The Shahs of Sunset Simply Suck

All right. I will be the first to admit that I love a good guilty pleasure, especially when it comes to TV. I am an avid fan of multiple installments of The Real Housewives of… I am also a sucker for MTV’s battle royale, The Real World/Road Rules Challenge, regardless of the cast or ridiculous number. However, I do draw the line at a certain place, and that place is The Shahs of Sunset.

Anytime Bravo reveals plans for a new show, I’m all ears. It doesn’t always appeal to me after an episode or two, but I can usually eke out some appreciation for it, even if it’s not my favorite. I watch Top Chef in passing, but not religiously. I watch Project Runway when my friends are over, but I wouldn’t otherwise. The same can be said for It’s a Brad, Brad World and Nine by Design (is that even on anymore?). But when I laid eyes on The Shahs of Sunset, I knew it was going to be a trainwreck. Holy cow, was I right.

It’s literally as if Bravo decided to take the worst part of every reality show out there and combine it into one show. It’s the cluelessness of Jersey Shore meets the ungratefulness of The Real Housewives, added to the snobbery of Keeping Up With the Kardashians. I can handle any of these shows because not only do they have bad parts, they also have good parts. Moments that reward you for your time spent watching. For every crazyK Chloe has a funny way to throw it back in her face. For every all too real moment of violence on the Jersey Shore, there’s an unforgettable one-liner around the corner.

The Shahs of Sunset have none of this. It really is about a bunch of wealthy people who are snobs and sit around drinking champagne. It’s really unfortunate, because this cast is terribly unaware of the reality surrounding most of their community. Even the one shining sliver I had of hope for the gay Iranian (that just sounds like good TV, right?) was dashed when he opened his mouth and I realized I had no interest in hearing about his story.

Yet Bravo has recently renewed this show for a second season. Ugh. I shouldn’t have expected anything more from the creator, Ryan Seacrest, but I did…isn’t there some city that hasn’t been tapped yet that we could find some new housewives in? Houston? Chicago? Vegas? Anything?