We all know the driving force behind reality TV (and many things) is money, but no one is playing the money game better right now than Jo De La Rosa and Slade Smiley.

The Man on the Couch and I saw an ad for their new show while watching Wednesday’s episode of “Project Runway.” Fortunately, my satellite woes disappeared for the evening and we were able to catch the whole episode.

But back to my point. Jo and Slade don’t appear to want to be broken up. They still flirt as if they are a couple, he still wants to control her, and she still values his input. They have gotten one thing right.

After appearing on “The Real Housewives of Orange County,” the (former) couple saw a way to capitalize on their drama and create a spinoff reality show, “Date My Ex: Jo and Slade” on Bravo.

It’s entertaining, you find yourself hooked to the plot (if you can call it that), and The Man on the Couch said it best when he proclaimed that Slade is a greedy (expletive).

I personally think he’s creepy, too.

It’s all about money. It’s promotion for Jo’s music career and cash for Slade’s slimy wallet. That said, can we really blame them?

Of course not.

They’re just doing what every other reality show producer and contestant is trying to do by making it rich – in their case, richer – quick.

Now it’s time for some lucky Mainer to follow the same path. I’ve been pitching it for a few weeks, but the time is here.

Saturday marks Fox’s Eastern Maine Idol competition at the Bangor Mall. All the details, including how to register, are available on the Reality Bytes blog at www.bangordailynews.com or by visiting www.wvii.com.

The judges have all been announced, and in addition to yours truly, contestants will face WVII-WVFX sales representative Cyndi Simpson, Q106.5 afternoon news anchor Sarah Pelletier, and ABC-7 Fox Bangor news anchor Tony Consiglio.

We’re hoping that some of Maine’s most talented singers will make the trip to Bangor for a chance to score an “American Idol” audition.

adolloff@bangordailynews.net

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