And by "average," Gothamist means the pretty girl chose the pretty boy. Not the sweet, stepping–over–his–words New Yawk–New Joisey boy Adam. When Melana said to pretty boy Jason, "I see a future with you," with a jet ready to whisk them away for a "vacation" to get to know each, it was clear it was more a future in the sack. Which does count for a future. Disappointing for the optimists, no matter how shallow we are, yes. But maybe a defeat for Average Joe means the world order is more stable than we thought. As the Times' Alessandra Stanley writes:
It is not impossible to find a heartening moral in the outcome. Adam, for all his gaucherie, is a successful trader (though the apartment he shares with a roommate, spartanly furnished with black leather couches and a wide screen television, did not suggest vast wealth). Jason is a waiter who lives at home with his parents while studying business and accounting. So Melana did not choose money over looks. She just chose looks. Or as she put it, "He's not only gorgeous, he's very sincere.
And really, is this betrayal any worse than Al Gore's snub of former running mate Joe Lieberman by supporting Howard Dean? The future is bright for Adam, though: While falling for Melana is not the most dignified thing, it couldn't be avoided in the hothouse NBC created, and now the reality TV watching world knows he's a "millionaire" (though one with a roommate in typical bachelor digs; maybe he's thrifty). Perhaps the sequel is "Average Joe with Many Shallow Girls Fighting For Him." Gothamist got swept into Average Joe fever for the obvious reasons: Rooting for the underdog is such sweet sorrow. Someone who also knows about sweet sorrow, and lots of it, Red Sox fan Lockhart Steele.
