December 18, 2004

"The best shows force people who hate one another to work together."

Alessandra Stanley reviews the "Apprentice" finale.
[T]he calm, purposeful Kelly, a former Army Ranger and a West Point graduate, was up against Jennifer Massey, a pretty, fierce and unpleasant lawyer who attended Princeton and Harvard Law School. But the show backed off the more intriguing undercurrents. Jennifer repeatedly accused Kelly of being a manipulative penthouse gossip, and there was plenty of videotape to support her. Instead, at the end, the show demonized the blonde and framed Kelly as the quintessential brave American soldier: a semper fi kind of guy who could lead a Trump company into glory (though a battle with creditors could be just as likely).

It was obvious from the start that Kelly would win. The only suspense came when Mr. Trump's chief operating officer, Matthew Calamari, got up to explain his vote and got stage fright instead. "I'm not doing too good," he said, mid-flop-sweat.

Well put.

UPDATE: "Semper fi" may rhyme with "guy," but isn't that the Marines' motto? The Army Rangers' motto is "Sua sponte" -- or is it "Lead the way"? -- right?

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