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January 10, 2001

Temptation TV: Fox Brings Reality to Relationships?
by Barbara Fletcher


You can always count on Fox for outrageous -- and sometimes even obnoxious -- programming. But you better believe that lots of people will be tempted tonight to watch the network's latest offering, Temptation Island.

This new six-part reality TV show debuts tonight at 9:00 PM EST, and continues to air Wednesday nights. In line with Fox's "relationship" themed shows (recall the matrimonial farce that was Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire) Temptation Island is all about bringing couples together -- or tearing them apart.

Here's the show in a nutshell: four twenty- and thirty-something couples who have arrived at a "crossroads" in their relationship (and are willing to have their unions tested) are plunked down on an exotic island off the coast of Belize with 26 highly-eligible, scantily-clad singles looking to get lucky. Among the tempters, viewers can expect to see an online dating service founder, a former Los Angeles Lakers dancer, a massage therapist, and a former Playboy model.

Each member of the four couples will go on dates with three of the swinging singles, and is urged to "give in to temptation" and test their relationships.

During the second episode, each group is permitted to watch their partner's videotaped dates. (And by the way, Fox has confirmed that should any of the couples stray from their partners during these dates, all of the tempters and temptresses have been tested for STDs.)

As the test wears on -- two weeks in total -- the women have the opportunity to vote the most dangerous (tempting) female off the island, and the men get to do the same with the most dangerous male.

At the end of it all, couples will have learned whether or not their partners can be faithful and if they have really found their soul-mates -- on TV screens in living rooms all over the continent.

And that's the grand prize. There's no million dollars waiting for the most-committed couple.

Some have called it Survivor meets Blind Date. Others see it as horrifying trash that glorifies infidelity.

But according to a recent article in the Globe and Mail, chairman of Fox Television Entertainment Group Sandy Grushow views Temptation Island -- a program that urges all to "Give in to Temptation" -- as "a show that is exploring the dynamics of serious relationships."

Past "serious" Fox programming has included the aforementioned Who Wants To Marry a Multi-Millionaire, Scariest Police Shoot-Outs, and When Good Pets Go Bad. And in the near future viewers can expect Love Cruise (where sixteen singles set sail on a Reality TV Love Boat, dating each other and voting the losers off the ship).

And of course, in the tradition of SurvivorSucks.com and BigBrotherSucks.com, a TemptationIslandSucks.com site has just hit the Net a few days ago.

Another vocal opponent of the show is the 625,000-family strong Parents Television Council. In a January 4 statement, founder L. Brent Bozell uses the word "embarrassed" to describe how both the viewers and "contestants" of the show should feel about their involvement with such "trash."

Dr. Gene Ondrusek, consulting psychologist for Survivor, takes an opposing view, and sees benefits in the testing of a committed relationship.

In a recent article published on ABC.com's Web site, Dr. Ondrusek says that testing the boundaries can "galvanize relationships," and goes on to state that since the show's couples are planning for marriage, it's better to know where the relationship stands now instead of later.

Regardless of which side viewers sit on, Temptation Island is bound to have a significant viewership for its first show this evening -- if only for the simple reason that people are inherently curious.

Shows directed at the voyeur have proven to be highly successful and there's a whole new fleet of reality TV shows on the horizon waiting to ride the wave. ABC's The Mole premiered last night and CBS's Survivor II: The Australian Outback debuts January 28.

In addition to Fox's Love Cruise, a UPN show is in the works that features a woman chained to four male suitors for a whole week, and another show plops people onto an island for the sole purpose of being tracked down by "bounty hunters".

So get ready to watch. The networks -- and Fox tonight especially -- are counting on you to be tempted.