'Real World' actually gets real

This has also been one of the most manic seasons in "Real World" history -- episodes are now a full hour (as they will be next season), and they are dizzying, cramming a spectacular amount of story into each show. It's just halfway into the season, and already Joey has been shipped off to rehab and, in this week's episode, has returned. Brianna has faced a court date on a prior assault arrest. Kimberly has displayed what can only be described as bouts of casual racism, repeatedly calling Brianna "ghetto" and suggesting that her behavior is beyond the pale even for "Blackville," wherever that may be. Last week, there was a near-orgy in the hot tub (though it was played less salaciously than a similar one on the most recent season of "Big Brother"). And finally, in the confessional room, Will engaged in an act that did not appear to require the presence of his shorts with non-cast mate Reva, a woman who was dating Greg.

Why did Greg deserve this treatment? Because he is one of the oddest and most compelling figures in "Real World" history. From the earliest episodes, he distanced himself from his roommates, calling them "peasants" and sitting apart from them at meals. He pranked them, putting rocks in Will's bed and stealing Sarah's panties after she trash-talked him to a woman he'd brought back to the house. He calls women he's involved with "associates." He gets pedicures. "I am Greg, and I am perfection," he says. "I don't need these peasants." (He is the first "Real World" cast member to be chosen by an online vote, making him perhaps more of a wild card than producers could have anticipated.)

Though it is tempting to lump Greg in with the great "Real World" performance artists -- Puck from San Francisco, Coral from New York, Isaac from Sydney, and anyone who has appeared on more than three of the "Real World"/"Road Rules" challenges -- his naivete sadly outweighs his cynicism. He says things like "industry party" and "red carpet A-list event" with no irony whatsoever and skips out on some of the improv-comedy classes that pass for the cast's "job" this season so he can gain a toehold in the modeling industry, which is why he came to Los Angeles. "I love runway," he says. "It's my passion."