MTV: The Two Faced Monster

Tonight MTV premiered the 3rd season of Run’s House and proved that every once in a while the network can still provide worthwhile moments. Run’s House follows the lives of RUN DMC’s Rev Run and his family. It’s very much the anti-Osbournes. Sure they’re richer then all the readers of this blog combined but the Rev’s family seems more down to Earth then any other on reality TV. For someone such as myself who is put off by religion, Run manages to preach without being preachy. His family seems to have no problem opening up their lives with all its blemishes and pains. Tonight’s episode was gut wrenching to watch. At the end of last season Run and his wife were preparing for a new baby and within 5 minutes of the premiere after a typically entertaining exchange about the Rev burning in hell for going to Hooters, we find out that they lost the baby in child birth. Furthermore, the family actually lets the cameras in as mom and dad share the news with their 5 other children. To say it was engrossing TV would be a disservice. Yet it wasn’t the kind of TV that grabbed you because you wanted to see human misery, no it was engrossing because of the fact that you saw a real family dealing with real tragedy and trying to heal themselves. Moments like these are few and far between on a network that airs shows like Exposed, NeXt and The Hills but thanks to a handful of shows like Run’s House and True Life, MTV proves that it is still a worthy network. That is until you hear of a stunt like…reuniting the entire cast of the Real World Las Vegas and moving them back into their Palms Hotel suite for a month. Is this what you’ve been reduced to MTV literally recycling the exact same old shows? Arguably the most dysfunctional season of the Real World ever, this cast was the exact opposite of Run’s House because they made you watch because you knew these 7 people would be a gigantic train wreck. Of course I don’t mean to sound too high and mighty because as much as I appreciated Run’s House I know I’ll be lining up to watch the Real World reunion and that’s why MTV might actually be the devil.