The Biggest Loser takes a nasty turn...

It shouldn't be a surprise to anyone that I take my reality shows really seriously. So I was so disappointed in last night's episode of The Biggest Loser. So disappointed that I needed to take a day to calm down. Really.

The first order of business on last night's episode was that 6 of the "at-home" contestants came back to the ranch. And they looked good. For whatever reason, the "ranch" contestants were mad. And not mad at the twist in the game, but mad at the newbies themselves. I just don't get it. I understand being upset with the game. But you sure didn't see any of them upset when they were chosen to stay at the ranch over the 36 others. So many of them have said that they couldn't do it without being on the ranch - be happy that you're there. And the move by Kai & Heather to try to move the bed so they wouldn't have to share a room with them was just pathetic.

Next was the weigh-in, where it turns out that the at-home contestants have lost more weight than the contestants at the ranch. I am positive that I'm not the only one who at this point wondered whether or not I should sign up for the Biggest Loser diet club! Isn't that what they're all on? Remember how many people complained that all these poor at-home folks were given was access to the online club and a gym? Could you imagine losing that kind of weight with just an online club and gym access? Holy cow. And then the questions start...why did they lose so much more then the contestants who have been at the ranch? What are they doing that was so different? And how did they do it while working full time?

So Adrian and Jaron earned their way back, much to the chagrin of both the contestants AND the trainers. This was the moment I lost faith in the show. Bob and Kim each chose a newbie (and why is it that they are still working out their red/blue teams rather than pairs? are the pairs working out together at all?), and proceeded to be really horrible to them. Yes, I know that Bob and Kim were probably miffed that Adrian and Jaron lost so much weight without their help. But come on. Kim grilled Adrian about how she lost the weight, then explained away her giant weight loss (she quit drinking, she's young, blah, blah, blah). And when Adrian mentioned that the workout didn't seem tough enough, Kim took it personally instead of upping Adrian's workout. Bob was almost worse. He just kept berating Jaron's fitness level, to the point that he ended up switching trainers. And did Bob actually shout out about his three guys being the only ones who DESERVED to be there? I've always loved Bob in the past, but not so much anymore.

So then there was the challenge, which was purposefully designed to be unfair. Sure, there was a chance that Adrian and Jaron would have won the calorie part of the challenge. But everyone knew that unless they did they would be moving a ton of bricks. And there's just no comparison between moving a ton of bricks and a ton of water jugs. And I think I would have been ok with the challenge if it weren't for how it ended. Bob's attitude about them not finishing was despicable. Are we really to believe that if any of the other teams had received the brick pile that they would have finished it? And where was the support from the other teams? Maybe they would have been motivated to finish it if the other teams were cheering them on.

I guess I thought that the trainers were supposed to be setting an example for the contestants. Instead, we saw scene after scene of Adrian's workouts being picked apart, Jaron's diet being criticized, and Adrian hitting a breaking point. It was disgusting. (side note - speaking of disgusting, what is the deal with the product placement "ads" this season? who would actually eat that Jello concoction? I hope they're getting paid to say "well, Bob, there's always room for Jello...) I was so pleased to see Adrian and Jaron do well at the weigh-in. I am really rooting for the two of them to win.

One more bit of frustration with last night's episode. This isn't the first season where we have seen contestants "playing the game" when it comes to the weigh-in. Last season Matt indulged in bacon the week he had won immunity to insure a big loss the next week when he wasn't safe. But this season it seems like so many more of them are there to "play the game" rather than change their lives. First Eric gained weight to force Kai to use the free pass. Then this week Heather purposefully gained to knock-out Bobby. I guess I'm more annoyed with the fact that the trainers seem to support this, rather than the game-play itself. This is also why I think that the weight-loss percentages each week need to be cumulative rather than week-to-week. (wasn't that how it was during the individual part of the competition in season 1?)

Anyways, I was sad to see Bobby go since he seems like a really nice guy. And hopefully next week Adrian and Jaron can continue to kick some butt.