Competition shows I like

There are two reality competition shows I watch without fail: The Biggest Loser and So You Think You Can Dance. Now, with The Biggest Loser there's a debatable issue regarding the safety. They claim to be worried about contestant health, but anybody who watched this season had to know that Helen ain't healthy. She's straight up anorexic. Nobody at 150 odd pounds should be losing more than one pound a week.

Nonetheless, I admire the message behind the show. No matter how fat you've become, with a healthy diet and regular exercise you can lose weight. What they're not telling you is that you're more likely to keep it off when you lose it slowly. But at least they're putting out a positive influence for obese Americans everywhere.

And I also admit I love to watch it because I am completely obsessed with nutrition. That's why I've also taken and interest in I Want to Save Your Life on the WE channel, which any overweight person should watch.

But I digress. The point here is So You Think You Can Dance. I used to think it was a Dancing With the Stars or an American Idol clone, but then a couple of years ago a friend showed me this one dance on a ping pong table and I was like HOLY CRAP! Is that what they do? Those people really can dance. And even though the viewers get to vote to narrow down the choices, final say in the cuts goes to the judges, as it should.

What I really love about the show is that the goal is to find great dancers. Some of the judges can get testy, but there is no Simon Cowell whose mission is to humiliate as many people as possible. Even the rotten dancers earn some measure of respect from the panel.

Nigel Lithgow, the executive producer, leads the way with complete class. After almost every routine he turns to where the choreographer sits in the audience and makes a point of complimenting their work.

Imagine that. An executive producer giving credit to the creator of the routine and not just to the performers.

It makes me wish there was a Nigel in the writing world who made sure to always give credit to the hard workers who wrote the material.

They can keep Mary though. She's probably swell, but I don't think I can handle all that screaming.