The Marriage Ref

Many people shouldn't be married. Some of these people get to star in the reality TV show The Marriage Ref .

The show, now entering its second season, is mildly entertaining in an let's-make-fun-of-the-contestants sort of way. Apparently at least one couple divorced after the show aired, and the husband claimed that appearance was the major reason (I heard this on a recent episode of Inside Edition, therefore it must be true).

I guess my biggest complaint is the panelists. In the two seasons the show has been on, there have been guests such as Alec Baldwin, Larry David, Madonna, Tracy Morgan and Kathy Griffin, all of whom have been through more than their share of marital strife. They have little in their resume to suggest they can arbitrate marital disputes. Basically they're on the show to pile on and rip on the contestants themselves, and probably feel a little better about their own relationship failures. The host, Tom Papa, is a glorified straight man, and the show was conceived by Jerry Seinfeld, who has the cache to get a network to instantly greenlight a series and book celebrity guests, but that alone hasn't made this a good series.

There are some new wrinkles this season -- an audience vote determines the rightest of the right, and that winner gets a billboard in their hometown proclaiming their rightness, which is kinda cool.

That said, despite an occasional funny moment here and there The Marriage Ref isn't must-see TV. I think Sunday night at 10 is becoming a good time to take advantage of shorter lines at Wal-Mart.