Here Comes Honey Boo Boo: You Better Redneckognize!
There’s nothing wrong with a little guilty pleasure. We all have them, especially when it comes to reality TV. As much as I might roll my eyes at the Snooki baby frenzy or the Kardashians’ latest business venture, I’d be lying if I claimed to be any type of television purist. In fact, my interest in a TV show increases exponentially the more trashy and bizarre it is. I don’t know why us humans are wired in this sick way, but I think it has something to do with making us feel more normal about our own crazy lives.
I was experiencing a slight void in my life after Jersey Shore ’s latest season ended because it seemed that no show could live down to the low standards I have come to require in a reality show. That was until TLC came to my rescue and presented me with a wonderful, equally absurd alternative: Here Comes Honey Boo Boo.
The star of the show, Alana, a.k.a. “Honey Boo Boo Child,” first appeared on an episode of Toddlers and Tiaras (yes, I watch that too. I might have a problem) with her coupon-collecting, over-the-top mother, June. The peculiar duo apparently turned a lot of heads because they landed their own spin-off show shortly after, which follows their entire redneck clan in rural Georgia. The down-home crew consists of Alana, her three sisters, “Chickadee,” “Chubbs,” and “Pumpkin,” her mother June, and her spacey father “Sugar Bear.” Yes, those are their names.
The most fascinating part of the show is not watching the family bob for pigs’ feet or bellyflop in mud bogs, but the completely unfiltered conversations and commentary in between their unusual hobbies.
Here’s just a few of the best, most insightful quotes:
Mama judges the local yokels: “All that vajiggle jaggle is not beautimus.”
Chubbs prepares for her diet: “My mother has told me in the past that if you fart 12-15 times a day you can lose a little weight, so I think I’ll lose a lot of weight because I’m going to fart a lot.”
Sugar Bear takes a shower: “I smell like a bowl of oyster stew so I gotta get clean.”
I am not alone in this ridiculous indulgence either. The show has become such a sensation that it beat out the Republican National Convention in ratings a couple weeks ago, reaching almost 3 million viewers. I’m not sure what this means for the fate of our country, but it makes me feel better about my low-class taste in entertainment. This Wednesday at 10/9c, take a peek at TLC and give Honey Boo Boo Child a chance. Don’t worry, everybody’s doing it.
Watch a preview of the show below:
