Flavor of Love 2: A History
If there’s one reality show that needs a little weekly, socio-cultural analysis, then it’s the Flavor Flav vehicle: Flavor of Love 2. This past Sunday, August 6th, was the hour and a half season premier and it was as spectacularly majestic as I could have ever hoped it would be. Since I will be making this a weekly column, let me catch you up on the format and history of this great show.
THE IDEA
Flavor of Love (1) became VH1’s highest rated show of all time. MTV’s sister network had been scrambling around for years, looking for a niche and trying to find its identity. Well, they found it in Flavor Flav.
Flavor Flav used to be best known as a member of the pioneering rap group Public Enemy. And though Flavor Flav was always the goofy one in that outfit, his second career as a reality television whore could not have been more unpredictable. Flavor of Love 2 is actually Flavor Flav’s fourth different show in succession on VH1. If I was into making corny comments I’d probably say something like, “VH1 should just change their name to FlavH1.” But I don’t play the game like that. Let’s just say that VH1 has become Flavtastic, and they’ve perfected Flavision with the Flavor of Love series.
A play on ABC’s The Bachelor, Flavor of Love is a reality show that involves twenty women vying for the love of the show’s star, Flavor Flav. Unlike The Bachelor, or any other show in reality TV history for that matter, Flavor of Love attracts a different kind of female contestant: namely the gutter skank. But as always the star of the show is Flavor Flav. “How did it come to this,” you ask. Let me tell you.
THE HISTORY
Flavor Flav began his television career as a lowly cast member on VH1’s stolen* series Surreal Life. Alongside Full House actor Dave Coulier and former boy band-er Jordan Knight, Flavor Flav stole the show with an unusual companion, Rocky IV star Brigitte Nielson. Gitte and Flav seemingly “fell in love” on camera and everything seemed to be right in the universe. “If these two can find love in each other, then I think all will be fine,” I can recall thinking.
The VH1 people didn’t stop there though and it was a good thing they didn’t. The network came back strong with Strange Love, a chronicle of Brigitte Nielson and Flavor Flav’s lovescapdes. It was great TV, but in reality (no pun intended) it was just an appetizer for the show that would change the channel and the world: Flavor of Love.
Flavor of Love was the pinnacle of debauched, deprived, frivolous, barbaric, basic cable bullshit; in other words, it was the bomb. If you didn’t get to see this show then I really suggest you go out and buy the DVD and watch the whole thing in one sitting. It’s the only way.
THE FUTURE
The future is now, what are you waiting for. A new season of Flavor of Love is upon us, so get off the internet and turn on VH1. Oh yeah, and make sure you check out AssociatedContent.com and read my weekly review of the best show on television, Flavor of Love 2.
*Surreal Life was originally a WB program, but do to sagging ratings the network dropped the idea and sold the back episodes and all future rights to VH1. With Season 3 and many thanks to Flavor Flav, VH1 had a hit show on their hands.
