Never mind that "The Hills" (10 p.m. EDT Wednesday, May 31, MTV) is a reality show without a shred of reality to it. That doesn't matter to the viewers of this show or the one that spawned it _ faux reality sensation "Laguna Beach." Both have the pretense, form and feel of a reality show, though the situations and dialogue come straight from a page.

In a way, part of the appeal of "The Hills" is that it's pretending to be reality. This is reality as someone who has never lived in reality might see it.

For instance, the star of "The Hills" focuses on a 19-year-old named Lauren Conrad. She's moving away from home for the first time to live in Los Angeles. She has a fabulous apartment, a cool roommate and perfect hair.

Though she has no prior experience in writing or public relations, she lands a sweet internship at Teen Vogue. Her qualifications? She's read Teen Vogue, like, all her life. Oh, that's good enough for the editors at Teen Vogue. They hand her the job because they "want to take a chance" on her. Given this, it's a wonder that Teen Vogue gets out an issue at all. Giving a job to someone with no skills? Well, at least the office will have MTV cameras around all day. It will make up for Lauren's lack of credentials.

Lauren's skills are put to the test when she is assigned to work an all-star party that the magazine is throwing. All she has to do is make sure no one sits in the VIP section. Of course, Lauren's buddies crash the party and decide to sit in the VIP seats anyway. Her boss sees it and wants to have a serious talk with Lauren on Monday at work. Oops. Turns out that Lauren is sort of the Lucille Ball of reality TV. She means well, but is constantly ending up in compromising situations.

It is easy to tear apart a show like "The Hills." The situations are so contrived, and the dialogue is terribly stilted. But "The Hills" is supposed to be built on how likable (or unlikable) the characters are. "The Hills" has an odd appeal to it. For adults, you can laugh at the inane idea that this is supposed to be a reality show. For teens and tweens, it's a show in which they can dream of a fantasy adulthood.

Lauren has appeal, but she's, well, dumb. She has ambition but no drive. She wants to be responsible but rarely does the responsible thing. So her plight is one that many MTV viewers _ which are teenagers these days _ can relate to. They've been compromised, in over their heads and making attempts to be an adult when they're not ready yet.

Sure, Lauren's fantastic lifestyle is the stuff of fantasy. However, her lessons are very much ingrained in the real world. That's why "Laguna Beach," from which she came, is such a hit. "The Hills" have eyes all right, and they can learn a thing or two from how Lauren works through consequences and other lessons of life.
[SOURCE]
[Thanks Kristen]

posted by Lysandra @ 9:00 PM