Homemade Millionaire

 Review

Common Sense Media says

Female inventors compete to sell their wares on TV.
greenON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
yellowPAUSE: Know your child; some content
may not be right for some kids.
redOFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
not for kidsNOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age.

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Quality
 
Sometimes media can be age appropriate but a real waste of time. Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

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Parents say

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Kids say

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What parents need to know

Parents need to know that this competition-oriented reality series is generally fine for family viewing, although the show is engineered to sell products directly to consumers through HSN. All of the inventors are women, and the products they've invented tend to target female consumers. There's also some mild language (think "booty") and the potential for some products to touch on mildly sexy topics.

  • On one hand, the show highlights the concept that hard work (and a good idea) can pay off. On the other, many of the women's inventions address stereotypically "female" concerns, such as beauty, cooking, weight control, cleaning, and decorating.
  • The inventors have devoted a great deal of time, effort, and money to getting their inventions ready for the general marketplace. And while most of their products are hardly groundbreaking, there are a few surprisingly cool ideas.
  • Not applicable.
  • Some inventions might touch on mildly sexy topics, such as romance, etc.
  • Use of pseudo-spicy terms like "booty," etc.
  • The whole point of the show is to allow contestants the chance to sell their products directly to consumers via HSN. As a result, HSN -- and the products in the running -- gets a lot of exposure.

What's the story?

In HOMEMADE MILLIONAIRE, aspiring home-based businesswomen compete for a chance to sell their inventions to the American public via HSN, a 24-hour shopping network that also peddles wares on the Internet. Each week, host Kelly Ripa puts three new inventors in front of a focus group that gets to decide which two inventions will advance forward. After that, they each make presentations to a panel of judges, who ultimately decide whose invention has the most potential. Ripa also serves as the reality competition's executive producer, along with her husband, Mark Consuelos.


Is it any good?

 

Although reality contests about self-made inventors have come and gone, Homemade Millionaire is taking another stab at the familiar formula by making one curious modification: This show will focus solely on female inventors, presumably with a nod toward the increasingly popular trend of home-based businesses run by working moms. But will narrowing the competition's scope to such a specific audience appeal to anyone other than the women who aspire to be on the show someday? And, more importantly, are the bulk of these "inventions" really compelling enough to sell the idea that Homemade Millionaire is a must-see show? Edible baking cups are a good place to start. But, in the end, even Ripa's cheery on-air persona might not be enough to keep viewers interested in portion-control plates or self-sticking hot rollers.


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What families can talk about

  • Families can talk about consumerism and how partnering with HSN helps both the inventors and the home shopping network make money. Why is home shopping so popular? Are people more likely to buy something they see on TV or on the Internet than they would be if they were just out browsing at a store?

  • What does it really take to develop a new product that's never been on the market before? Does this show offer a realistic view of what it's like to try and convince investors that you've got a unique invention?

  • What's the best invention you've seen on the show so far? Would you buy it -- and do you think others would, too? What makes it attractive to you as a consumer?


This review was written by Kari Croop
Teen, 16 years old
March 14, 2011
 
This show wasn't amazing, but it wasn't horrible. It was just okay. I didn't find that any of the products were ground-breakingly amazing, but they were pretty cool. Overall, it was alright.

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Adult
November 22, 2010
 
Good for anyone to watch
I thought that there could have been much more variety in products and not just inventions that fit into a certain category. If a product is good lets see it!!!! Not just half baked ideas that make up the three women. Your really going to have to turn up the volume if you want to stay on the air.

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This review was written by Kari Croop
TV rating:TV-PG
Network:TLC
Cast:Kelly Ripa
Genre:Reality TV

This review was written by Kari Croop
 

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About our rating system
ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids.
OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
Learning ratings
BEST: Really engaging, great learning approach.
GOOD: Pretty engaging, good learning approach.
FAIR: Somewhat engaging, OK learning approach.
NOT FOR LEARNING: Not recommended for learning.

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