MTV has finally coughed up more information about its new Bachelor-style reality dating show that we told you about back in June in Best. Lesbian. Week. Ever. At the time, all we knew was that the producers were looking for some 21-and older lesbians who wanted a chance to hook up with a “fresh out of the closet Maxim model.”
Now we know the name of the show, the name of the model, and the rules of the game. Brace yourselves. A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila, premieres October 9.
What? You say you’ve never heard of Ms. Tequila? She’s only the biggest myspace.com phenomenon Of All Time. And she has way more “friends” than you too, like two million more. For real. Oh yeah, and she’s bisexual. Whoops! They forgot to mention that middle part in the initial casting notice.
Yes, that’s the big twist on the old dating show nugget. A Shot at Love has 16 straight men and 16 lesbians all vying for her attention. Every episode will end with a “dramatic ceremony unlike anything you’ve ever seen before.” It’s all so very Three of Hearts, I hardly know what to do with myself!
Sound exploitive? Au contraire! Tony DiSanto, executive vp series development and programming at MTV, says of this new venture, “Tila Tequila made a name for herself by doing things her way, captivating legions of fans online, both men and women. Now she is taking that attitude and sex appeal to her own TV series where she is looking for a mate — by again captivating a group of both men and women. The show is a roller-coaster ride of drama, conflict and emotion, busting stereotypes and challenging the norm.”
I’m not sure which stereotypes are going to busted by A Shot at Love. I don’t think it’s the “anything that moves” stereotype, or the one about lesbians “competing” with straight men for women. Maybe they mean the stereotype about lesbians being morally superior and therefore immune to looking just as ridiculous on reality dating shows as straight people. Yeah, it might be that one.
What Tila have to say about all of this? In an announcement posted on her myspace page yesterday, she wrote:
“My show is about finding true love, because for me….having over 2 million friends is cool but sometimes it makes it hard for me to find someone real, and someone whom I can trust and love…..but there is a catch…..the show will be about me finding love as a BISEXUAL!!!!! THAT IS CRAZY RIGHT? … the only twist is that these guys and these girls have NO IDEA that I am bisexual and that they are competing against each others sexes!!! GUYS AGAINST GIRLS….WHO WILL I END UP HOOKING UP WITH????? WILL I BE STRAIGHT OR LESBIAN IN THE END?????”
It’s a question for the ages, really.
Lest you think she’s just in it for the publicity (and, you know, the love of her life) Tila tells us, “NOBODY IN TELEVISION HISTORY HAS EVER DONE SUCH A GROUNDBREAKING SHOW AND I AM HAPPY TO BE THE ONE TO PAVE THE WAY TO OPEN UP PEOPLE’S MINDS ABOUT THE LESBIAN AND GAY COMMUNITY!”
That’s right kids, she’s doing it for us. I mean, SHE’S DOING IT FOR US!!
And that’s all the permission you should need to tune in without (much) guilt.
