Love 'em or hate 'em

As I watched Who's Still Standing tonight - it's getting to be a habit - I couldn't help disliking the main contestant. Which is probably unfair, of course. The poor guy was just trying to win some money. But he got on my nerves with trash talk and a generally acerbic attitude.

The night before on the show, the cute brunette contestant had me liking her a lot more. And not just because her skirt showed off some very nice legs, though that didn't hurt. (Call me sexist. Like I care.) She seemed modest about her ability and even admitted that she got intimidated by one of her opponents.

Both Ms. Sweet and Mr. Not So Sweet got through seven rounds before calling it quits, so both were reasonably competent. But it's weird how a few minutes on a game show can make somebody look very likable or downright unlikable. Maybe the most famous example was John Carpenter, the first million-dollar winner on Millionaire. He rubbed everybody the wrong way with a cocky attitude, especially when he mockingly burned an unnecessary lifeline on the final question.

But who knows? Most of the time Carpenter might be a downright charming guy. Do we really know anybody after seeing them under the lights for a few edited minutes? Of course we don't. But that won't stop audiences (including me) from making immediate and sometimes harsh judgments.