Tony Robbins Flops in Reality Show Debut

I admit it, I’ve been a big fan of Tony Robbins for many years. Robbins has amassed an arsenal of methods that have helped motivate me and in general, helped me to be a better person- and for that I say, “Thank you Tony.” Having said that, why did I breeze past the new reality show, “Breakthrough With Tony Robbins” this week when skimming though the channels? Strange, I usually stop, look and listen to almost anything Robbins has to convey, however, something did not grab me when it came Tony’s latestTV endeavor and I wasn’t the only one not as much as setting the TIVO to record, “Breakthrough” earned a dubious “worst debuts” in NBC history.

If I had to venture a guess I would say the promotion leading up to the series was not that great, and a lot of times that is because the network, in this case NBC, did not really have much faith that the show would fair well, sometimes based on research the networks perform prior to the show actually airing to the general viewing public.

Another reason I think the show may have a “turn off factor” is the style in which it was shot, in general everything looks stark and Robbins looks kind of haggard, it would seem evident that the HD quality we have all become accustomed to- is not Tony’s friend.

Lastly, in reality show land it’s all about engaging the audience, folks want to goof on some participants and cheer-on others, viewers want to have a voice in the process, for example, being able to vote for their favorites to win, something, anything. Robbins’ format lacks that option, matter of fact the options are fairly limited as to how “you,” the viewer, fits in the picture at all.

Robbins remains optimistic about his future on network TV by recently Tweeting, “If not work @1st NBC try, try again.” Truth be told, you only get a three chances to make a first impression with the Networks and if ratings are not on your side by the third episode, they will drop you faster than a bolt of enlightenment.