The Assistant is a reality television show that parodied other reality shows such as The Apprentice, The Bachelor, The Bachelorette, Survivor, American Idol, and Fear Factor. Its eight episodes originally aired on MTV. It featured comedian Andy Dick's search for a new personal assistant. The beginning of the first episode parodied The Bachelor, with the twelve contestants arriving in limousines, and Dick waiting outside to greet them with his maid and butler. A "rose ceremony" immediately followed, and one contestant was eliminated.
Dick assigned the Hollywood hopefuls to some absurd tasks such as pretending to be him in an interview with a Japanese television station, bringing him coffee by traversing on a beam over a swimming pool, breaking up with his girlfriend, and attempting to get him a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Contestants were usually "snipped" in elimination ceremonies parodying those on other reality series. Like some other programs, The Assistant also included double elimination episodes and brought back fired candidates. Driving home Dick's message that they were starting from the bottom, candidates slept in Dick's garage. He also woke them with a flashing, siren-generating alarm, was prone to tantrums, and griped that, "This reality show is ruining my life!"
Jewelry designer Liang Qiao Qiao's first job was to be the personal assistant of Jin Mo Qing, the blind president of the jewelry empire, and taking care of his daily life. Soon the couple fall in love with each other. However, things get complicated when Qiao Qiao discovers her boss's secret.
Qian Jing is a strong and independent woman, who was the only one able to take the position of personal assistant for the demanding CEO, Gu Yi. Soon, their relationship becomes not only professional but also romantic. The problem, however, is that nobody knows the true face of Gu Yi, who after a car accident, from being tender and understanding for a moment, can switch in a few seconds to being cruel and obsessive, especially towards Qian Jing. Soon, Qian Jing not only has to deal with her complicated feelings for her boss, but also her past, especially since her motives for becoming Gu Yi's assistant in the first place are not as noble as they might seem.
Pete's PA was a British reality television series that originally aired on Living from 8 October 2007 to 5 December 2007. The show followed musician and Dead or Alive frontman Pete Burns as he hunted for a new personal assistant. He was aided by celebrity PA Donna Coulling and psychologist Dr Rob Yeung. Filmed over ten weeks, the potential PAs were pitted against each other in a series of challenges. The ten episode contest concluded with a former criminal psychologist, Nicky, winning the competition.
A sudden tragedy brings the wife of an assemblyman out of her private life and forces her to confront family secrets and her own troubling past.