Reality TV has really taken off over the past few years. America loves to watch other people’s lives. There’s shows that are just made to follow other people’s drama. Some shows want to help people find their so called soul mates. Other shows have people who want to display their talents, whether they’re good or not.  Either way, there can be ups and downs while being a reality TV star.

Pros:

1) Everyone knows your name.

Before they were famous, they were just another person walking down the street. Now we can watch them on week nights for 30 minutes before we go to bed.

2) Opens opportunities.

These stars could have different offers like getting interviewed, write a book like Lauren did. (The Hills) Or have their own show, like Miss New York from Flavor of Love.

3) Money Money Money…

Usually after the first season and the show becomes a hit, then the money comes rolling in. Each cast member of the Jersey Shore gets paid $10,000 per episode just for smiling and fighting in front of the camera. Ain’t that a b*tch! (Snooki gets paid a little more.)

Cons.

1) Always in the public’s eye.

These reality star will rarely have privacy. They will always have to worry about how they appear to everyone else.

2) Possible loss of friends and family.

The price of fame can be high. The same people they had next to them in the beginning may be no where to be found at the end.

3) 5 minutes of fame.

Fame can be given to them just as fast as it can be taken away. If reality stars don’t use their resources to stay in the business, it will be over before they know it.

So the next time you watch your favorite reality stars, just ponder on the fact that in a year and a half from now they can become even bigger or become  nobodies.  Again!

It’s officially official: The Game is returning to TV in 2011 after their cancellation on the CW back in 2009.

The Game will be one of the only scripted shows that we have to look forward to (Queen Latifah is coming out with a sitcom called Let’s Stay Together, according to Clutch Magazine .)

It’s coming to BET which seemed like a bad move considering BET’s coontastic programming that they had in the past — case in point, Frankie & Neffe — but they redeemed themselves with me when they aired The Family Crews. I think this would be a good look for them with airing quality shows.

The Game was a great scripted show! I know my friends and I were engrossed and invested in the fictional characters of San Diego. We needed Derwin and Melanie to get back together, and we hated when Derwin cheated. We didn’t care for the whole Malik/Robin Givens plot line, but we wanted him to have a solid girlfriend. I was secretly happy when Jason played Kelly in the last episode when she assumed they were getting back together and he was still holding onto Stacy Dash.

Now for the sad news: Coby Bell, who plays Jason Pitts, won’t be on the cast as a regular, but he will still make appearances here and there, according to Black Voices. He landed a role on USA’s Burn Notice (hey, he had to get a job, right?)

Thinking of this great black sitcom made me reminisce of all the other great shows that we loved and miss. Here’s some clips to remind us why we need more diverse shows.

Living Single — the original Sex and the City and Girlfriends, Living Single makes me laugh each and every single time I watch. This is one of my fave episodes that shows how hard it is for us ladies when we try to have a good time.

People slept on My Wife and Kids, and, yes, Damon Wayans might have stolen a few lines from Bill Cosby, but this show had lots of laughs.

Again, with Terry Crews. Everybody Hates Chris was comedic gold. The cast worked perfectly together!  Bring back black TV!