers looking for movie-like spy action. But of course, this isn’t James Bond or Mission Impossible.
In the first episode, the crew, with their HD cameras and their cell phones track down Mullah Krekar, a militant who founded Ansar al-Islam, an organization not exactly known for its treatises on peace and understanding. But, as it turns out, Krekar lives in the quiet Scandinavian capital of Oslo. He sought refugee status and got it, despite being wanted in Iraq and being deemed dangerous by the Supreme Court of Norway. But the show doesn’t delve too deeply into such questions. Instead, they track the man down and rather anticlimactically, he actually agrees to do a sit down interview. Delta Force Majeure, that’s the squad name, is filmed renting a car a driving out the Mullah’s quaint, tree lined neighborhood. A camera is hidden in a tree, although it really isn’t necessary. You do get more action oriented shots in Iraq, although besides the HD factor, it’s not as high octane as you’d expect.
The end confrontation, if you could call it that, leaves something to be wanted. Certainly, some reality shows, those on satellite TV, for instance, know how to combine entertainment and cheap thrills, but NBC’s combination doesn’t really cut it.
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