If the idea behind “All-American Muslim,” TLC’s newest reality show, is to prove that Muslim-Americans are just regular folks, then, for sure, they have succeeded.
If the idea — the first reality show TLC has launched since the Ice Age that doesn’t involve people who procreate too much — is that Muslims can be as boring as anyone else, then you can consider this show a success.
If, however, they wanted to prove that a show about Muslim Americans can be entertaining, I think I’ll skip it.
Unlike reality shows where ethnicities such as African-Americans, and Italian-Americans are made to look like crazy, vicious house-pets, here, the producers (the folks behind “Basketball Wives,” and “The Real Housewives of New York City”) treat their subjects with such a hands-off respect, you might mistake the show for an Arab-American p.r. campaign.
That’s not to say it doesn’t have its moments. It does. For example, the whole show takes place in Dearborn, Mich., which happens to have the largest Muslim population outside the Arab world.
And the families highlighted are truly living the total American dream — just in hajibs (headscarves).
The premiere focuses on Shadia Amen and her fiancé, Jeff McDermott. He’s an Irish guy who grew up on the South Side of Chicago, and she’s a rebel Muslim single mom with more tattoos than Sandra Bullock’s ex. Yes, they are each breaking the molds in their cultures.
Jeff agrees to convert, which shockingly requires him only to read a couple of sentences in his future father-in-law’s living room pledging his belief that Allah is the only god. That’s it.
The other families include the family of a Dearborn high-school football coach; a hajib-free blond party planner who wants to open a nightclub; and Dearborn’s only Muslim deputy sheriff.
If you’re a fan of “Russian Dolls,” you may enjoy taking a walk on the not-wild side with these all-American Muslims.