I've always watched The Apprentice, and I thought when Celebrity Apprentice began last year that one season would be all there was of that and then we'd be back to the regular bit. I was wrong. Celebrity Apprentice 2 is getting down to the wire now with just five, or maybe it's four, players remaining. Last week's episode was one of the most explosive yet, in terms of the amount of profanity used by a celebrity. Oddly, it wasn't the already-eliminated Dennis Rodman who was responsible, but Joan's little girl, Melissa Rivers.
I must admit that Celebrity Apprentice intrigues me, but the problem is that when a season starts, I only really know half of the performers. The rest are people I've never heard of - playboy bunnies and poker players, for example. Still, there's always someone there who makes me want to watch.
The cast of Celebrity Apprentice 2 included one of my favorite skaters, Scott Hamilton. When I first heard he was going to be on, I thought, 'They are gonna eat him alive'. He lasted longer than I'd anticipated, but the truth is, they ate him alive. Worse, when he went, it was Scott's own doing that caused it. He made a mistake out of stubbornness which really surprised me. That's probably why this show has success - the surprises about these performers.
Clint Black is a good example. Now, I'm not a huge Clint Black fan, but I've always had a certain amount of respect for him. I love his music and his wife, Lisa Hartman Black. Their love story is wonderful. Watching Clint on Celebrity Apprentice 2, though, makes a person wonder why he's so stubborn. I do give him a ton of credit for handling a difficult situation with Rodman so well. He really was stellar in his willingness to try and bury the hatchet. However, he was also extremely hard to work with on a couple of tasks. Perhaps it's the editing. He's made some progress, but he's really much more close-minded than I'd always thought he was.
Sometimes I wonder how a sharp cookie like Donald Trump can be so dumb. What the heck was Dennis Rodman doing on Celebrity Apprentice 2? He was so tremendously self-absorbed and arrogant that it was mind boggling. He should have been fired weeks before he was. In truth, he never should have been on the show in the first place. Then again, neither should Andrew Dice Clay. What the heck is The Donald thinking? Ratings, I suppose, but he had to know he was playing with fire.
Now Jesse James is someone I never thought about one way or the other. I certainly wasn't a fan and never thought of him as anyone I'd care to know. However, he really earned my respect with how he handled himself in the challenges and especially in the show which had the intervention. Technically, it was a board room, but it turned into a 'Dennis needs help' session. Rodman, however, kept rambling on about his basketball success. He had Joan Rivers crying. She was right. It was sad to see someone drowning in today and having to justify their self-worth by bringing up their professional accomplishments of the past. The man is an alcoholic, and he needs help - serious help. The week after the intervention, so to speak, Trump announced that Rodman claimed he was getting help. I hope he got it, but I'm skeptical.
Back to James, the respect I'd given him by his sincerity in dealing with the entire Rodman issue, dissipated by his egotistical inaction in last week's show. He was a pouting crybaby in that show and because Black, as the project manager, didn't use all of his ideas, he refused to participate by giving his opinions anymore. He just sat there, stewing in his ego. It was disappointing, and he's back to being someone I don't want to know again.
Then there is the entire Joan and Melissa Rivers mess. Celebrity Apprentice 2 has really been all about them in one way or another. Mom and daughter just can't shut up, and they jump in to protect the other at a moment's notice, even when they weren't there to see whatever it was that went down. Both are whiners and both know how to use foul language. Admittedly, Melissa was railroaded by Brande Roderick and Annie Duke last week. That's obvious to anyone watching, but her less than graceful exit was worse than childlike; it was inexcusable for someone who rants about being a professional. After being fired, Melissa jumped up from her chair in the board room and began screaming for her things. She stomped around the room, demanding her luggage and shouting that she wasn't doing the exit interview. While she was doing that, protective Joan was gathering her own things and telling her teammates that she was out of there. When Roderick and Duke entered the suite, Joan gave them both a piece of her profanity-filled mind. Meanwhile, Melissa was still heaving profanities of her own.
What a season it's been for Celebrity Apprentice 2. Will Joan be back? I'm guessing Trump talked her into returning to finish out the series, if only to try for revenge against the evil doers who dared to plot against her precious baby.
Really and truly, watching these celebrities has really brought home just how average they are. I'm sure that Hershel Walker, who was fired two weeks ago, was happy he missed the explosion. Ditto for Brian McKnight, who simply lost interest in the whole show and became a zombie for his final task a few weeks back. He essentially laid down and died and relished the firing.
Will there be a Celebrity Apprentice 3? Probably, as long as The Donald can get more of his friends to participate. Hopefully, he'll do better background checks this time (he fired one celebrity this season because she had a DUI and he hadn't known about it until several weeks into the show). As for Celebrity Apprentice 2, it's been a wild ride. I must admit, I'm still watching. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not, though.