The View

“The View” is ABC's Emmy award winning daytime TV show that has become the talk of the town. Barbara Walters, moderator Whoopi Goldberg, fellow comedians Joy Behar and Sheri Shepherd, and Elisabeth Hasselbeck, who is on maternity leave, are the regulars who sit and discuss the day's "hot topics". “The View” is never content to rest and they have been shaking things up since day one. Nothing is off limits and everyone is free with their opinions.  Politically, there are some polar opposites on the panel and it can get pretty heated as it did at election time.

Despite its awards, some people think the show has Jumped The Shark. What does Jumped The Shark mean? This terms was first coined in 1980s regarding television shows that peak, change a few things around to draw in viewers and then slip downhill to TV obscurity.  Personally, I think it's one of the best things on television and the best reason to have TiVo.  You never know what is going to happen, what the guests will admit in a moment of candor, or what argument will get heated enough that Whoopi will step in with her voice of reason.  It's like being out for coffee with 'the girls'.

“The View” started in 1997 and the format has been duplicated around the world since. New York Times' critic Caryn James thought the show’s distinction was that the women talking to each other on daytime were smart but still odd. I think it's real life - women with opinions who can argue and still respect each other when all is said and done.  I love it!