BIKINIS AND BITCHING - THE S-FACTOR

Some nights ago, I watched all eight episodes of MediaCorp's "The S-Factor" on Youtube in one go.

I know, I know, I am slow. It is probably the contrary streak in me, but I hate to do something when everyone else is doing it as well. I watched Susan Boyle's video only about a year after it first made waves on Youtube. So watching "The S-Factor" months only after everyone else has watched it and bitched about it to death, is nothing new in my books. Happens like that all the time.

Ah, yes, bitch. This is the critical word. But I am getting ahead of myself.

When the show first aired, the reviews were everywhere and they were so bad that I decided not to waste my time. Then people started to post clips of the pre-audition videos on Facebook, and I started to get curious. Just how bad was it anyway?

Sometimes, watching something after tons of lousy reviews is not a bad idea. I went into it with the lowest of expectations; I was anticipating something like Ris Low times ten, and was presently surprised. To say that these S-Factor girls are the creme de la creme of Singapore girls would be too much, but they are really not as bad as people made them out to be.

I have heard a lot about them, their (low) level of intelligence, looks, characters, even their command of English. Especially the last, which is pretty ironical, given the (not so impressive) language standards of the typical Singaporean. As a group, I thought the girls were reasonably smart, most were quite pretty, some were quite gorgeous, and in general pretty articulate and well-spoken. Sure, there is the odd fluff-head, some not-so-gorgeous babes, and a lot of bitchiness, but it is a reality show after all. The idea is to provoke and entertain. Wherein lies the entertainment if there is no bitching and no fodder for the bitchiness?

And so we are back to the central theme. Most people had a lot to say about the bitching and malicious back-stabbing etc going. And I have to say that I don't see what the fuss is all about. In fact, I have to confess that in my salad days (and even now), my friends and I gossiping together would have looked and sounded exactly like these girls in their bitching sessions, minus all that gorgeousness of course. I do not think things have changed so much that young girls these days are discussing world politics when they get together. Nor do I think that the gathering of housewives at my void deck are putting together a proposal for ending the famine on Somalia. The only difference is that the rest of us are doing it off national TV. So why so much objection to what is only reality? That only makes us out to be hypocrites. It is after all, reality TV.

Then of course, there is the group who worries about such content being shown on TV. Bad influence for kids, and worries that foreigners might think the girls representative of Singaporean girls, blah blah. The former, well, I have always been of the opinion that TV media (and school teachers) has taken the brunt of the blame for poor parenting, so I shall not comment further on this. The latter, lets just say that I think of these foreigners the same way I think of those who ask me whether Singapore is a province of China; basically I don't quite worry what these uninformed peons think. Then again, if only some of these girls are representative of Singapore girls! It wouldn't exactly make me unhappy to be classed on the same level as the smart, articulate and totally gorgeous Holly Jean.

If I had to object to anything, it would be the sheer inanity of the challenges that were put forward by the producers. If I had to doubt anyone's intelligence, it would be the ones who came up with the challenges. I have seen school orientation programmes with more flair and creativity.

Well, "The S-Factor" is no Emmy contender. I do think there are better things to spend my time on (like "The Biggest Loser", haha). However, it is by no means the piece of excretable material that some people have likened it to. And the girls who participated, are no more and no less than other girls of the same age, except that they can wear bikinis and the rest of us will look like muffins if we attempt the same.

That said, if I ever catch hold of that girl who made that comment about big butts in bikinis at Zouk-out......