Common Sense Media Review
By Melissa Camacho
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Design competition has snarky behavior, lots of brands.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 10+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
American Dream Builders
What's the Story?
AMERICAN DREAM BUILDERS is a design-competition show that pits 12 celebrated builders and designers against each other as they attempt to impress with their skills and savvy. Each week the contestants are divided into two teams and are assigned a new project that requires them to renovate the space from the inside out within a limited number of days. On the day of the reveal, their work is judged by designer Nate Berkus, interior designer and TV host Monica Pedersen, and Eddie George, a former NFL pro and accomplished landscape architect. However, the folks who actually decide which team managed the best renovation is the neighborhood council, a group of local leaders, neighbors, and real-estate experts, who are concerned, in part, about the impact the makeovers will have on the community's property values. At the end of each episode, the judges decide which member of the losing team goes home.
Is It Any Good?
American Dream Builders offers the traditional building and design drama that one comes to expect from home-design-competition shows, including pressures to resolve seemingly unfixable space solutions, to work well as a team, and to meet deadlines. It also highlights issues that go beyond interior-design choices, including understanding the relationship between what to rebuild, how to design, and the impact these decisions have on the value of a property.
Some folks may find it interesting or fun, but it's the contestants, all of whom have well-established reputations in the building-and-design industry, who are the most colorful part of the design experience. However, because they're trying to protect their professional standings while working on these projects, they engage in lots of competitive and catty behavior. It certainly creates drama, but it's not always positive.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about reality competitions. Why do you think regular folks and designers agree to be on a show like this? What is the benefit of competing on a competition show if there are no prizes?
Do you think the designers and builders featured here act the same way when they're not on the show?
TV Details
- Premiere date : March 23, 2014
- Cast : Nate Berkus , Monica Pedersen , Eddie George
- Network : NBC
- Genre : Reality TV
- TV rating :
- Last updated : September 24, 2022
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