Welcome To Idiopathy

You know, they're those gameshow-like programs on TLC and the Discovery channel. We're not talking about Martha Stewart Living (thank GOD) or This Old House. No, these are the new-age redecorating shows and they are more popular than ever. The shows are for the most part good ones, but that isn't always the case. Read on as Idiopathy takes a closer look at the good, the bad and the ugly of redecorating shows.

SHOW: Trading Spaces

CHANNEL: TLC

PREMISE: Two couples agree to swap one room of their choice for the other couple to redecorate. A professional decorator has two days and $1,000 to help the couple make over the room. The catch is that the couples have no say in what happens to their own room.

THE GOOD:

The first new-age redecorating show on TLC, Trading Spaces adds entertainment to the idea of remodeling your home. The excitement level is raised via the $1,000 spending limit. The spending limit was at one time more of a suggestion than a brick wall. That changed when another competing channel came up with a similarly themed show that boasted of not letting the decorators exceed the $1,000 spending limit. TLC responded in kind by bearing down on the overzealous designers.

Those same designers are also what makes this a good show. Each designer has his or her own tastes and dislikes. You can pick out who did what room just by the looks of it, after watching the show for a time. Designers like Doug and Frank bring true life to the show. They have no qualms about hamming it up in front of the camera, or ringing a few smiles out of the harried couples as they rush to complete the room.

Making it possible for that to happen are the resident carpenters Amy Wynn and Ty Pennington. Much like Doug and Frank, they do their best to put a smile on everyone's face. Ty especially likes to be the clown of the party. There are few episodes where he doesn't pick on one of the designers or perform a fine piece of slapstick for the cameras.

THE BAD:

Not everything is smiles and giggles on the set of Trading Spaces. Some of its staples are also its enemies. First and foremost is that pesky $1,000 budget. It sounds like a lot of money to transform one tiny little room. You'd be surprised how quickly it disappears. When you consider just how large some rooms can be, it disappears even more quickly.

The designers aren't much of a help, either. Some of them, especially Hildi and Doug, have a yearning need to buy really, REALLY expensive fabrics and such for the room. This sometimes directly impacts the poor owners of the room. If a designer spends too much, they have to return enough stuff from the room to cover the overage. Depending, this can leave a room looking rather sparse.

The two-day time limit can also be stressful. It's not so stressful for the designers as it is for the couple working on the room. The designer goes to a hotel for the night while the couple stays up doing "homework." In other words, whatever didn't get done in the first day, and can't be done during the second day, has to be done overnight. This has kept more than a few couples up past midnight. Once again, the designer and the size of the room can directly affect the size and length of the homework.

THE UGLY:

Even the best-laid plans can be sent asunder. Other times, the plans were ruinous from the very beginning. Perhaps the worst rule of Trading Spaces is that couples have no say whatsoever as to what is done to their room. Sure, they can instruct the designer to leave their one-hundred year old dresser alone, but that doesn't even always work.

Most notorious for destroying perfectly good rooms is Doug and Hildi. While it must be said that Doug has become less cutting-edge over the past year or two, he can still go way over the top. Most notable is a huge, beautiful bedroom that he turned into a prison, complete with bars on the windows and a pair of toilets supporting a rough-hewn bench.

Hildi most certainly is the queen of the tasteless. If by some chance I ever came to be on the show, and I found out Hildi was my designer, I would move heaven and earth to find a way to get off the show before it's too late. To put it simply, Hildi makes Doug look like Martha Stewart when it comes to design and use of materials.

She used a hot glue gun to affix hay to all the walls of one room, much to the couple's derision. In another room, she glued thousands of feathers to one wall. Who would think it could get any worse than feathers? Well...it did. In one of her latest rooms, Hildi decided to wallpaper the walls with CARDBOARD. Not only are the walls covered with cardboard now, but it's stuck on there with liquid nails. If you know anything about liquid nails, then you know that pretty much the only way to remove it is to replace the walls themselves. I certainly hope the couple likes cardboard.

CONCLUSION:

Trading Spaces is, overall, an entertaining show to watch. It is intriguing to see what the designers come up with for the rooms. I'll even admit it's always exciting to see how Hildi will demolish a room next. Women will most definitely enjoy this show, and they might even manage to get their husbands to sit down to watch it. Children may be less inclined to watch the show, parents take note!

SHOW: Trading Spaces: Family

CHANNEL: TLC

PREMISE: Like Trading Spaces, there is still only one room remodeled and a $1,000 limit. The two-day time limit remains as well. The primary addition is entire families exchanging rooms, instead of just couples doing so.

