On The Air: The Hero (2013)

So far, 2013 has been, to Hollywood anyway, the Year of the Rock.

Dwayne Johnson may have just lifted the title of "Hardest Working Man In Show Business" from the late James Brown. In the first 5 1/2 months of the year already, Johnson has been in 4 movies, headlined 2 WWE PPV's, and now serves as host/co-executive producer/narrator of The Hero, TNT's first foray into reality television.

9 contestants, including an aspiring pro wrestler and a New England Patriots cheerleader, compete for a million dollar first prize in this competition, which combines elements of past shows such as The Mole, Fear Factor, and the current SyFy series, Total BlackOut, at least in the opener.

Given all the bickering among the players in the opener, one can suggest that Johnson & company (ex-wife Dany is also an executive producer) also tossed in elements of MTV's long running Real World. However, this mishmash of diverse personalities are about as entertaining as a rainstorm, and that's just being kind.

Judge for yourselves, then, by scoping the trailer, uploaded by (wait for it) tntweknowdrama:



My brother works for a local newspaper, and said paper obtained a screener copy of the opener, which is how I was able to review the show before it went on the air. Sometimes, you can get lucky. On the other hand, if this bombs, it'll rank up there with "Tooth Fairy" as one of Johnson's less successful ventures. For what it's worth, Shaun Ricker, the wrestler, was recently signed by WWE. Hmmmmm........

Rating: C.