The Benefactor

I watched the Benefactor on Abc just because there was nothing else on. It was horrible. People said it's a Apprentice but it's no wear even close. It's a completely different show and that's it's problem. It's not interesting or smart and it's EXTREMELY BORING. It's so bad that one of the "games" was a game of JENGA. Whoever won the Jenga game wouldn't be kicked out. BORING! That has to be the worst idea ever made. The guy Mark Cuban is annoying. The show runs extremely slow and the house that everyone's in is so cluttered it's hard to see the contestants on the screen. This show has no point at all, no element, no gig, no brain and no audience. I hate this show. NO Sense IN WATCHING IT. AVOID IT!

I think I probably watched this show because I was craving more "The Apprentice." This one could scarcely be more different from Donald Trump's show, though, and while that's good on the surface, ultimately it's bad.

Whereas Trump's show has structure and logic, "The Benefactor" is run strictly according to Mark Cuban's whim. In the first 20 minutes or so of the pilot, he ejected one participant for off-handedly remarking that the game would probably be "stupid." Guess what, Mark? Your game IS stupid. Oops, no million for me.

The concept -- that anyone can be booted at any time, for any reason -- seemed promising at first. But as it played out in the pilot, it just seemed mean. And when Cuban chose between two bootees by making them play a game of Jenga, it turned into survival of the most obnoxious as one player taunted the other mercilessly throughout the game. The only person on the show who came off as more of a wa**er than William (the eventual winner of the Jenga match) is Cuban himself.

I don't think I'll be watching "The Benefactor" again. It's not even good train-wreck TV. It's just not very interesting, and on the rare occasions that it becomes interesting, it's unpleasant. Maybe Richard Branson's show will be better ... otherwise, I'll just have to wait out the days between episodes of "The Apprentice." Curse you, Donald Trump!

I agree with those who say the show it bad...because it's bad. Cuban expects the competitors to read his mind and be things they're not. A really sad show.

That's really it. I could go on and talk about poor lighting and uninspired camera work, but those can be easily fixed. The show, because of its structure and host, can't.

I understand this program first showed up back in 2004, then dropped off the radar, and here it is again. I don't know what the early shows looked like, but I'm pretty sure I saw something new, and it wasn't good. It may be that Mr. Cuban is sharp in other areas, but here he misses out. It's good to know one's limits. I hope Mr. Cuban learns soon. ;)