THE GOOD:

Trading Spaces: Family's largest benefit is the success, and the designers, of the original Trading Spaces show. Most if not all of the designers from the original have plied their trade on "Family." This show has also spawned its own new designers, however. Some of these have even gone on to do episodes on the original Trading Spaces.

Another benefit is having two extra bodies to spread the work. Midnight-busting homework now seems to get done in half the time or less. The entertainment level goes up as well, being that the two extra team members are children. This propels the show to even higher levels of hilarity, with the younger children expounding one-liners without even realizing it.

THE BAD:

Many of the problems of Trading Spaces remain intact in this rendition. The $1,000 cash limit still raises the problem of cash shortages and shortcomings. The issue is easily compounded if some of that money has to go towards paying for one of the children's' "boo-boos." Luckily, this does not happen too often. Falling into the red is still primarily the fault of the designer at hand.

The two day limit, while not as pesky, still comes off as being tight on occasion. Children are notorious for being slower than adults when it comes to completing tasks (schoolwork, anyone?). This isn't to say that they aren't capable of doing the work, or even that they don't WANT to do the work, it just seems to take them longer. Thus there has been the occasional episode where the children are locked in the sewing room for an entire day or given something ridiculously simple to complete.

THE UGLY:

As with "The Bad," The Ugly remains much the same as it was for Trading Spaces. The main problem is the free-for-all mentality of the rules. Designers are still free to do as they please with the other family's room. Yes, Hildi has been on Trading Spaces: Family. While none of her rooms have been as devastating as the hay room or the cardboard room, people still turn pale at the sound of her name. It's only a matter of time before she returns to the dark side.

Needless to say, this show is also a spin-off of sorts. It's not so much of a concern about if it will be successful or not. The real worry is that the spin-off was put on the air while the original was still showing. I would hope that nothing much came of it, but I can't help remembering the controversy revolving around CSI Miami. Whatever the case, it seems to be working in TLC's favor for the time being.

CONCLUSION:

As with Trading Spaces, the show can be fairly entertaining depending on who the designers are for any given episode. The children add an interesting twist to the proven formula. If you enjoy Trading Spaces, then this show should be a shoe-in for you. Women should enjoy Trading Spaces: Family. Men may be a little more apt to switch the channel, given the opportunity to do so. Children will be more likely to watch because of the children on the show.

SHOW: While You Were Out

CHANNEL: TLC

PREMISE: A friend or family member finds a way to get rid of his or her friend or family member for two days while a group of designers and carpenters come and redecorate a room while the homeowner is "out."

THE GOOD:

Unlike Trading Spaces or its spin-off, While You Were Out has a somewhat looser budget. This show allows for $2,000 to transform a room. It makes sense, seeing how only one room is being done versus Trading Spaces' two. Even more advantageous is the fact that there are three "prizes" to be won.

The friend or family member is quizzed twice during the show about what his or her friend or family member is doing on whatever two-day adventure they've been sent on. A correct answer wins a rather pricey prize or prizes for the room being redecorated. Prize values can run into the hundreds of dollars.

Although it's becoming a rare sight on the show, the price of losing a quiz is getting a booby prize of sorts. An example would be winning a pair of happy face boxer shorts instead of a satin robe. It was a nice touch that the producers seemingly decided to let die. It's a shame, really. The designer lost out as well, having to fit whatever hokey item that was won into the design of the room.

Speaking of designers, the ones on this show seem much more down to earth when it comes to designing a decent room for the homeowner. One reason for this might revolve around the fact that the homeowner doesn't even know about the change until they return. Also, the main reason for the change is because the homeowner's friend or relative set out to have the room redecorated to please the homeowner, not scare him or her out of their wits.

THE BAD:

Surprise, the group of redecorators only have two days to get everything done. Sound familiar, does it? This seems to be a recurring issue for these redecorating shows on TLC. Trading Spaces: Family seems to do alright with it, and it's the only one to do so. There just never seems to be enough time. Since the homeowner has no clue as to what is going on, it's not like they can be asked to stay away for a little while longer.

This proves a common problem on the show. Since the homeowners return home at various times depending on where they are or what they are doing, the team doesn't necessarily get a full two days to work their magic. On one recent episode, the person in question was taking flights home from a vacation spot. Each time she called, her boyfriend was informed that her flight times were being pushed up.

The boyfriend ended up having to take her shopping and to a restaurant in order to buy the rest of the team enough time to complete the room. The room itself suffered as a result. A number of different projects planned for the room were either incomplete, or never even begun. While the room stood up to scrutiny in the end, it still came off feeling not quite complete.

THE UGLY:

The only truly ugly thing with this show is what is done to keep the homeowner away for the two days it takes to complete the room. Usually it is a nice escape. They could be sent for a weekend in Las Vegas, or perhaps a couple of days in Florida. Unfortunately, there have been a couple of people slightly less fortunate than that.

