Jay Manuel | Through the Shattered Lens

Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model is the latest three-episode docuseries from Netflix. It takes a look at the history of the groundbreaking reality show that was once loved and which has since been declared problematic. It features interviews with some of the models, most of whom share some very harrowing stories about how they were treated while appearing on the show. (Shandi Sullivan’s story epitomizes everything that is exploitive about reality television.) Producer Ken Mock talks about how the show’s format was inspired by the first season of Making the Band. (Ken seems to be under the impression that O Town is currently a beloved cultural institution.) Jay Manuel talks about being a part of the show and how he was treated by Tyra Banks after he tried to leave. J Alexander talks about how, after he suffered a stroke, Tyra never reached out to him. Nigel Barker pretends to be ashamed of some of the challenges that he photographed and judged. We get clips of TikTokers watching the show during the COVID lockdown and complaining about …. well, everything.

Tyra Banks is also interviewed. The series paints Banks as a villain and yet, she not only consents to be interviewed but actually seem to enjoy it. That’s because Tyra Banks isn’t stupid. She apologizes without actually apologizing because she understands that a real apology would be seen as a sign of weakness, even by those demanding one. Even more importantly, she understands that reality television demands a villain. It demands someone who can say outrageous things with style. It demands someone that people will watch so that they can be shocked and scandalized. While being interviewed, Tyra mentions that she’s trying to put together at least one more season of America’s Next Top Model. If you look at the online reactions, you’ll find a lot of people and entertainment reporters who claim to be angered by her audacity but let’s be honest. If Tyra gets her 25th season of America’s Next Top Model, most of the people complaining about the show will watch. The sites that are currently posting lists of the “Most Disturbing Revelations From Inside America’s Next Top Model” will recap the entire season and post galleries of “Tyra’s Most Outrageous Looks.” They might complain about it. They would definitely make room in their reviews to post the usual litany of complaints. (To be honest, whenever I hit those paragraphs, I always skip over them because it’s always the same thing.) They might claim to hate the show but they would still recap it and they would still get the clicks and they would accept the money the comes from those clicks.

For all the criticism to be found in this docuseries, it was ultimately a commercial for America’s Next Top Model. There’s a reason why you can find the first sixteen seasons on Disney Plus, Hulu, and Pluto TV.

Oh yeah, I thought as I watched, I remember the crime scene photo shoot! Yeah, you’re right, that was totally insensitive. And the photoshoot were the girls had to pretend to have an eating disorder! That was so messed up! And which episodes were those again?

In the end this docuseries doesn’t so much inspire outrage as much as it inspires nostalgia for a time before outrage. Some people would consider that to be a good thing. Some people definitely wouldn’t. But the end result is the same. The viewer wants to go back and rewatch, either to bask in the nostalgia or to have an excuse to get angry.

As for the docuseries itself, it’s only three episodes long. The first episode and the first half of the second episode are effective. Then, the series falls apart as it tries to cram ten years worth of scandal and drama into the remaining 90 minutes. The interviews with Jay Manuel are interesting, though Jay seems to be even worse than Tyra when it comes to dodging responsibility for the show’s more infamous moments. (He says that he asked not to take part in a blackface challenge but, significantly, he did not threaten to quit.) My heart broke for Miss J and for Shandi Sullivan and for Dani Evans, the model who was ordered to close between her front teeth. There was so much wrong with America’s Next Top Model and yet, we’ll all be watching Season 25.

And if Tyra offers him enough money, she can probably get Jay Manuel back.

Cassie Steele, Mike Lobel, Miriam McDonald, and Shane Kippel in Degrassi Takes Manhattan

(Much as with my previous post, this review probably will not much sense to you unless you’re a longtime Degrassi fan like me. Sorry!)

One year after Degrassi Goes Hollywood, the third Degrassi movie was released. Degrassi Takes Manhattan was broadcast on July 9th, 2010 and, ratings-wise, it was a huge success. Not only did it bring TeenNick its highest ratings ever, it was the number one show viewed by teens that summer.

Why was it such a huge success?

Largely, it was because Degrassi Takes Manhattan served as not only the conclusion to season 9 but it was also the finale of Degrassi: The Next Generation. By the end of Degrassi Takes Manhattan, all of the original Degrassi: TNG plotlines had been resolved. Emma Nelson, who was the show’s main character for 6 seasons, married Spinner Mason. When the series returned for season 10, it would drop The Next Generation from its title and it would simply be known as Degrassi. All of the original characters would be gone, replaced with new students. Degrassi Takes Manhattan was a chance to celebrate what had been and a chance to say goodbye.

And yet, Degrassi Takes Manhattan remains very controversial among the Degrassi fandom. To be honest, a lot of people can’t stand it. My feelings on it are mixed, though I tend to like it more than some.

One of the big problems with Degrassi Takes Manhattan is that none of the original characters actually go to Manhattan. Emma, Manny, Spinner, and Jay all remain in Canada. Instead, the Manhattan portion of the film features Holly J. Sinclair (Charlotte Arnold), Fiona Coyne (Annie Clark), Jane (Paul Brancati), and Fiona’s creepy twin brother, Declan (Landon Liboiron). The New York portion of the film deals with Fiona, Holly J, Declan, and Jane all staying in a Manhattan penthouse and having various adventures in New York. As seems to happen to at least one Degrassi student ever semester, Jane launches a singing career. Holly J interns and falls in love with Declan. Fiona get jealous. It’s nothing all that interesting though it does feature the classic line, “This is New York Holly J, bitch!”

(Say what you will about the character she was playing, Charlotte Arnold was always great at delivering angry one-liners.)

Instead, the part of the film that everyone remembers is Emma (Miriam McDonald) falling in love with Spinner (Shane Kippel) and drunkenly marrying him at Niagara Falls. After Spinner and Emma first look into getting an annulment, they suddenly realize that they really do want to spend the rest of their lives together and they have a recommitment ceremony at the beach!

And it’s actually a pretty sweet scene. As someone who has watched every season of Degrassi, I liked the scene at the beach. It provided closures for a lot of characters. But, that doesn’t change the fact that it didn’t make any sense! In the 9 seasons that led up to Degrassi Takes Manhattan, Spinner and Emma interacted with each other a few times during the first season but, otherwise, they never had much to do with each other. The two of them falling in love came out of nowhere and, at the risk of being dramatic, it almost felt like a betrayal. Anyone who has ever watched Degrassi (and those would be the only people who would really have a reason to watch Manhattan), knows that Emma’s soul mate was Sean Cameron. As for Spinner — well, he dated pretty much everyone on the show at some point, with the notable exception of his future wife, Emma. I always thought he and Darcy made a good couple but, by the time Manhattan went into production, Shenae Grimes was starring on 90210 and presumably wasn’t available to return so that Darcy could get married.

(One thing I did like about the ceremony is that it was conducted by Jay Hogart — played, of course, by Mike Lobel. Jay, of course, was once responsible for Emma getting gonorrhea so it’s nice to see that she’s so forgiving. That said, Jay did look pretty hot all dressed up…)

In the years since this movie aired, snarky fans like me have been joking about how Spinner and Emma probably got divorced a week after the beach ceremony. But, as we all learned from watching the recent reunion episode on Netflix, Spinner and Emma are apparently still married! Well, good for them.

Anyway, controversy aside, I still liked Degrassi Takes Manhattan but, then again, I like anything related to Degrassi. As opposed to School’s Out and Degrassi Goes Hollywood, Degrassi Takes Manhattan is for hardcore Degrassi fans only.