Least shocking news ever: Creepy Lt. Andy Baldwin and his supposed beloved Tessa Horst from the last season of The Bachelor have called off their engagement.

I'll wait while you pick yourself up off the floor.

Yawn. I'd be more surprised if one of these relationships actually did work out.

This news got me to thinking about Age of Love and whether Amanda and Mark are still together. According to this interview, it's a yes, at least for now. (My favorite part of the interview is when they ask how she feels about all the controversy about her win -- all the people who think it shouldn't have been her. I read that question and was shocked that anyone actually cared that much about this show.)

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 12:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

Well, at long last, the "shocking finale" of Age of Love has aired. And was this ending really that "shocking"?

Not really: Mark picked Amanda, the 25-year-old hockey dancer, over Jen, the 48-year-old assistant to the Lakers owner. It really seemed like Jen might have won him over despite their 18-year age difference -- she is more outgoing and she definitely made more of an impression on his family. Jen and Mark definitely got closer over the course of the show, but he and Amanda had a connection at the very beginning. Still, Jen interviews that she thinks that Mark got scared and that "if I had been younger, I know he would have picked me."

So I guess kittens prevailed in this "cougars" vs. "kittens" scenario, but I still think the producers got exactly what they wanted -- a final two with one of each and a somewhat uncertain outcome.

Although I've been predicting for weeks that he would pick Amanda, and I definitely wasn't the only one.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 10:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

I had convinced myself that last night's was the final episode of Age of Love. Sadly, that was not the case, but two people did go home, albeit not under the circumstances you might expect.

First, Amanda and Maria went with Mark on a salsa-dancing date, the best part of which was Amanda saying she was freaked out because she was going to have to dance in front of people, while the caption "Amanda, 25, hockey team dancer" was printed on the screen.

Later, Megan was chosen for an individual date and had high tea with Mark. But she didn't know what to expect and ended up being a total little kid about the whole situation.

Lastly, he chose Jen for an individual date that was a carriage ride around L.A. and a dip in the pool. Afterward, they ended up back in his room, where they thwarted the cameras and turned off all the lights and had "massages." But in recounting the date to the other women, Jen wasn't sure whether the cameras could see and said they wouldn't be able to use most of the footage if they had recorded anything because it would need to be censored. Classy.

This sent Amanda into a tailspin about being in love with Mark but upset that he is doing all these other things with the other women, too.

Finally, Maria, after saying she was going to do it two other times, decided to remove herself from the competition because it wasn't working for her. This was only shocking because she actually went through with it.

Mark told the remaining three women that they were going to Australia to meet his family. Megan flipped out because she has a flying phobia. She tried to put it aside, but it was so bad that she couldn't get on the plane, and she ended up leaving the competition. Mark had told Maria that she wasn't going to be the one going home, so I think it's fair to say that Megan wasn't going to be in the final two anyway.

That leaves a final two of Amanda, 25, and Jen, 48. Of course. Because this show never would have worked if it had ended up that only the 20-somethings were left. I still think he will pick Amanda in case something weird happens, but the promos declare that if you think you know who's going to win, YOU'RE WRONG or something like that. So who knows.

I'm just glad it's almost over!

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 7:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
                    

So it's down to the final four on Age of Love, which I think means there is only one episode left. Yay!

Last night, Jayanna went home after Amanda told Mark that she had been making the younger girls question all their feelings. Mark felt like that was a mind game -- and though she claimed otherwise, it totally was -- and told her goodbye.

I'm not sorry to see her go. She was always lecturing everyone about being genuine and yet she always seemed so fake.

This leaves a final four of Megan (too young and immature and also told him she was having doubts), Jen (old enough to be his mother, literally, and other than all the kissing, it seems like she has her guard up), Maria (pretty hippy-dippy and threatened to leave twice already) and Amanda (totally the one he is going to pick).

I hope they don't try to do this show again because it really did not work, in my opinion.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 6:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

I'll admit to paying less than close attention to last night's Age of Love. (Can you blame me?) But here's the quick rundown on what went down:

The women had to compete in a triathlon, with the top three finishers getting to have a course of a meal with Mark. Amanda, Kellie and Jayana got that honor. Meanwhile, Tessa twisted her ankle and had to get medical attention.

Upon returning to the now-shared living quarters, the 20s and the 40s got into a little tiff, and Mary got upset and cried for the umpteenth time.

Later, the women had to play tennis in front of Mark, and the 40s dominated. But Tessa gave it a shot despite her ankle and ended up getting invited to Mark's room for some one-on-one time. But she started talking about how much Amanda likes him, and it creeped him out that she was playing matchmaker.

Before making the cuts, he spent some time with each woman, and I lost track, but it seemed like he made out with pretty much everyone. Blech.

In the end, Tessa and Kellie were sent home.