One man was a fireman. Instead of sending him on vacation, the While You Were Out team persuaded his boss to keep him locked up in the firehouse for two entire days. That's right, over thirty-six hours of non-stop work. Needless to say, the poor guy was more than ready to get out of there and go home. Because of this, he damn well near went home before he was supposed to. After his shift, he surprised the team again by staying a couple extra hours to watch TV and get a bite to eat. Go figure.

The other poor soul was a police chief getting his off-duty room in the police station redecorated. How do you get rid of a police chief, you ask? Send him to work somewhere else, of course! He was sent off to pow-wow with another local police chief and his police station. He returned worn out and ready to be done with policing for a day or two, only to be caught off guard by the show. Can you blame him for not jumping for joy? Well, at least he liked the room.

CONCLUSION:

Those who enjoy Trading Spaces will most likely enjoy this show. While You Were Out should be appealing to women. Men may need a little persuasion to get into the show. Children will most likely be bored by this show. While You Were Out is a nice change of venue if you're tired of the rigmarole surrounding Trading Spaces. It's definitely worth a look.

SHOW: Monster House

CHANNEL: Discovery Channel

PREMISE: A family is moved out of their house for five days while a motley crew of carpenters radically change a number of their rooms into theme-based architectural masterpieces. The crew has five days to complete the build, before a designer comes to finish off the finer details.

THE GOOD:

Perhaps the best thing about Monster House is that the crew of workers have a seemingly bottomless budget to complete the rooms. Even more fun is the fact that more often than not, the family ends up with a free state of the art flat-screen TV courtesy of one company or another. The same goes for entire stereo systems, or even ovens and refrigerators.

There's a big bonus for those who build the rooms as well. This time, the hard-working carpenters and workers have the chance to win a wide selection of pricey power tools. All they have to do is complete the room in the allotted five days. Only a couple of teams have failed to manage this goal. They may have deserved it at that, but you still can't help feeling bad for them.

Best of all, the family ends up with a house that's guaranteed to be the coolest damn building in the neighborhood. Everything that looks like a piece of art typically serves some sort of purpose as well, meaning they aren't left with impracticable rooms. For the family, it's much akin to winning a free makeover for their house, new electronics and all.

There's no need to worry about what the family is doing for the five days, either. They're treated to a full sized recreational vehicle with all the trimmings. The family is also more than welcome to invite friends over, have barbecues, or even do a little partying. The only concession is that the family is not allowed to see what's going on in their house until it's completely done.

THE BAD:

Although Monster House at last breaks the curse of the two-day limit, time can still be rather constrained. Almost every team ever to set foot in front of the show's cameras have found themselves working like crazy in the final hours to complete all of their assigned tasks. Many episodes have seen the final nail put into place with one second on the clock, and that's no joke.

In addition, the family may have a nice cozy Winnebago to bed down in, but would it really be all that enjoyable? Even if there were a television in there, how long would the family put up with Guiding Light and All My Children? Five days is an awful long time to be cooped up in such an arrangement. Lastly, it can't be much of a treat to see large pieces of your home torn up and tossed carelessly onto your carefully manicured front lawn. Surprisingly few homeowners complain about this, however.

THE UGLY:

Perhaps the worst aspect of the show can be the carpenters and workers themselves. Part of any harried working situation will cause a few shouting matches. Put these guys in front of a few cameras and you've got a regular primetime soap opera going on.

Situations have ranged from vague disagreements all the way to near-fisticuffs. More than one person has walked off the show for the day. The funniest thing is that those who end up doing so, caused the problem to begin with! Larger than normal egos also accompany the cameras onto the Monster House worksite. Just as common is a sudden, and seemingly unexplainable case of extreme laziness in one of the workers. Unfortunately, either of these conditions are likely to occur on almost any episode you watch.

CONCLUSION:

Monster House is a pleasure to watch, as much to see what scuffles are going to take place between the team members as what the finished house ends up looking like. Think of it as While You Were Out with a healthy dose of testosterone. The show is decidedly more adult oriented and may not be suitable for children to watch. Men will almost definitely enjoy the show. Women may or may not be able to get into watching Monster House.

All of these shows are generally fun to watch despite whatever flaws they might possess. Next time you're looking for something to watch, give one of these shows a try. You might be surprised to find yourself looking for when they're on next.

IN THE COMING WEEKS:

The first in a two-part series, "Universal Studios VS. Walt Disney World" takes a closer look at the two parks' differences as well as their similarities. Get a look at Universal Studios next month. Find out what the park has to offer, and if it's the right park for your tourist buck.