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By Kenny Herzog
Special to MSN TV
It wasn't shocking when Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag (aka Speidi, aka White-Cheddar Beard and His Cosmetically Enhanced Lady Friend) became instant antagonists on NBC's "I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here!" But it did cement the duo's -- and in particular Pratt's -- status as iconic reality villains.
It's a tradition that dates back to the halcyon days of semi-scripted TV. Or
in other words, early seasons of "The Real
World." And truthfully, these programs' delicate dynamics are as much a
reality of human nature as they are camera-crew-induced claustrophobia. Anytime
a small group of disparate individuals are quarantined inside alien boundaries,
one of them is bound to rise like a phoenix of fury, simultaneously instigating
and collapsing alliances and making the genre eminently
watchable.
Related: Reality TV School | Photos: Jon & Kate Gosselin
Below are some of the reality competitors we've loved to hate, with a qualitative breakdown of their evil ways, innocent victims and whether they ultimately cut the mustard as a prime-time evildoer.
Who: Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth
Shows:
"The
Apprentice," "The Surreal
Life," "The
Celebrity Apprentice"
Method of villainy: Craving
control, insulting other peoples' performance, inflaming contestants' ire by
maintaining an icy-cold demeanor, misconstruing common colloquialisms for racist
creeds.
Her favorite victims: Ereka, Tammy, Piers Morgan, Janice Dickinson.
Real villain or
impostor: If the former political consultant was really secure in being
a powerful woman who went from "the projects to the White House," it's highly
doubtful she would have sought breast-enhancement surgery and a
credibility-slaughtering appearance on "The Surreal Life." Impostor, we say!
Who:
Puck
Show: "The Real World: San
Francisco"
Method of villainy: Leaving booger residue
on walls, belittling roommates to feel better about being an unloved bike
messenger, eating out of the peanut butter jar with his fingers.
His
favorite victims: Well, everyone more or less got a turn. Cory was
taunted for her naiveté, and Rachel even got momentarily charmed into thinking
she could change his childish ways. But alas, Puck's favorite subject of torment
was AIDS sufferer/neat-freak Pedro Zamora, proving yet again that bullies only
exist by preying on targets that confirm their cowardice.
Real
villain or impostor: Were it not for his endless needling of the
fatally ill Zamora, Puck would have fallen in the latter of these two
categories. But suffice to say, he will have to bear the burden of his misguided
antics in a very real way.
Who: Lacey Conner
Shows: "Rock of
Love," "Charm
School"
Method of villainy: Mostly a lot of mind
games and manipulation, all made easier since other contestants were a decade
younger than the industrial-metal vocalist/animal-rights activist. OK, and there
was occasional tossing of a fellow competitor into a pool.
Her
favorite victims: Heather, Dallas, Jes, the entire cast of "Charm
School."
Real villain or impostor: In the sense that Lacey
is clearly an intelligent, matured participant who strategized her way to the
near-finale of "Love" and "Charm," not so much. Although her success in
disrupting other girls' composure and playing a hand in their eventual departure
is worthy of honorary-villain status.
Who: Dustin Diamond
Show: "Celebrity
Fit Club"
Method of villainy: Like some nerdy,
portly hybrid of Lacey and Omarosa, the "Saved by
the Bell" vet turned amateur porn auteur predominantly sought to get a rise
out of his cast mates, forgetting that "Fit Club" was largely a team-based
concept. Refusing to follow the exercise routines, demeaning participants behind
their backs -- at one point referring to a synthetic replica of his phallus and
suggesting, "I might give one to Kimberley Locke. She needs one." -- and
performing cruel imitations of competitors like Cledus T. Judd were all part of
Diamond's rough persona.
His favorite victims: Kimberley
Locke, Cledus T. Judd, Maureen McCormick, Harvey Walden.
Real
villain or impostor: It was fairly transparent that Diamond used "Fit
Club" as a vehicle to dismantle his Screech anti-mystique rather than lose
weight and make new friends. But he also managed to publicly humiliate several
of his peers in the process, so in that lack of respect, he's worthy of vaguely
villainous recognition.
Who: Spencer Pratt
Shows: "The
Hills," "I'm a
Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here!"
Method of villainy:
Allegedly spreading rumors of a Lauren Conrad sex tape, forcing his
fiancée, closest friends and immediate relatives to choose between him and L.C.
(in addition to anyone else not named Spencer or Heidi); sprouting unacceptable
facial hair; signing up for a physically and emotionally challenging reality
show set in the jungle ("I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here!"); and immediately
crying foul at the conditions with declarations such as, "I'm too famous, I'm
too rich and I'm out of here."
His favorite victims: Lauren
Conrad, Brody Jenner, Holly Montag, Stephanie Pratt, Heidi Montag, Heidi's
parents, millions of viewers.
Real villain or impostor:
Despite his background as an overly privileged, prissy, luxury-car-cruising
California boy, Spencer is about as authentic a reality villain as they come.
Unlike Diamond, who at least developed his televised alter ego to reverse an
equally unfortunate public perception, Pratt manifested his Spencer the Saboteur
shtick simply to procure any level of fame and attention, regardless of whether
it forever stained his likeability and integrity.
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Who: Marguerite Perrin
Show: "Trading
Spouses"
Method of villainy: Move over, Patty
Smyth, because this dark-sider-fearing, Jesus-invoking missionary proclaimed, "I
am the warrior" during a particularly memorable rant. And by rant, we mean
veritable exorcism of Christian fury. Which would come to represent her chosen
outlet for terrorizing anyone in her path.
Her favorite
victims: The Flisher family, Abasi, her own husband and kids, bystander
camera crews.
Real villain or impostor: You watch the look
on her youngest daughter's face during the below clip and tell us. Demon, be
gone!
Who: Jon Dalton, aka Jonny
Fairplay
Shows: "Survivor:
Pearl Islands," "Survivor:
Micronesia"
Method of villainy: Lying about dead
relatives, using the antagonistic charisma honed in his wrestling career to
unapologetically aggravate and connive.
His favorite
victims: The entire "Pearl Islands" cast, Jeff Probst (who has been quoted as calling him
"despicable"), beloved grandmothers everywhere.
Real villain or
impostor: From the beginning, the Fairplay character was an extension
of Jonny's in-the-making, squared-circle persona. So while it was pretty, well,
despicable to coerce his "Pearl Islands" compatriots into sympathetic tears,
Jonny's ruse was less villainy than remarkably controlled performance.
Who:
Jason Mesnick
Show: "The
Bachelor"
Method of villainy: Careless wedding
proposals, public dumpings, forcing overwrought tears atop
balconies.
His favorite victims: Melissa Rycroft, his son Ty
(Jon and Kate aren't the only reality vets who should be questioned for their
parenting), anyone standing below the aforementioned balcony.
Real
villain or impostor: Actually just a bastard. But ask any woman in
America who sat through that season's finale and witnessed Rycroft get
unceremoniously dispatched in favor of runner-up Molly Malaney, and their eyes
will likely singe with the hellfire of a million scorned significant
others.
Who's your favorite reality-TV villain? Write us at heymsn@microsoft.com and let us know. Follow us on Twitter: @MSNtv
