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Review: The X Effect

 I will admit, quite honestly, that I wasn't even aware of the existence of "The X Effect", until I happened upon the MTV reality show, while flipping through the channels on one sleepless night. The network was airing back-to-back episodes, so I decided, out of curiosity, to watch.

"The X Effect" is an experiment, of sorts, involving a former boyfriend and former girlfriend who come to a romantic resort, along with their current significant others, with the exes expected to stay in a room for the entirety of a weekend. Supposedly, the purpose of throwing this pair into temptation is to discover whether or not they are really "over" each other and to see if they will remain true to their new loves.

Unbeknownst to them, the show has put their current boyfriend and girlfriend in another section of the resort, where they are required to stay holed up and to endure a torturous two days, spying on the people they thought cared for them, via hidden cameras and other forms of technical surveillance.

They even have to choose the activities their sweethearts do. For example, they might have the choice of having their partners get in a Jacuzzi together or have them take tennis lessons. Of course, the natural choice would be for them to put their lovers in the least enticing circumstances. There's a catch, though. They are only allowed to spy, if they choose the more threatening activity, which, of course, is the one they always decide on.

The current partners of the ex-couple must suffer, as they spend two days watching and listening to people who claim to care for them discuss their attraction to each other, flirt, touch, kiss and, sometimes, way beyond that. With it being a reality show, you can never tell what is feigned and what isn't, but it seems to me that the majority of those who are in the present relationships feel genuinely hurt and betrayed.

At the conclusion of the agonizing weekend, the ex-couple discover that their current loves did not leave, as they were originally told, but were, instead, watching what they did. The exes are given a chance to choose between their old relationship and their new one.

Those who believe that the fire was ignited between them and their former loves decide to go with the exes and those who want to continue on with the persons they are with now decide to stay with the current relationship.

In some cases, the persons who want to go back to their exes are floored to find out that, despite two days of sensuous shenanigans, their exes do not share that sentiment and reject them. I am pretty sure that many viewers derive a perverse pleasure when that occurs!

You get the feeling that, no matter who they choose, these relationships have been tremendously injured.

Is "The X Effect" manipulative and just a bit cruel? Most certainly it is.

Can you put the main blame on MTV, for creating this show? As uncomfortable as "The X Effect" made me feel, I would have to say, "No!"

One cannot dismiss the fact that both couples in each episode AGREE to participate in this show. The exes are aware that they are allowing themselves to be put into a compromising position and their current loves must know the risks involved. Any of them can refuse to put their existing relationships in jeopardy and walk away, but they give permission to set the wheels in motion.

This makes them, in my opinion, largely to blame for the outcome and puts into question how strong their relationships really are.

I admit that I felt both fascinated and repelled by "The X Effect" when I watched it. I expect that the conflicted feelings it produces in those who watch it are the very reasons many of them will keep coming back for more.
By: Ezriela Devereux
Published: 04/17/08


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