"Fat March" (2007) TV series

Seasons:

1 | unknown

Release Date:

6 August 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Reality-TV

Plot:

Twelve overweight people set out on a journey to shed pounds, get fit, and win $1.2 million.

Cast

Jeff Bartsch	...	Announcer (6 episodes, 2007)
Loralie Thomas	...	Herself (6 episodes, 2007)
Matt Anoai	...	Himself (5 episodes, 2007)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Company:

Ricochet Television

A great, inspiring new show from ABC!

ABC's new reality TV show, "Fat March" sends twelve obese Americans on a long walking journey from Boston, Massachussets all the way to the nation's capital in Washington D.C. Led on and encouraged along the way by two trainers, the marchers will struggle to reach their finish line within a limited amount of time and be able to win a portion of the 1.2 million dollar grand price. Each marcher starts with the possibility of winning $100,000, given that all twelve marchers reach Washington D.C. in time, a price that drops by $10,000 each time a contestant quits, is forced to quit or is voted out. All remaining marchers must reach the finish line in time for anyone to receive their price money. Divided into six tough stages, each stage ends with a vote-off; if the contestants feel that there is a weak link among them that might make reaching D.C. too difficult or just impossible, they might decide to vote him or her off sacrificing $10,000 from each marcher's price. Along the hard roads, through different cities and through all sorts of difficult terrains and weather, the marchers face different challenges that test their determination and willingness to give the best they have to give in order to achieve a goal not only for themselves, but for thirteen other people they grow fond of through the experience.

The first season of Fat March had Steve and Lorrie, the two trainers, with contestants Loralie, Matt, Chantal, Shea, Anthony, Sam, Michael, Jami Lyn, Wendy, Kim, Shane and Will on the long way to Washington D.C. Watching the twelve contestants and the two trainers from the very first episode made me grow fond of all of them as I watched them through their struggles in this unforgettable experience. Like in the best of fictional soap-operas and prime-time ABC shows, "Fat March" has drama, humor, emotion, frustration and everything else you can expect from a great TV show. The biggest difference here is that the "characters" are real, the emotions are real and the suffering is real. It is easier for me to grow fond of people that are real rather than the make-believe characters of say, "Desperate Housewives", and that's what makes watching "Fat March" so great for me. I remember feeling sad during the first vote-off and having to say goodbye to a heartbroken Shane, seeing Wendy feel like the struggle was too much for her and have to quit, and worst of all, Matt, one of the most inspiring and brave contestants of all, being forced to quit because of a serious knee injury. Besides the often touching emotions and the growing bonds between the marchers, there's that occasional annoyance at the "high school drama" which seems to always come from the contestant Anthony. Since the earlier stages he's had some sort of issue with someone, first Will, then a slight quarrel with Wendy and finally Chantal. When he was voted off at the end of the fifth stage, I felt bad that he was being asked to go, but felt even worse for Loralie and Chantal as they must have been filled with guilt, having been responsible for his being voted off. I was kind of relieved that he would not have a chance to give Chantal a hard time now that Will had been voted off at the end of stage four. Now that Anthony and, sadly, Matt are gone, perhaps we'll be able to see more of Shea, Michael and Sam, which so far seem to be less in the spot-light than the rest. In the end, "Fat March" is a wonderful show. Obesity is a major problem, not only in America, but for anyone who is suffering because of it, and "Fat March" shows you that perhaps with the right motivation and the right support and encouragement, anyone might find it in themselves to make their lives better. Definitely one of the greatest reality shows I've seen from ABC. I'll be watching this march to the end and hope to see many more future marches and marchers, though saying goodbye to great people like Loralie, Chantal, Matt... etc. will be hard. Great show!