By Jen Houston
It’s easy to disregard Paris Hilton’s My New BFF as just another silly reality show about sad wannabes competing for their fifteen minutes of fame. There’s little doubt that the winner has already fallen out of touch with the jet-setting starlet, and has settled into a form of pseudo-fame in her hometown of Anywhere, USA. With that said, there is something truly special about this reality series. As this is a competition about being a true friend, the backstabbing alliance-plotting that pervades other shows is cause for dismissal on My New BFF. Attention-seeker Onch was rightly booted by Paris for being too dramatic, and the poison-tongued Zui was eliminated after making threats to stab another contestant. New York’s Natasha was overconfident, with a bad attitude from the beginning, and Miami’s Kiki walked all over the nicer girls, securing herself a flight home on last Tuesday’s episode. It’s refreshing to finally see a series where the honourable flourish and the meanies drop like flies. For example, while snotty Sinsu was eliminated for drinking too heavily, kind-hearted Kayley (granddaughter of Clark Gable) has thus far escaped elimination, despite her embarrassing displays at several social events. Never before has a reality show judged contestants so heavily on their actions towards each other. While the challenges may be superficial, most of the decisions to eliminate contestants have been rooted in solid reasons to disassociate from a friend. My New BFF lets scrappers and boyfriend-stealers know that this is not acceptable behaviour; so the series could result in a much-needed change to more cordial relations amongst young women. It’s so rare to see a contest where being nice gets you somewhere; bravo Paris!

Paris Hilton’s My New BFF airs Tuesdays at 10PM on MTV Canada