It's kind of pointless at this point because it's pretty obvious he's going to pick Amanda. I don't know why Mary is still around -- they have zero chemistry. Megan has been deemed "cute," which I think will backfire on her since he's called most everyone else "hot." I think eventually, the fact that Jenn is 18 years his senior is going to freak Mark out. Maria had already told him she was thinking of leaving, and I just haven't seen enough of him and Jayana together to think he'd go in that direction. (See above re: not paying 100 percent attention.)

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 7:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
                    

Forget Mark Philippoussis, the bachelor for whom 20-somethings and 40-somethings are vying on NBC's Age of Love. I want to see more of his puppy.

They use the adorable dog to Mark's advantage, letting it stay with him in his "bachelor suite" and occasionally accompanying him on dates. Every guy looks better with a puppy, right?

Anyway, against my better judgment, last night I watched the encore of last week's Age of Love as well as this week's new episode. Mostly, I could just feel my brain rotting, but there were a few moments of note.

Upon meeting Tessa, a particularly surgically enhanced member of the 20-somethings, Mark interviewed that he didn't remember anything she said because he was spending all his concentration forcing himself to not look down and gawk at her chest. (He didn't say gawk, but that's what he meant.) "I concentrated harder then than during some of my tennis matches." "Classy," I responded to the television screen. "At least he's being honest," my husband chimed in, out of his World of Warcraft reverie for just a moment.

In another moment of total awesomeness, Mark got in the hot tub with all the 20-somethings and there were what felt like five full minutes of total silence. He couldn't think of anything to say, and not one of the six women said anything, either. Finally, he said (and would say repeatedly during the two episodes) that he just wanted to get to know the women better so they should tell him about themselves. Smooth!

Also awesome was when the 40-something women saw the 20s for the first time. Jaws on floor is all I'm saying.

In the new episode, there were some other funny moments. The groups each had to plan a date for the other, and humiliation seemed to be the name of the game. For the 20s, the 40s planned a date at an indoor playground, where they had to play with little kids during a birthday party. It slightly backfired when some of the women got to show off their personalities (that is not a euphemism) and their caring and playful sides during the date.

Then the 20s sent the 40s on a date doing water aerobics at a recreation center. This also slightly backfired in that every last one of these women looked amazing in a bikini. Whoops.

After the group dates, one 20-something (Amanda) and one 40-something (Kelli) went on what they thought was going to be an individual date with Mark. But instead, they each had lunch while he had to rush back and forth between the tables. Whoever he was with when an hour was up, he would get to have dessert with one-on-one. At some point during the date, he decided he wanted to end with Amanda. But Kelli was crafty and as the time wound down, talked incessantly to the point that it would have been rude for him to interrupt her and get up. Then, he was about to make his escape with seconds left, she reached up and told him he had something on his face and basically held him there until the time ran out.

Which would have been fine if she had admitted that she was manipulating the situation, but no, she had to be all "Mark chose me!" about it afterward. That's some unattractive desperation right there.

40-something Maria also got a little alone time with Mark and felt like they didn't have a connection at all. She claimed she was going to go home since she didn't want to waste her time, but in the elimination, when he said he wanted to keep her around, she changed her mind.  

When it was all said and done, Lynn, who we hadn't seen much of, was sent home. The shocker was when Adelaide, who was acting so confident that she barely gave any attention to packing her belongings, was also sent home. She and Mark appeared to have some chemistry and had even kissed. But Mark added insult to injury when he said the reason he was dropping her was because the kiss showed they had no chemistry at all. Hope she eventually packed!

All in all, I am not saying that this show is good. I'm in mourning for my lost brain cells, but since I took this bullet for you, my readers, however few you might be now that American Idol is off the air, I had to at least find some amusement in it. 

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 8:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

For you, my dear readers, I have taken a bullet and watched Age of Love (the "cougars" vs. "kittens" dating show), so you don't have to.

In it, tennis star Mark Philippoussis, 30, goes on a dating show a la The Bachelor, thinking he's going to be cozying up with a bunch of girls who fit his previous dating past, which is to say hot and, almost always, younger than him.

So when he starts meeting the women and realizes they are in their 40s (except for one 39-year-old), he looks gobsmacked. But over the course of the episode, he starts to get more comfortable with the concept and gets to know some of the women. He has to eliminate one, and he goes for the woman with the 8-year-old son (rather than either of the two with sons in their 20s, which seems like it would be more uncomfortable, but whatever).

Meanwhile, a limo-full of 20-somethings (although there are a couple I suspect are lying about this) moves in, fully aware of what they are walking into, while the older women are still in the dark -- and Mark only has had the twist revealed to him in the last scene.

We haven't seen much of either group yet, but the 20s all seem really bratty. While the 40s definitely have a few moments of trying too hard and some plastic surgery procedures among them, they at least have some life experience to talk about beyond their own relative hotness. Frankly, if I stick with the show, I'm rooting for the older women. But if it gets too catty, I'm out!

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 11:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)