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Cheers: Morgan Spurlock's Life Swap
30 Days courtesy FX
Cheers to Morgan Spurlock for bringing back TV's best reality show (yeah, I said it), FX's 30 Days. The third-season premiere sent the Supersize Me documentarian back to his home state of West Virginia to spend a month working as a coal miner. He faced dangers ranging from split underwear to cave-ins and convinced his boss to take a long-overdue test for black lung disease (sadly, spots showed up in both lungs). Plus, he took a truly fair and balanced look at energy issues, interviewing both a coal-industry lobbyist and an environmentalist. Funny and moving, entertaining and educational, 30 Days deserves an Emmy or a Peabody or, most of all, more viewers.
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Jun 4, 2008 6:57 AM
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Cheers to TV Guide for pointing out how truly great "30 Days" is on a regular basis. Whether tackling issues like racism, poverty, alchoholism or steroids to name a few, it consistently shows both sides of the issue. Unlike many of the so-called documentaries of the past decade made by guys like Michael Moore, Spurlock seems to want to open the public's eyes to an issue and let them form their own opinions on the subject. The show doesn't represent a one-sided argument, here is my opinion - now you should agree with me!! I have anxiously awaited the return of "30 Days" since its final episode last season, and now I can't wait for next week's episode on the NFL star spending 30 Days in a wheelchair. Here's hoping that more people spend an hour of their week being entertained and informed by "30 Days".
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Jun 4, 2008 12:36 PM
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Hooray to TV Guide for touting this great show. It is always interesting and quirky. And as reader Melfman has already stated this show never tries to tell you what to think, rather it shows that there are 2 or more sides to everythng and encourages understanding of all sides.
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Jun 4, 2008 1:24 PM
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I completely agree with your assessment of 30 Days. Most of the topics he's done have been interesting, informative and balanced.
It's too bad he only has six episodes, but it probably takes six to seven weeks for research, preparations, completing the 30 days, and post-production.
Regarding the episode, there's no way I would work underground for eight hours a day. I wouldn't care if it's 100 percent safe (which it isn't), but that would freak me out to be a mile underground in dark conditions.
Finally, with next week's episode, I think Morgan should have also spent 30 days in a wheelchair, not just an NFL player.
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Jun 4, 2008 1:38 PM
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Love me some Morgan Sperlock. He really does a "documentary" instead of a political ad. I enjoy how he mostly presents information and data and lets the viewers make up their own mind on the subject.
I was a little disappointed in last night's episode. It was good, but other episodes were phenomenal - a Christian living as a Muslim, straight man in a gay world, living on minimum wage, or being in jail.
I don't agree with Spider-man about Morgan being in a wheelchair. I think a professional football player spending time in a wheelchair will be much more meaningful. Football players run the risk of this type of injury in every game, so I will be very interested to see Ray Crockett's experience.
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Jun 4, 2008 6:07 PM
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I think Spurlock said in an interview once that he has an agreement with his wife where he himself only undergoes the 30 days once a season. If he did them all, it would be way too much work, and time away from her/family, etc. However, I think he's supposed to be doing 2 this season (imagine the other one will be the season finale).
Agree with all of those before me -- this is a truly fantastic show, and I've eagerly awaited its return.
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Jun 4, 2008 9:47 PM
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He researches and does commentary in all of them plus the show is on a tight budget so he most likely does his month spending 2 to 3 months in research, getting proper permits, setting up who he will live w/ etc, staring in episode, post preduction.
Then does the same doing another 4-5 episodes at a time, w/freinds/ volunteers/ whomever is the star for that episode.
Don't be fooled the show has a very liberal slant and at the end of the episode it will show the star fo whatever episode leaning into Morgans way of thinking either through editing or a true change in beliefs.
Also, Morgans episodes are good but you already knows what he believes so sending him to learn the gay lifestyle will not be as powerfull as a Christian man learning what the gay lifestyle is and becoming more tolerant.
In the next few weeks as the episodes infold and they become more tolerant and accepting of whatever situation that is the magic of the show...Spurlock episode is just him preaching that the system sucks and he will always rig the episode if it is not going in the direction he wants (last year he was survivng on minimum wage unil he want to the emergency room a couple times)
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Jun 5, 2008 7:29 AM
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