This is by far the worst season of worst cooks and I'm a die hard Food Network Fan. Over reacting (and acting). More slapstick than anything else. Carson was horrible showing his gayness and Chips star (glad I forgot his name) was obnoxious. I know they are B and C rated actors/comedians but give me a break it's not watchable. It doesn't even appear real. This insults us as viewers. Last season was great, this season, not so much. Hope next season is more entertaining and enjoyable. Sorry

I see quite a few writers who feel sorry for the contestants on this show. I do not. For starters, we all know that Americans will do anything for a buck, and the promise of $25,000 bucks is quite a carrot to dangle in front of people.As for their cooking skills (or rather the lack thereof), my mother started me learning to cook when I was eight. Nothing fancy, just things like hamburgers, hot dogs, fried eggs, etc. It is a life skill that IMHO should be taught to most children. At the very least I think that a kid should be able to put dinner on the table by age twelve; there's a lot of simple stuff out there that young people can learn to cook and have fun doing it too.One thing I have to point out which seems to be a constant on this show is people's reaction to fish and seafood in general. In a word, "EEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!!!!"Well I am sorry but I find this extremely comical; why Americans appear as a species to be intimidated by fish is a mystery someone will have to explain to me someday.As far as laughing at the contestants is concerned: they seem to accept it and I do think most grown-ups would have an idea as to what they are getting into.

As a home cook with restaurant experience, I really enjoyed this show. The only objection I have is the occasional exploitation of people who should not even have passed the audition. Some of the contestants have clear "issues" from the get-go which could have been respected prior to selection. I'm not talking about contestants who are just plain funny or klutzes in the kitchen. I am talking about those who are obviously troubled or challenged beyond following recipes.Beyond that objection, I enjoyed everything about this show, but I watched it on Netflix without commercials and could fast forward through repetitions and recaps. Big plus there. The educational value of the show for a novice cook is impressive. Consider that the viewer is getting food education from top chefs and food educators while being entertained. That's a win-win any way you look at it. But, it means you have to like working with food and feeding people good food. Just watching this as reality TV would get very tired because of the repetitive nature of the competitions. I myself would like to see all eight seasons on Netflix.

This series of programs highlights how really difficult it is to be a competent cook and is mildly educational, but it truly encapsulates the sad side of all reality shows. The competitors may not be the very worst cooks in this country, but they are true novices and the viewer learns more about how not to cook than about techniques that can be helpful in the ordinary home kitchen. Furthermore, there is hyped tension between the chef-instructors and among the competitors that is not as dramatic as on other reality shows, but that makes the viewer uncomfortable and is not entertaining.One may empathize with the pitiful people that are being humiliated, but there is nothing satisfying in their performances to offset the depression gathering over the weeks. These are like simple children who have been denied a mother's example for their whole lives -- not just in the kitchen, but in life. The chefs are somewhat interesting; but at the end of each hour, the viewer feels cheated. The idea may have seemed good on the planning board; but in reality, it is a true dud!